The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Savannah District has a new commander.

Col. Thomas Tickner today took charge of the agency's 800 person mostly civilian workforce based in downtown Savannah.

Tickner previously led a Philadephia-based Army Corps district.

He says the military-led agency oversees a wide range of military and port-related construction, including the Savannah Harbor Expansion Project.

"This will be my second command," says Tickner. "I commanded in the Philadelphia district which has a lot of similarities to Savannah. One being a river deepening, harbor deepening, with the Delaware river."

Tickner takes over from Colonel Jeffrey Hall.

Hall led the Savannah District for three years during key milestones in the port expansion.

"Currently, our number one challenge right now is the Savannah harbor expansion project," says Tickner. "It's a great project, it's a national project, but it brings tremendous economic assets to this region and really even the nation."

The District also oversees military construction, operates dams and issues environmental permits for various areas in Georgia and North Carolina.

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