Army Announces Aberdeen Proving Ground Housing Partner

By Mr. Paul Boyce (FORSCOM)May 22, 2008

The Army announced May 20 its selection of Picerne Military Housing to develop the Community Development and Management Plan for Aberdeen Proving Ground, as part of the Army's Residential Communities Initiative Program. Under the RCI Program, the Army will privatize family housing at 45 installations, to include over 88,000 family housing units located throughout the United States.

Picerne Military Housing will collaborate with the Army to develop the CDMP, which will serve as the blueprint for the residential communities at Aberdeen Proving Ground. Preparation of the CDMP is expected to take about six months. Following acceptance of the CDMP by the Army and review by the Department of Defense, Office of Management and Budget, and Congress, implementation of the CDMP is expected to begin in August 2009.

RCI will improve, in a relatively short period of time, the quality of life for Soldiers and families assigned to Aberdeen Proving Ground. Over the anticipated 50-year term all family housing will be rehabilitated or replaced and additional new housing will be provided. In addition, RCI will bring new community centers, other ancillary facilities and amenities to meet family housing needs at Aberdeen Proving Ground.

The development concept of the appearance and function for the family housing neighborhoods within the Aberdeen Proving Ground installations will weave the natural and constructed environments together and result in planned residential communities. The Army is committed to improving family housing as a means of sustaining the quality of life of our people. This will be accomplished through Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH), traditional Military Construction, and the Residential Communities Initiative (RCI) family housing privatization program.

Through the RCI Program, the Army engages with private sector firms in public-private partnerships to manage, construct, renovate, maintain and operate family housing. The RCI Program is a critical part of the Army's plan to alleviate housing shortages, rapidly improve the condition of our existing housing, and sustain quality communities over the 50-year life of these projects.

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For more information: Please contact Art Case at 703-601-2482; art.case@hqda.army.mil Internet availability for the RCI Program: www.rci.army.mil