Lease agreement adds six bases to housing privatization success story Published Aug. 1, 2013 By Shauna Jones AFCEC Public Affairs JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-LACKLAND, Texas -- The Air Force Civil Engineer Center has finalized the transaction closing for the Northern Group Housing Privatization project with Balfour Beatty Communities. BBC took over full housing operations Thursday at all six Northern Group bases: Cannon Air Force Base, N.M., Cavalier Air Force Station, N.D., Ellsworth AFB, S.D., Grand Forks AFB, N.D., Minot AFB, N.D., and Mountain Home AFB, Idaho. The privatization project, valued at over $443 million in total development costs, will provide new and renovated housing for 4,546 military families using only $37.8 million in government funding. Balfour Beatty Communities, LLC, a subsidiary of Balfour Beatty Capital Group, Inc., currently provides services to members of the military and their families residing on or near 53 bases located in 26 states and Washington, D.C. Under this project, the Air Force leased approximately 2,058 acres of land as part of a 50-year transaction and conveyed 4,595 existing housing units. Of the existing units, 1,013 inadequate units will be demolished. The project will also provide 1,332 new and renovated homes to be completed within six years. At transaction closing, the housing units became the property of BBC who will finance, design, maintain and manage the rental housing development for military families. Ultimately, BBC will maintain at least 4,546 housing units for the 50-year lease period. "The Air Force chose Balfour Beatty Communities, LLC, after determining that it offered the most advantageous proposal considering all of the criteria in the request for proposal," said Col. Thomas Laffey, director of AFCEC's Housing Division. In 1996, Congress created the Military Housing Privatization Initiative as part of the National Defense Authorization Act to provide military members with quality homes faster than through traditional military construction alone. Laffey said the Air Force has accomplished in 13 years through housing privatization what would have taken 32 years using traditional military construction and saved taxpayers billions in the process. "The Air Force has privatized more than 48,500 homes at 57 bases at a cost to the Air Force of $527 million, and brought in $7.7 billion in private funding to provide quality homes for our Airmen," said Laffey. "The ability to partner with the private sector development community has helped the Air Force provide quality homes for Airmen and their families faster than traditional military construction programs." John Conger, Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Installations and Environment, recently said "housing privatization is the greatest quality of life improvement in the history of the Air Force." Acting Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Installations, Environment and Logistics Kathleen I. Ferguson touted the significant success of the Air Force Housing Privatization Program in a written statement submitted for the April 12 House Appropriations Subcommittee on Military Construction-Veterans Affairs. "Through housing privatization, the Air Force has invested...to provide quality homes for Airmen much more quickly than we could have done with traditional military construction processes," Ferguson wrote. "And, we remain committed to caring for our Airmen and their families as we strive to eliminate inadequate housing by 2018, and to complete our privatized housing initiative in the United States by 2013." AFCEC, headquartered in San Antonio, is the Air Force service agent for housing privatization efforts including completing feasibility analyses, developing project concepts and solicitations, and providing support to the integrated acquisition teams that execute projects.