Idaho Air Force base housing privatized

BOISE (AP) - Military officials say the London-based firm Balfour Beatty Communities will take over housing management at the Mountain Home Air Force base.

The Idaho Statesman reports Balfour Beatty already operates more than 44,000 military homes in 23 states and Washington, D.C. The company will begin managing 844 single-family houses and duplexes and 680 dormitory rooms at the Idaho base on Thursday.

The company will also manage housing at five other Air Force bases: Minot, Grand Forks and Cavalier in North Dakota, Ellsworth in South Dakota and Cannon in New Mexico.

"The partnership between the government and the privatization owner is a win-win. We are partners with BBC and will be jointly located in our housing office," Mountain Home Air Force Base housing official P.J. Brown said.

The Department of Defense launched the housing privatization project in 1996 after finding that more than half of the 257,000 housing units owned by the military both on and off bases needed to be renovated or replaced because of longstanding neglect. The project is also intended to address a shortage of affordable private-sector housing. The Department of Defense estimated it would cost $25 billion and take 20 years for the government to fix the housing problems.