Brig. Gen. Nick I. Brown, commanding general of Marine Corps Installations West, and Navy Capt. Jeffrey Richer, assistant chief of staff for facilities of Marine Corps Installations West, address barracks discrepancies during Operation Clean Sweep at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, Calif., Oct. 21, 2024. Operation Clean Sweep is a joint initiative between Marine Corps Installations West and I Marine Expeditionary Force at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton to improve living conditions for Marines and sailors. (Lance Cpl. Jeslianne Torres/U.S. Marine Corps photo)

The Navy is overhauling moldy and pest-riddled substandard barracks as part of a long-term effort to improve sailor quality of life, the service said Tuesday.

The sea service said it is focusing on renovating its squalid unaccompanied housing and stepping up maintenance and management of living conditions. The effort is meant to address issues identified by a 2023 Government Accountability Office report that found poor living conditions across Defense Department-owned housing.

The military services manage nearly 9,000 barracks facilities worldwide, and almost all barracks are government-owned, operated and maintained, the GAO said. In managing barracks, the military services face challenges, including aging infrastructure and competition with other facilities for maintenance and construction funding. In recent years, there have been reports of barracks being abruptly closed after detection of problems such as mold, pests and broken air conditioning.

“Navy unaccompanied housing hasn’t consistently hit the mark in taking care of sailors’ needs, but we’re making significant strides toward improving barracks facilities and sailors’ overall residential experience,” said Vice Adm. Scott Gray, commander of Navy Installations Command, which oversees service housing across 70 installations.

The effort, dubbed the “Forge Communities of Excellence” initiative, is a three-tiered plan designed to improve barracks through targeted investments, renovations and construction.

The next step is to ensure consistent customer service by improving workforce training, optimization and resourcing. The final step is to provide sailors with a comfortable environment and high-quality services, such as Wi-Fi and better access to food.

“By focusing our efforts on three key areas of need, we can effectively and efficiently improve facility condition and improve resident satisfaction,” Gray said.

Service members and lawmakers have raised the issue of substandard housing for years, launching complaints of mold, leaky roofs, poor plumbing, pest infestations and otherwise unsafe and unhealthy conditions. Congress mandated in 2020 that the services develop a uniform code of basic housing standards, plus plan, contract and conduct inspections in family housing, report to lawmakers on the inspections, and develop a hazard assessment tool.

But the Navy did not embark on a focused quality of life and service initiative until 2022 following rashes of suicides among young, mostly single sailors.

The Navy has already invested $59 million to replace furnishings at 63 buildings at 35 locations. In the past year, renovation projects were initiated for barracks at Submarine Base Kings Bay, Ga.; Naval Air Station Sigonella, Italy; Naval Base Kitsap, Wash.; Naval Base Ventura County, Calif.; and Camp Lemonnier, Djibouti.

In 2023, the Navy introduced the unaccompanied housing Resident Bill of Rights and Responsibilities and QR maintenance codes to make it easier for residents to report maintenance requests and track their progress.

Additionally, in 2024, the service rolled out a free Wi-Fi pilot in 12 Hampton Roads, Va., barracks and expanded cooking capabilities throughout its unaccompanied housing by allowing sailors to use small cooking appliances in their barracks.

“It’s essential to readiness that sailors have a comfortable and safe place to lay their heads at the end of each hard day,” said Leslie Gould, director of Navy Installations Command’s fleet and family readiness programs.