The base is small because there are only a handful of ships. Because it is small, many support services are located off the installation. The commissary is located in Smokey Point (Marysville) and the larger NEX is also located there as well. There is a NFCU on-base and a very spartan food court. The gym has everything that you need...two racquetball courts, indoor pool, and gym. I did not use the CDC, but I did not hear anything negative about it. The folks I knew that needed to drop their children off, didn't experience any issues.

Parking is a fair distance away from the pier, and there is only limited parking pier-side. There is a shuttle when the carrier is in, but when I was stationed there, the base couldn't figure out how to fund a shuttle for the DDG and FFG Sailors.

I did enjoy the fact that the base was small, and did not experience too many delays getting into work. I would love to be stationed there again. It's just small, and like most bases, more could be done to support the Sailors on-board (i.e. shuttle bus, more robust selections at the NEX, a better food court, etc.).