NEWPORT NEWS, Va. — The Navy is announcing a $1.7 billion investment in housing for sailors in Hampton Roads.
Military housing is a topic News 3 continues to cover. You may remember pictures from a News 3 story story about conditions in some military housing units in Hampton Roads.
Conditions like this could now become a thing of the past.
“We’re really excited about this," Hunt Military Communities President & CEO Brian Stann said.
The Navy is partnering with HMC to do the work to improve military housing in the area.
“What we wanted to bring to all of these sailors is, really, more of an apartment or condominium-style living. We want to have rooms where they’ve got access to their own kitchenette, their own living rooms. Each individual door has its own lock. Each sailor has their own shower, their own toilet," Stann explained.
Watch: Newport News approves $400M Navy housing plan to expand military housing
According to the Navy, over 8,000 beds will be renovated or built in Newport News, Norfolk, and Virginia Beach over the next five years.
The impact improving military housing can have is something News 3 learned about in June when we talked with sailor Hyleta Floyd at a ribbon cutting for a new military hosing development in Virginia Beach.
Floyd said the housing gives her stability and peace of mind.
Watch: New VB military housing neighborhood provides peace of mind for service members
“I can go to work knowing that my house, that’s the least of my worries," Floyd said.
In a News 3 story in August about housing funding in the latest defense spending bill, News 3 talked about the topic with the director of an organization that advocates for military families.
“Military housing is the kind of thing that doesn’t often get prioritized when it comes to improvements and investments.”
Watch: Defense bill targets military housing with $1.8 billion
In a statement responding to the Navy’s announcement Wednesday, Newport News Mayor Philip Jones explains part of the money will be used to build two 17-story buildings downtown with around 750 units and over 1,000 dedicated parking spaces.
He goes on to say "This is the largest federal investment in the city’s history and a transformational investment in the sailors who serve our nation.”
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