OAKDALE, Pa. — An Army commissary serving about 160,000 retired, active and reserve military personnel and family will stay open until 2011 and the Army is recommending a new one be built to replace it, several lawmakers said.

Democratic U.S. Reps. Mike Doyle and Jason Altmire and Republican U.S. Rep. Tim Murphy made the announcement Tuesday after meeting with Defense Department officials in Washington, D.C.

Previously, the Pennsylvania delegation had secured assurances that the Charles E. Kelly Military Support Facility in suburban Pittsburgh would stay open through September 2009.

"Today, we finally got the Army to give us a commitment to keep the commissary at the Charles E. Kelly base open until we can get a new facility built," Doyle said.

The Army estimates a new commissary will cost $8.2 million, but $4 million of that has already been appropriated by the House and Senate. The congressmen are working on finding the additional money.

The Army is supporting a plan to build the new commissary on land next to Pittsburgh International Airport. The Army wants Allegheny County to build the facility and lease it back to the Department of Defense.

Allegheny County Executive Dan Onorato is on board with the plan, his spokesman said. "We will definitely work with Congressman Doyle and our entire Congressional delegation to do whatever we can to make sure a new commissary is built here in Pittsburgh to serve active duty military and veterans," Kevin Evanto said.

The commissary serves military personnel in Western Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Ohio and Maryland.

By The Associated Press