America's North Shore Journal

It’s not a joke. The specs that have grown out of the ADA will make the lives of some seniors in Iraq much easier.

February 12 was a day of celebration in the 4,300-year-old city of Irbil in the northern Kurdish region of Iraq. The Kurdistan Regional Government, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Gulf Region Division and contract partners gathered to celebrate the completion of the Irbil Orphanage and Senior Center.

The new facility provides a home for some of the city’s most vulnerable citizens and stands on the site of the old substandard orphanage, built in 1967.

Although the local Kurdish society is traditionally built on extended family support networks, the instability in Iraq during the past decade has disrupted that social network system. The Kurdish Regional Government determined that it must take a more active role to both provide a safe living environment for these special needs residents and offer them rehabilitation programs to ensure that they can integrate into society as contributing citizens.

The new $3.7 million facility has almost twice the capacity of the old orphanage and can accommodate 250 boys and 250 girls in separate dormitories. One hundred destitute senior citizens, who have no alternative means of support, will also live at the new center. Assisted living is a new concept for the region, and planners consider it a logical combination to have homeless children share a facility with senior citizens.

“In the United States, we’re starting to see day care centers on assisted living properties because seniors and kids get along well together,” according to Gary York, the area engineer for the Gulf Region North district’s Irbil Resident Office.

The new facility also has a unique look and modern functional design. At the heart is the multipurpose room, surrounded by six three-story resident halls. The buildings were designed so that the small children’s playground is located in front of the seniors’ home. Other conveniences for the senior center include a hydraulic elevator, extra wide doors and handicap-accessible tubs and showers.

“The Americans with Disabilities Act is of course unfamiliar to the Iraqi people,” York said. “However, there are many features required by the act built into the new facility.” Those features include fire alarms, high-quality hardware and kitchenettes in each resident facility.

“Many responsible individuals and companies from the local area have made generous donations for equipment and furnishing. There is no greater service to your country and community than helping the underprivileged,” York said.

The general contractor for the project was the Zeezna Company.

“The Corps of Engineers was offered a unique opportunity to partner with the Zeezna Company to build a facility that serves such a noble cause: the care of Irbil’s orphans and senior citizens,” explained Col. Margaret Burcham, commander of the Gulf Region North district. “We have taken that opportunity to create a structure that is both beautiful and functional and one that serves as a lasting testament to USACE’s commitment to the reconstruction efforts in Irbil.”

“This project represents tremendous efforts by dedicated people who have worked together to make a difference in the lives of these special citizens of Irbil,” she added.

Other amenities constructed on the orphanage site include a playground, swimming pool, soccer field, guard house, administration building, garden lot, exterior water tanks and parking lot.

USACE’s Gulf Region Division has completed more than 4,400 projects in Iraq, valued at nearly $7 billion. These projects are helping meet the basic needs of the Iraqi people by providing essential services like electricity generation, clean water, sewage treatment, schools and medical facilities.

MNF-I
By Mike Scheck
Gulf Region North