FORT CAVAZOS, Texas — With the keys handed over and the ribbon officially cut, the Boshaw family can now move into their brand-new home in Heritage Heights here.
This is just one of many new homes built, or in the process of being built, on the installation. Cavalry Family Housing, a Lendlease privatized military housing community at Fort Cavazos, Texas, recently announced the completion of nine homes located in the new Heritage Heights neighborhood. The homes are the first to be built on the installation since 2018 and are part of Lendlease’s $420 million, five-year development plan for Cavalry Family Housing.
“(Today) was just absolutely exciting,” Spc. Grant Boshaw, 1st Air Cavalry Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division, expressed while holding hands with his spouse Allison. “Just knowing that that ribbon symbolizes truly the opening of this village and that residents are going to start moving in and it’s going to be junior enlisted oriented. So, it’s going to be for really the Joes, for those who are down there doing a lot of the grunt work. I always advocate for Soldiers to move on post to anyone that I meet.”
The ceremony featured remarks from Phillip Carpenter, Lendlease communities chief operating officer, Col. Chad R. Foster, U.S. Army Garrison-Fort Cavazos commander, and a ribbon cutting by the Boshaw family.
“It is great to be sitting out here, looking at new houses and hearing nail guns in the background; it means we’re doing great work,” Carpenter shared. “Today, we reaffirm our commitment to create neighborhoods that provide connection and vibrancy and support our military families as we celebrate a significant milestone in Lendlease and the Army’s $1.1 billion dollar development plan, bringing accelerated improvements to our Leadlease Army community and here at Fort Cavazos.
“We’re grateful for the opportunity to improve together,” he continued. “Looking ahead, Lendlease has committed to setting a new standard for military housing here at Fort Cavazos, and across our Army portfolio.”
An additional 42 homes are also under construction and are expected to be completed this year. Upon completion of the project, there will be nearly 580 new homes.
The three-bedroom, two-bath homes for junior enlisted Soldiers and their families feature open floor plans, gathering spaces, modern finishes and increased storage. To create a neighborhood that provides connection and vibrancy for military families, amenities in the Heritage Heights neighborhood will include walking paths, community gardens and a dog park.
All homes will also be Energy Star certified and were designed by Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design standards.
A key contributor in the design of the new homes was the Fort Cavazos Resident Advisory Board, a program designed to positively affect the quality of life for families at Fort Cavazos and enhance customer service by allowing important residential issues to be brought directly to Lendlease. In 2020, Fort Cavazos was the ninth military base to establish the program on its installation.
RAB members are nominated and elected by fellow residents during an electronic election, with one member representing 400 families. The board members have been holding virtual meetings with the garrison commander, Directorate of Emergency Services, Cavazos Family Housing maintenance and housing managers, to address concerns within the housing areas.
In addition, to help improve communication between on-post residents and Lendlease, the board members listen to resident concerns and then mediate with Lendlease to develop solutions.
“The Resident Advisory Board members have played an essential role in this process,” Carpenter expressed. “Your contributions have been invaluable and allow us to prioritize projects according to your community’s needs.”
Foster agreed, sharing a touching moment that happened right before the ceremony.
“We were looking for a way to bring our residents together to help us identify solutions and be part of the solution as well,” he expressed, “and it wasn’t lost on me when I saw the president of the Resident Advisory Board walking across the road here as we first arrived with a housewarming gift for our new family. So that shows you what’s going on here at Fort Cavazos. It is a function of leadership, it’s a function of family and it’s a function of community.”
These new homes are just part of the overall $420 million community development happening at Fort Cavazos, announced by Lendlease in 2021. More than 800 homes have received new exterior paint, nearly 3,000 homes have had roofs replaced and more than 1,300 homes have had the interiors renovated as well. This comes in addition to already having completed several upgrades in the housing communities, including trimmed trees, the removal of dead trees, re-sloped driveways and sidewalks repaired and made more accessible.
“We need only to look behind us, to our left and right to see the most visible and exciting evidence of our collective commitment to the military families of this installation and the tangible result of the investment (made),” Foster shared. “Heritage Heights will grow to about 580 new homes, ultimately, when we get this project complete. These homes are about 1500 square feet, environmentally efficient, single-family homes for our junior enlisted Soldiers. That’s exactly where our emphasis needs to be.
“These aren’t homes for our senior leaders, these are homes for our junior Soldiers,” he continued. “Because we say it all the time, we recruit individuals, but we retain families. How do we retain families? We take care of them, show them what they mean to us. This is one very, very visible manifestation of that.”
Following the ceremony, the Boshaw family had a moment to reflect on their new home and the ceremony itself.
“We’ve been really well taken care of,” Allison expressed. “So, we’re really big advocates for people to move on post and use the resources that the Army gives us.”
Her husband agreed.
“I would say take the opportunity and look into every single thing that you can to really pursue,” Grant shared, “just going through Cavalry Family Housing, because they are an amazing organization, and they take care of their people.”
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