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The new commander at the Land Force Central Area Training Centre in Meaford couldn't be happier with his new assignment.

Lieutenant Colonel Rob Kearney says the Meaford centre is far more than the old tank range.

He describes the centre as a world-class training facility, where they take soldiers after basic training and get them ready for deployment in places like Afghanistan.

Kearney says he wants to not only maintain the great level of individual training currently at the base, but to expand it to meet future needs.

Kearney says he's got some ideas for the centre for the future, but it's too soon to speak publicly about them.

Kearney says one of the main challenges for his command will be getting sufficient funding to maintian and grow the centre.

Also, to keep new staff coming into the centre, as there's a lot of demand for the top-quality staff currently there, he says, like previous C-O, Leieutenant Colonel Wadsworth, who was sent out to a new mission in Afghanistan.

Kearney says given the "last minute" transfer of Wadsworth -- which wasn't supposed to happen until August -- he's not quite full-time at the Meaford Centre yet.

He's still wrapping up his previous duties as the Canadian Forces liaison with the US military at Fort Levinworth, Kansas.

Kearney, a fourth-generation military man, says he and his wife, Kimberley, and their 2-year old daughter, are looking at settling down in Collingwood.