<\/p>\n
The 16th Air Force headquarters on Security Hill at JBSA-Lackland.<\/p>\n
U.S.Air Force photo<\/p>\n
A look at the 16th Air Force complex from the air. The building sits on a slightly elevated part of Joint base San Antonio-Lackland that is often called Security Hill. The 16th is in the building on the lower left hand side of the photo.<\/p>\n
U.S. Air Force<\/p>\n
A\u00a0rendering depicts an\u00a0aerial view of\u00a0Port San Antonio\u2019s concept known as\u00a0the Defense Industrial Research Campus of\u00a0the Future.<\/p>\n
Port San Antonio<\/p>\n
The Pentagon has thrown a curveball at Port San Antonio<\/a>\u2019s quest to lure<\/a> the Air Force\u2019s cyber headquarters from its crumbling buildings for a new, $1 billion-plus campus<\/a> at the port.\u00a0<\/p>\n The week before the port\u2019s board committed $1 million for predesign work on the project, the Army Corps of Engineers put out a call for proposals<\/a> to build a facility at the unit\u2019s current location on Joint Base San <\/a>Antonio<\/a>–Lackland\u2019s<\/a> Security Hill<\/a>.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n The competing program seeks bids to develop a $986 million \u201cMulti-Domain Cyber and Intel Operations Center\u201d for the 16th Air Force<\/a>, also known as Air Forces Cyber, that would support 3,500 workers.\u00a0<\/p>\n RELATED: Port San Antonio approves $1M for efforts to lure Air Force cyber hub<\/a><\/p>\n Port officials declined to comment about the Army Corps proposal and said they\u2019re continuing discussions as part of the agreement they signed with the Air Force in May to \u201cexplore planning and development efforts for potential off-base solutions that could support (Air Force) missions.\u201d That was about a month before the port\u2019s approval of predesign money.<\/p>\n San Antonio Express News Logo<\/p>\n Make us a Preferred Source on Google to see more of us when you search.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Add Preferred Source<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n Like the port\u2019s pitch, which promises a new facility cheaper and faster by using an intergovernmental support agreement instead of the traditional military construction process, the Pentagon\u2019s solicitation also seeks to use nontraditional methods.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n According to a Corps presentation<\/a>, the cyber hub would be one of its first projects to use a \u201cprogressive design-build\u201d approach, which allows a vendor to be selected before design is complete. Then the government and vendor would negotiate the final details and price of the project in a setup that is more akin to private-sector deals.<\/p>\n READ MORE: Air Force scuttles plans to raise the status of its San Antonio cyber hub<\/a><\/p>\n The Corps also plans to use an \u201cOther Transaction Agreement,\u201d a contracting method that falls outside of federal acquisition rules and has been increasingly used for high-tech and classified programs, often dealing with drones, autonomy, missiles, space, artificial intelligence and cyber.<\/p>\n Using that method allows more flexibility for the Pentagon and its vendors, but it means less public transparency and fewer taxpayer protections.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n<\/p>\n