U.S. Marines and Sailors with I Marine Expeditionary Force and Marine Corps Installations West joined forces with U.S. Navy Seabees and civilian contractors across several West Coast installations to conduct Operation Clean Sweep II from March 24 to April 11, 2025.

OCS II, the second deliberate maintenance stand down since the Barracks 360 Reset initiative began last year, built upon the success of the first iteration by investing additional time, training, and resources into sustaining improved barracks conditions and expanding improvements to additional locations.

“This isn’t a quality-of-life issue. It's a matter of operational readiness,” said Lt. Gen. Michael S. Cederholm, commanding general of I MEF. “What we do and the demands we place on our uniformed Marines and Sailors each day is incredible. They need quality barracks to reset, refit and get ready to do it all again tomorrow.”

Service members assigned to Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, Marine Corps Logistics Base Barstow, and Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms conducted a multitude of self-help projects and repairs to improve operational readiness through enhancing living conditions. Across the installations, a total of 4,189 barracks rooms have been restored to approved habitability standards since the start of OCS I through the completion of OCS II. Approximately $10.3 million was allocated for OCS II, enabling the execution of these improvements across the installations.

In total, Marines and Sailors completed 4,079 self-help projects as part of OCS II, improving the overall condition and functionality of their living spaces. Notably, Marines and Sailors installed 6,177 new air conditioning units ahead of rising summer temperatures to ensure living spaces meet habitability standards and the Marines and Sailors are well rested and refit for future training, exercises and operations.

“Listening to our Marines and acting on their feedback remains central to this effort,” said Lt. Col. Robert Hillary, I MEF G-4 deputy. “The installation of new air conditioning units directly reflects what they told us they needed most.”

Marines and Sailors also worked hand-in-hand with the Home Depot Foundation and 365 Connect volunteers to revitalize an outdoor recreational area with new grills, refurbish a gazebo and freshly paint a basketball court. The collaboration highlighted the importance of teamwork between military and civilian communities.

“By creating enjoyable gathering spaces outside official training for bonding and recreation, we were honored to contribute in this small way to those who work so hard every day in service to our country,” said Teresa Miller, chief executive officer and founder of 365 Connect. “It is not often that civilians have the privilege to work alongside young Marines, gaining insight into this remarkable community of dedicated, resilient individuals.”

U.S. Navy Seabees with Amphibious Construction Battalion 1 and Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 4 also lent their expertise, aiding in drywall repairs, paint touch-ups, and other carpentry-related upgrades, underscoring the fortitude of the Navy-Marine Corps team.

“My team has worked hard to support these Marines and help improve the quality of life in their barracks,” said Lt. j.g. Griffin Gebler, a detachment officer in charge at Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 4. “We’re not just doing repairs—we’re teaching Marines to be able to do these repairs themselves.”

OCS efforts are scheduled to continue as units complete exercises and deployments, with Marine Corps Air Station Yuma set to take part in the next wave of barracks improvements following the successful completion of Weapons and Tactics Instructor course. I MEF and MCI-West plan to hold maintenance stand-downs semi-annually. By proactively addressing maintenance requests, I MEF is reinforcing the Marine Corps’ commitment to ensure every Marine and Sailor inhabits a living space on par with the caliber of their service so that they can be ready for crisis or contingency.

Media interested in more information on Operation Clean Sweep II, or the larger Barracks 360 Reset initiative, should contact the I MEF Communication Strategy and Operations office at imef_commstrat@usmc.mil or 760-763-7047.

For more information, photos, videos and stories about the Barracks 360 Reset initiative, please visit: https://www.dvidshub.net/feature/Barracks360Reset.

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