A Housing First Is Home Suite Home to Camp Pendleton’s Privates, Wives

A general proudly called it a first. A private’s wife was grateful just to have a home that was not infested with cockroaches.

Such were the varying emotions during Tuesday’s unveiling at the Camp Pendleton Marine Corps base of the nation’s first military housing project built strictly for the lowest-ranking servicemen and their families.

Called Serra Mesa, the 59-acre complex of one- and two-bedroom town houses, many with mountain views, was designed for the families of privates and others whose rank is E3 and below. The 79 brown wood-and-stucco buildings will house 632 families and will replace the 647 apartments at the Marines’ problem-ridden Sterling housing complex in Oceanside.

One Marine’s wife called the new two-bedroom town house, which she and her husband had moved into earlier this year, “a lot more healthier for the babies” as well as “a lot nicer to entertain in.”

“After a while, you just got used to the roaches,” said Sherrie Miles, adding that the cramped Sterling apartments were known for their paper-thin walls.

Miles--whose husband is a private first class--and other wives of privates, lance corporals or privates first class, unanimously approved of the roomy, on-base housing, which was formally dedicated in Tuesday morning.

Maj. Gen. Robert E. Haebel, commander of Camp Pendleton, called the project “an opportunity for a step up the ladder of life” for the young Marine families.

Haebel praised the developer, Hunt Building Corp., of El Paso, Tex., for bringing in the project almost a year ahead of schedule. All but 32 of the units are occupied, Haebel said.

Until recent years, the military did not provide quarters or an allowance for off-base housing for the families of its lower-ranking members. But in 1984 Congress provided funds specifically to build housing for the growing number of families of junior personnel.

To deal with the run-down, off-base Sterling housing, Camp Pendleton had planned a $15-million renovation project as early as 1982. Built as temporary housing for Camp Pendleton construction workers in 1944 and 1945, the aging Sterling apartments suffered constant plumbing leaks, insect infestation and other problems associated with deterioration, former residents said.

But the Marines changed their renovation plans with the passage of the Military Construction Authorization Act for 1985.

Rather than renovate, a scheme was hatched to apply $13 million in renovation money to build on-base housing for the junior Marines in a deal that would include turning over the Sterling property to the successful bidder on the housing project.

Hunt will follow its on-base project with a private, $50-million residential and commercial development of the 56-acre Sterling compound, along Mission Avenue east of the Oceanside business district. Of the 750 private housing units planned, about 114 are scheduled for senior-citizen housing and about 10 acres will go into commercial development, a Hunt official said Tuesday.

About 15 Marine families still live in the old complex.