In a change-of-command ceremony whose roots date back to the Roman Empire, Col. Jeffrey M. Hall, retiring commander of the Savannah District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, passed the Corps’ colors to incoming commander Col. Thomas J. Tickner Friday morning at the Hyatt Regency Savannah.
Brig. Gen. Donald E. Jackson Jr., commander of the Corps’ South Atlantic Division, commended Hall for his work with the Savannah Harbor Expansion Project, which Jackson called “one of the most important civil works projects in the country.”
“Col. Hall has led the effort to bring together a diverse constituency to continue moving this important project forward,” he said. “Under his watch, the Savannah District has continued to lead the Corps in its exemplary level of customer service.”
After ticking off a laundry list of the district’s accomplishments in Hall’s three-year tenure, Jackson also offered Hall his tongue-in-cheek congratulations for calling in the rains and finally ending the drought Georgia has suffered through for the last few years.
“Thanks, Jeff,” he said, laughing. “You can stop now.”
As Savannah district commander, Hall led a 1,200-person military and civilian team, executing an annual military construction and civil works budget of more than $2.5 billion. He was responsible for statewide wetlands protection as well as water resource activities in eastern Georgia and portions of South Carolina.
He also was responsible for the maintenance of Georgia’s two deepwater ports in Savannah and Brunswick, which contribute more than $66 billion in economic impact annually.
During his three years in the Savannah District, Hall oversaw 635 civil and military projects with a combined $4.5 billion budget and welcomed the secretary of the army’s long-sought record of decision on harbor deepening.
A veteran of 29 years of Corps service, Hall called his time in Savannah “the best job I’ve had in my entire career.”
“I can’t believe how fast these three years have gone,” he said.
“When I came here, Savannah had a reputation as the quietly capable district,” Hall said. “There is nothing like difficult and challenging times to determine the quality and character of the people around you. I remain humbled to work side-by-side with the talented and determined professionals of this district.”
Hall called his successor “the right person in the right place at the right time.”
“The Army knew what it was doing when it sent Tom Tickner here,” he said.
Especially when it comes to harbor deepening.
Tickner, whose most recent posting was as military assistant to the assistant secretary of the army for civil works, served as commander of the Corps’ Philadelphia District, where a deepening project with the Philadelphia Regional Port Authority on the Delaware River faced many of the same challenges as Savannah’s.
Tickner told the assembled group he has watched the Savannah District from afar and admired its accomplishments.
“Your reputation proceeds you,” he said.
“I look forward to working with you.”