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The Navy is set to significantly enhance its barracks facilities, with a commitment from its top officer to fund a series of construction projects worth nearly $1 billion.
Destiny Sibert, representing the Navy’s Installation Command, relayed the assurance from Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Lisa Franchetti that “the Navy’s unaccompanied housing and morale, welfare and recreation, or MWR, gym sustainment budget” will be fully funded by this October. This move is aimed at addressing the “power vacuum” left by aging facilities and improving living conditions for sailors.
Describing the initiative as “huge,” Sibert and another Navy official underscored the unprecedented nature of this commitment: “One hundred percent funding for housing and gyms. … We’ve never done that before.” Leslie Gould, a top civilian official, elaborated on the efforts, stating, “We have eight different [military construction] projects that we’re working on,” which are projected to cost $969 million through 2029. Additionally, $718 million is earmarked for other barracks improvements, with $50 million specifically allocated for new furnishings.
These efforts are part of a broader campaign to enhance sailor welfare, a promise made by Franchetti and other Navy leaders earlier in the year. Amid concerns over substandard living conditions—highlighted by a Government Accountability Office report noting issues like bedbugs and malfunctioning HVAC systems—the Navy is actively working on both large-scale and immediate improvements.
A pilot program for free Wi-Fi and the lifting of bans on small cooking appliances are among the measures introduced to offer immediate relief. Meanwhile, long-term plans include constructing new facilities and upgrading existing ones, with an eye on both current needs and future requirements of sailors.
