A groundbreaking ceremony was held Tuesday at the Youngstown Air Reserve Station to officially kick off construction of the new main gate complex.

To help break ground, a group of distinguished guests were invited to attend, including representatives of the 910th Airlift Wing, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, JobsOhio, YARS community partners and the building contractors. 

The gate relocation is a military construction project that will cost approximately $11 million and was allocated in the 2019 federal budget. It will be a high security, anti-terrorism complex and will include a visitor's center. 

Representatives from the Youngstown Air Reserve Stations say the new gate will give them better visibility of who's coming to the base and will feature updated advancements for vehicle screening. They also say the new layout will have better protection for the security forces that are manning the gate. 

The general contractor for the project is Coates Construction of Niles, Ohio. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers - Louisville District will oversee the project through completion then hand the new main gate complex over to the Air Force Reserve.

Construction is expected to be fully complete by August 2025.