Four former homes of senior Navy officers at Naval Base Point Loma are scheduled to be demolished on Monday, Feb. 18 under an increasingly popular trend of government/private sector cooperation. Part of the Silvergate Navy Housing area, the demolition is the first step in a renovation project that will eventually produce four new “green,” energy-efficient and more environmentally friendly senior Navy family houses, according to Navy officials.
The renovation project is being funded by Lincoln Property/Clark Realty Capital, who the Navy entered into a partnership with as part of a Public Private Venture (PPV) plan. Recent years have seen a trend in the rise of PPVs as a way to bypass the red tape that often slows down projects such as renovations, Navy officials said. If the Navy renovated the houses, it would have had to appeal to Congress for the money, going step by tedious step, and the process could have likely taken years according to Chief Petty Officer Yan Kennon, public information officer for Naval Base Point Loma.
However, beginning with the National Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1996, the Navy has been able to work with the private sector to develop such private housing partnerships. The 2001 partnership that the Navy entered into with Lincoln Property permitted 1,000 homes to be built at the former Naval Training Center “” now Liberty Station in Point Loma ” and other locations. Construction was much cheaper and faster than that implemented under traditional governmental means, said Navy officials.
The four houses will be integrated into the existing housing community while featuring state-of-the-art utilities, lighting sources, drainage systems and other features to better serve the environment, said Kennon.
“They are going to keep the original, natural Point Loma environment,” Kennon said.
Navy officials said the housing renovation project is scheduled to be finished in October 2009.