The mission of the Southern California Area Office is to support its five Resident Offices in the construction of military projects. The mission includes construction of research and development test facilities, as well as the more standard projects. The Area Office also has responsibility for development of the Resident Management System (RMS), a quality management and contract administration system selected by Headquarters, Corps of Engineers, to be the basis for automated information systems at field offices throughout the Corps.
The Office Engineering Branch provides expertise in contracting and contract negotiations. It processes contract modifications, keeps track of funds, and handles claims against the Government.
The Technical Support Branch solves engineering problems during construction, checks contractor submittals for correctness, and reviews designs for new projects. It provides a valuable backup for quality assurance efforts in the field.
The Resident Management System (RMS) Technical Center of Expertise is located in Apple Valley, California, and provides continued technical support for the current users of RMS throughout the Corps of Engineers.
The Area Office also includes a Budget Analyst Officer responsible for assisting Area and Resident Office supervisors with program, administration, financial, personal and material needs.
Because of the high profile test mission at Edwards Air Force Base, the importance of the Army’s National Training Center at Ft. Irwin, and equally important missions at Vandenberg AFB and all of our other sites, the Southern California Area Office mission is complex, challenging, and of vital importance to the Los Angeles District and the nation.
Southern California is a unique and diverse region which includes the tallest mountain in the continental U.S., Mount Whitney at 14,505 feet, and the lowest, Death Valley at 282 feet below sea level.
The city of Palmdale is located in the Antelope Valley, 60 miles north of Los Angeles and about 2,600 feet above sea level. Its climate is desert, with a rainfall of about eight inches per year. The Valley was rarely visited until the completion of the Southern Pacific Railroad in 1876. The town of Palmdale was founded in 1899. The initial growth of the town resulted from an agriculture and land boom. In the late 1800’s Swiss and German families migrated to California and started farming in the Palmdale area (then called “Palmental”) where the land was cheap. Gold and borax were discovered in 1894, and by the early 1900s came extensive plantings of alfalfa hay.
Aerospace has had a large role in the Antelope Valley since the 1930s. In addition to Edwards Air Force Base in Lancaster, Air Force Plant 42 in Palmdale maintains some of the largest and most sophisticated aircraft assembly facilities in the world. Mojave Airport is the US’s largest training facility for civilian test pilots, as well as a major salvage point for civilian aircraft.
Highland is located in the San Bernardino Valley, approximately 65 miles East of Los Angeles. Nestled against the beautiful San Bernardino Mountains, the City of Highland offers an ideal business and residential location in the Inland Empire of Southern California. Highland takes great pride in being one of the most desirable communities in which to live in the Inland Empire, with low crime, high safety, and an emphasis on community beautification. Highland also offers many exciting recreational areas. Flanked by the often snowcapped peaks of the San Bernardino and San Gabriel Mountains, Highland is close to an array of skiing and other mountain recreational opportunities. The community is also only 45 minutes from Palm Springs and is located close to all of the Southern California's other cultural and recreational attractions.
For more than 50 years Edwards Air Force Base—home of the Air Force Flight Test Center—has been the home of more major milestones in flight than any other place on earth. Covering nearly 301,000 acres, Edwards is located approximately 100 miles North of Los Angeles in the Mojave Desert, adjacent to the largest dry lakebed in North America—Rogers Dry Lakebed. Edwards' focus today, and in the future, is summed up in the Air Force Flight Test Center's motto: "Ad Inexplorata ... Toward the Unexplored."
The City of Corona is located approximately 45 miles southeast of Los Angeles in western Riverside County. The City limits encompass 38 square miles and the population is approximately 145,195. A city whose heritage spans more than a century, Corona has emerged as an ethnically diverse community, where a significant percentage of the population is made up of young, well educated families.
The Corona community boasts many amenities that provide a first-rate quality of life for residents. The City has more than 394 acres of parks, with sports fields, basketball courts, playgrounds, tennis courts, two skateparks and an outdoor pool.
Vandenberg Air Force Base is headquarters for the 30th Space Wing. The 30th manages Department of Defense space and missile testing, and placing satellites into polar orbit from the West Coast, using expendable boosters. Vandenberg is located on California's "Central Coast" about 150 miles northwest of Los Angeles. Vandenberg and central California's coastal residents consider their environment mild. The 150 square mile area midway between San Francisco and Los Angeles is surrounded by the Santa Ynez Mountains, the Pacific shore, and ranches of northern Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo Counties.
Fort Irwin & the NTC is a world class training center for America's Soldiers, known for its excellent desert training, vast recreational opportunities, and history. More recently, Fort Irwin has deployed several thousand Soldiers. Caring for their families, as well as the well-being of all Soldiers, civilians and their families, is of utmost importance. It is located approximately 150 miles northeast of Los Angeles, near Barstow, CA, in the Mojave Desert. Its remote location is ideal for the training that takes place there.
Located approximately 12 miles east of downtown Los Angeles, El Monte is the hub of the San Gabriel Valley, where two major freeways—Interstates 605 and 10—intersect and is the ninth largest city (out of 88) in Los Angeles County with a population of approximately 120,000. As the San Gabriel Valley continues to grow so does the City of El Monte through new businesses and quality housing. Many public improvements are underway to provide an attractive and safe environment for its economic growth.
San Diego is a coastal Southern California city located in the southwestern corner of the Continental United States. As of 2005, the city has a population of 1,256,951. It is the second largest city in California and the eighth largest city in the United States. It is home to miles of beaches, a mild Mediterranean climate and 16 military facilities hosting the United State Navy, the United States Coast Guard and the United States Marine Corps.