Photos of Andersen Air Force Base's Palau Hall were included in an email from Vice Adm. Scott Gray, head of Naval Installations Command, ordering a review of Navy housing on May 5, 2025. (Project on Government Oversight)

The first major renovations in four decades on two aging dormitories on Guam are underway as Andersen Air Force Base repairs neglected housing that left the Navy secretary “appalled” earlier this year.

The Department of Defense awarded Sea Pac Engineering Inc., of Los Angeles, two contracts totaling $71.2 million for a complete overhaul of Andersen’s Palau and Rota dormitories, according to July 29 and Aug. 25 news releases from DOD.

Work on improving both buildings is expected to start later this year, according to a statement emailed Wednesday by the base’s 36th Wing.

Palau Hall, for example, is plagued with exposed wiring, corroded plumbing, deteriorating walls and painted-over mold.

After inspecting the living quarters during a May 1-2 trip to Guam, Secretary of the Navy John Phelan ordered a new bachelor enlisted quarters at the nearby Marine Corps Camp Blaz opened ahead of schedule as an expedient.

Vice Adm. Scott Gray, head of Navy Installations Command, lambasted the neglected housing as being “clearly way outside any reasonable standard,” in a May 5 letter to Navy leadership cited by the Project on Government Oversight in Washington, D.C.

The dorm renovations have “been in the works for some time” but “observations from all the senior leaders this year have reinforced the importance of making it a reality for our Airmen,” a wing spokesperson said in an unsigned statement Wednesday.

Work on Palau is expected to be completed Dec. 10, 2027, while Rota’s renovations are expected to wrap up by Jan. 7, 2028, according to the news releases.

Major renovations on two barracks at Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, are underway and expected to be completed by January 2028. (Alex Wilson/Stars and Stripes)

Now that the contracts are awarded, Andersen is hoping to expedite the timeline, according to the wing’s statement.

“Our goal is to begin as soon as possible with a scheduled groundbreaking for both dorms later this year and a desire to complete the work well ahead of schedule,” the wing said.

The dorms, which together can house 252 service members, will receive complete interior and exterior renovations, including updates to their air conditioning, electrical, fire protection and plumbing systems, according to the U.S. government’s System for Award Management website.

The renovations will be the first for the nearly 70-year-old buildings, neither of which have been significantly updated since 1990, according to concept designs attached to the contract solicitations.

Both buildings have deteriorated steel and concrete, experience “constant flooding issues during rain events,” and have sustained water damage due to leaking roofs and walkways, according to the concept designs.

Current residents will be moved to other facilities or given authorization to seek housing off base, depending on dorm availability, the wing’s statement added.

“Our Airmen are at the heart of everything we do, and quality of life is one of our highest priorities,” wing commander Col. Dan Cooley said in the statement.

“Within the allocated financial investment at [Andersen], these dorm renovations were deliberately prioritized at the top of the list to strengthen our overall infrastructure and the set conditions that will minimize risk to Airmen and the mission,” Cooley said.

Additional work is planned at Saipan Hall, another dormitory with similar issues, the wing said.