News and Media

HMAS Creswell housing redevelopment opened

On Tuesday 30 August, HMAS Creswell Commanding Officer, CAPT Brett Chandler, officially opened Defence Housing Australia's new housing redevelopment on Benson Road, Jervis Bay, cutting the ribbon and inviting attendees to inspect the ten properties.

CAPT Brett Chandler along with DHA Board Director, the Hon. Sandy Macdonald, DHA Chief Operating Officer, Mr Peter Howman, and the General Manager of Richard Crookes Construction, Mr David Michel, spoke about the redevelopment project and the importance of supporting Defence families. Members of DHA Property Provisioning Group were also in attendance, taking a bus trip from Canberra down to Jervis Bay to attend the event.

The redevelopment project, which is to be completed in two stages, has now concluded stage one with ten homes available to house Navy personnel. The second stage of this project involves the demolition and contamination remediation of 11 properties on the low side of Benson Road. This stage commenced in July 2011 and is anticipated to be completed by mid September 2011.

The properties that were demolished to make way for the redevelopment were built in the 1960s and no longer met Defence standards. DHA's vision for the redevelopment was to supply high quality, energy efficient housing for Navy personnel, while still ensuring that it was sympathetic to the heritage properties located on-base. The opportunity to capture the uninterrupted views of Jervis Bay, Point Perpendicular and the waters of Green Patch was also factored into the design process.

DHA regularly undertakes upgrade and redevelopment projects to ensure that housing is maintained to a high standard. DHA seeks to deliver quality services and recognises that ADF members, particularly those deployed, should not be unnecessarily distracted by housing matters affecting their families at home. The event at HMAS Creswell strengthened ties between DHA, the Department of Defence, and ADF members and their families.

For more information contact communications@dha.gov.au