Balfour Beatty Communities to Develop, Renovate 850 Military Housing Units

By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorColumbia, S.C.–Balfour Beatty Communities has secured financing for the Fort Jackson military family housing project located in Columbia, S.C. The financing proceeds will be used for the design, development and construction/renovation of a total of 850 end-state housing units at the installation.The 50-year term for the project includes a five-year initial development period (IDP), with IDP costs of approximately $168 million. The company has been providing property management and maintenance services for the family housing since August this year, when it entered into agreements with the Army. Balfour Beatty has a 50-year ground lease for the purpose of owning and managing the housing inventory.In addition, the company also performs similar services for projects covering 42 other military installations/bases throughout the U.S. with Army, Navy and Air Force. Bruce Robinson, president and CEO of Balfour Beatty, says, “In these uncertain economic times and with the extraordinary volatility of financial markets, I am extremely pleased with the ability and determination of our team, including our Army partners, to bring this project to a financial close. Having secured the financing will allow us to begin implementing our plan of providing a high-quality housing community to the military families serving at Fort Jackson.”Congressionally authorized since 1996, the Military Housing Privatization Initiative allows the Department of Defense and Military Services to work with the private sector to upgrade the quality of family housing and operate and maintain that housing. The family housing assets are typically leveraged with private investment to accomplish housing construction and renovation goals faster and at a lower cost than military construction. Including the Fort Jackson Housing Privatization Project, Balfour Beatty Communities LLC operates 16 military housing privatization projects covering family housing at 43 military bases throughout the United States.