THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, May 21, 1996 TAG: 9605210325
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY DAWSON MILLS, CORRESPONDENT
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: 86 lines
Monday was moving day for two Navy families as the service officially reopened its Ben Moreell housing community off Hampton Boulevard near the Norfolk Naval Station.
``It brings some real fine Navy families back into our city,'' said city councilman Conoly Phillips. ``I'm glad to welcome them back. It makes a statement about the stability of Norfolk and the Navy. They'll make a tremendous impact on the economy and be good citizens in our community.''
Constructed in 1941 as temporary enlisted housing during World War II, Ben Moreell was home to more than 1 million families by 1993, according to the Navy.
Demolition began on the original 603 units in 1993. The next year, construction started on what would become the Navy's first Neighborhoods of Excellence community.
``We are trying to provide a quality work and living environment,'' said Rear Adm. Robert S. Cole, commander of Norfolk Naval Base and keynote speaker at the welcoming ceremony.
``For many years, we judged readiness at the cockpit of our planes and the prow of our ships, but we came to realize it's the core family, outside the gate, where readiness begins,'' Cole said. ``The average sailor is 22 years old, with two kids, making $26,000 a year. He's on deployment somewhere around the world defending our freedoms.''
The new Ben Moreell consists of 388 three-, four- and five-bedroom townhouses in 79 buildings, laid out in six villages, along circular, tree-lined streets. Carpeting, garages, dishwashers and garbage disposals are standard.
When Ben Moreell was built during WWII, children played next to fireplugs surrounded by sandbags. Even in later years, recreational amenities were absent. The new community features sidewalks, playgrounds, tennis and basketball courts, jogging paths and bike trails in each village and, in the middle, a community center.
The Navy, through the Atlantic Division of the Naval Facilities Engineering Command, is spending $37 million on the contract.
``It is being completed within the approved budget,'' said Dr. Betty L. Bates, head of family housing at the Public Works Center, Norfolk.
The project is ahead of schedule, according to Lee Bates, project manager for Harkins Builders Inc., of Silver Spring, Md., the primary contractor. ``Our schedule now,'' Bates said, ``is to complete three units a day.''
The last of the units are scheduled for completion by September.
Glen and Patti Miller and their children, Jamie, 12, and Jerome, 15, and Stephen and Julie Charping and their children, Thomas, 6, Jonathan, 4, and Lauren, 3, were the first families to move in. Glen Miller and Stephen Charping are second class petty officers and had lived in Ben Moreell with their families before the demolition.
``I'm so excited,'' said Patti Miller. ``I've been up since 3 a.m.''
``It's amazing,'' said Glen Miller, obviously pleased as he gazed at their new home.
Said Julie Charping: ``My husband and I both had birthdays yesterday. It's like a birthday present.'' ILLUSTRATION: JIM WALKER
The Virginian-Pilot
Patti Miller hugs Rear Adm. Robert S. Cole after he presented her
the keys to her family's new home as her husband, Glen, a second
class petty officer, looks on.
Old Benmoreell
Constructed in 1941 as temporary housing during WWII, the community
had housed more than 1 million families by 1993. Recreational
amenities were largely absent. Demolition began on the original
units in 1993.
New Benmoreell
The 388 three-, four- and five-bedroom townhouses in 79 buildings
are laid out in six villages. Each village has playgrounds, tennis
and basketball courts, jogging paths and bike trails. The project
is running ahead of schedule.
KEYWORDS: NAVY HOUSING by CNB