Privatized Housing Advocate, Resident Council helping Dover Airmen, families Published Dec. 17, 2020 By Roland Balik 436th Airlift Wing Public Affairs DOVER AIR FORCE BASE, Del. -- Military members living in Eagle Heights Family Housing, the privatized housing area adjacent to the base, now have a liaison between them and the project owner. When issues, whether big or small, cannot be resolved through normal channels the resident advocate can help.In accordance with the Fiscal Year 2020 National Defense Authorization Act, every military installation with privatized housing was mandated to create a resident advocate (RA) position to work on behalf of service members residing in privatized housing.Earlier this year, Aaron Lewis was appointed as the first 436th Airlift Wing privatized housing resident advocate, who reports directly to the wing commander and informs wing senior leaders on issues or concerns.After serving 21 years in the Air Force, Lewis brings skills he acquired during his career as a former security force Airman, enlisted professional military education instructor and first sergeant.“I certainly believe that my prior career as an Airman will benefit me in this position,” said Lewis. “I found out that the source of many frustrations for our service members is due to [being unaware] of resources available to them.”As a former base housing resident, Lewis can relate to some of the concerns that Eagle Heights residents are experiencing.“My job is to exhaust all efforts within the authorities of the installation commander to take care of our residents,” said Lewis.Lewis mentioned that his top priority as the RA is to take care of our service members and their families.“It will take some effort to regain the trust of our service members in the privatized housing concept and the project owner [Hunt Properties],” said Lewis.Additionally, Lewis mentioned when a resident has a complaint, the project owner must be given the first opportunity to correct the discrepancy in a timely manner. If the discrepancy is not corrected, the resident should contact the Dover AFB Military Housing Office (MHO) to assist with resolving their concerns.“Currently, our residents can come directly to us for any issues that may arise and we partner with the MHO who advocates on their behalf,” said Kathy Parisi, Dover Family Housing community director. “Adding the RA position helps strengthen the relationship between our community and the command and ensures that we are all working towards a resolution.”Working with the RA and MHO, the project owner is the first to offer a solution to housing residents to resolve issues when they arise. “We are committed to providing the highest quality housing and customer service for our military families in a thriving community. We strive for five-star service, which to us means providing appealing homes, creating thriving communities, 100% resident satisfaction, hiring talented and enthusiastic employees and being a thoughtful steward of the communities we operate,” said Parisi.The newly established Dover AFB Privatized Housing Resident Council is a way for housing residents, once selected as a Neighborhood Representative [NR], to work with the project owner, RA and MHO to voice concerns and resolve issues.“The Dover AFB Resident Council is made up of service members and/or their spouses,” said Lewis. “Housing residents may apply to be a NR for one of the three neighborhood areas they reside in; Blue Heron Breeze, Orioles Cove or Falcon View.”Residents may contact a NR at the following email addresses based on which neighborhood area they reside in: FalconViewResidentCouncil@gmail.com, BlueHeronBreeze@gmail.com and OriolesCove@gmail.com.“This [Residents Council] will benefit our residents and the community as we work to continually improve our community, exceed our resident’s expectations and provide additional channels for communication,” said Parisi.For further information on being a neighborhood representative or discuss housing issues, contact Aaron Lewis at 302-677-3920 (office) or 302-382-2086 (cell), aaron.lewis.37@us.af.mil or 436AW.CHV.ResidentAdvocate@us.af.mil. The RA office is located in building 262, room 308.“Our new resident advocate and resident council will serve as a crucial link between Team Dover and senior base leaders for all matters related to privatized base housing,” said Col. Matthew Jones, 436th Airlift Wing commander. “We are continuing to improve our response efforts to base housing concerns since the support and welfare of our families residing both on and off base is paramount to our mission readiness.”