Representative Kathy Castor (D-FL) has written a letter demanding expedited housing repairs for servicemembers living at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa.
Rep. Castor explained in her letter that MacDill "is home to the 6th Air Refueling Wing and a number of additional mission partners, including U.S. Central Command, U.S. Special Operations Command, and the 927th Air Refueling Wing."
Like the rest of Florida, the base is still recovering from the back-to-back hurricanes Helene and Milton, and many who live in Harbor Bay, the housing community on base, "have been doing their best to get back on their feet."
However, Rep. Castor suggested that the hurricanes only revealed a broader problem, as Harbor Bay and the Michaels Organization, the building contractor, have failed to adequately respond to requests for repairs and other issues from tenants for some time, "whether it be for a simple bathroom repair or a more serious report of mold in a home."
More egregiously, in the aftermath of the hurricanes, Harbor Bay held a town hall meeting with residents about rebuilding, where "an overwhelming number of questions and concerns around housing were raised by members of the community but were met with little to no answers from Harbor Bay."
Thus, the Florida Congresswoman demanded answers to both the longstanding delays in repairs and other services in addition to addressing the damages caused by Helene and Milton, saying, "Plain and simple, military families deserve high-quality housing, and reports of substandard conditions of on-base Harbor Bay housing are unacceptable.
After all, Castor reminded the Michaels Organization's VP of Military Operations, "I trust that you agree that families who serve America and have already sacrificed so much to protect their fellow Americans deserve better. Therefore, I respectfully request that you provide a response to my inquiry as soon as possible and vastly improve the Harbor Bay at MacDill operations."
