The U.S. Army anticipates major cuts to brigade combat teams, which sets up the country's largest military base for a big hit. Now, Fort Bragg is considering what recommendations to make when downsizing. And they're opening the process up to public input.
"At the end of the day, our responsibility is to make sure we have trained and prepared soldiers ready to go out the door, regardless of what decisions that might be made higher than here at Fort Bragg," says base spokesman Ben Abel.
Fort Bragg could stand to lose 16,000 jobs.
Michael Lynch who handles military relations at the Fayetteville Regional Chamber says, with families, the cuts could be an exodus of 30,000 people from the area. Lynch says there will be more than an economic impact, however.
"These are members of our community," said Lynch. "They're people who live in the community and their families are contributing members of this community."
Fort Bragg and Army leaders will host a listening session at 9 a.m. Thursday and answer questions from the audience at the local Embassy Suites. Public feedback is critical, Abel says.
"We definitely need members of the community to participate both in person and hopefully virtually as well."
Submit inquiries and feedback on Facebookor Twitter at #BraggPEA.