An Army National Guard unit tasked with defending the U.S. from long-range ballistic missiles is getting a permanent home after working out of leased space since 2005.

The 100th Missile Defense Brigade celebrated the groundbreaking of its new $22 million building Friday morning going up on Peterson Space Force Base after several years of delay because of escalating costs for materials and labor. 

“The new facility is going to provide increased space and functionality for the brigade to be able to increase their efficiencies and conduct their operational mission in support of our homeland defense,” said Col. Joseph Paladino, brigade commander.

The brigade is currently housed in about 14,000-square-feet off base and the new new homeland defense and civil support readiness center will provide 33,000-square-feet that will house 300 people, he said. The national guardsmen who work in the building oversee missile defense work across four states and four times zones. Unlike many National Guard units, most of the soldiers work full time.

The guardsmen in the brigade are charged with monitoring the globe for intercontinental ballistic missiles targeting the U.S. and shooting them down. The work is critical as threats from North Korea and other counties evolve. 

The work is overseen by Northern Command also housed at Peterson. 

“The crews are highly trained and using the latest technology,” said Brig. Gen. Laura Clellan, who leads the Colorado National Guard.

The unit most recently tested its defenses on Dec.11 when guardsmen launched a Ground-Based Interceptor missile from Vandenberg Space Force Base that intercepted and destroyed a simulated missile attack, Paladino said. The missile struck a Intermediate Range Ballistic Missile launched from a C-17 Globemaster III  northwest of the Pacific Missile Range Facility in Hawaii.

The missiles hitting each other is akin to a bullet hitting a bullet in space, he explained. 

The 100th Missile Defense Brigade will share the building with the U.S. Northern Command Mobilization Element, national guardsmen that generally work directly for the command in its building on Peterson. Paladino said he expected those with the mobilization element would use the new building for training on the weekend. 

Over the next 18 months the project is expected to employ 200 people during construction and design. The building is scheduled to open in 2025. 

Construction was delayed by rapid inflation following the pandemic that made it impossible to build the headquarters for the $15 million initially budgeted, Clellan said. Congress had to approve additional funding for the building, originally designed in 2019.

“We are anxiously looking forward to the final construction,” she said.