A $450 million military housing project officially broke ground in downtown Newport News, with city, Navy and development officials gathering near Warwick Boulevard to mark the start of construction on a nearly 1-million-square-foot complex that will eventually house up to 1,500 sailors. The project, called HomePort Hampton Roads 2, is planned to rise on the site of the century-old Huntington Hall, formerly Newport News High School, and will include 750 apartment units, retail space and a parking garage with more than 1,000 vehicle spaces.
The groundbreaking ceremony took place in downtown Newport News, according to The Virginian-Pilot. Newport News Mayor Phillip Jones said sailors living at the site would become part of downtown and the wider community, predicting that 1,500 new residents would bring more people to local streets, restaurants and businesses. As reported by Virginia Business, the more than $450 million military housing project promises to transform downtown Newport News.
Two Phases, Two Different Completion Dates
HomePort Hampton Roads 2 will be built in two phases. The first phase includes a 17-story apartment complex with 555 units — described elsewhere as 555 two-bedroom apartments accommodating 1,110 sailors — along with a four-story, 1,050-space parking garage and retail space, with Virginia Business reporting the first phase is expected to be completed in the third quarter of 2029.
The second phase will add nearly 200 more apartments, additional retail space and a building dedicated to Navy programming, bringing the total development to approximately 750 units and 1,500 beds once finished in 2031. The finished complex is expected to include 10,000 square feet of retail space for commercial tenants, per the same outlet's reporting.
Who's Paying for It
Newport News, the U.S. Navy and Hunt Military Communities signed a $450 million construction contract in September 2026. The Navy is funding $400 million of the cost, Newport News is contributing $10 million, and Virginia lawmakers approved a $40 million state treasury loan for the project back in 2024, according to WAVY.
That loan's repayment is not guaranteed to be waived. Mayor Jones intends to ask the Virginia General Assembly to either forgive the loan or convert it into a capital expenditure, Virginia Business reports. A state budget amendment on file with the Virginia Legislative Information System indicates repayment terms would be determined later by the governor and General Assembly, and that performance metrics achieved by the project may justify forgiveness — meaning the $40 million is not automatically off the city's books.
Designed to Help Sailors Thrive, Not Just Get By
Hunt Military Communities CEO Brian Stann said the project's housing is designed to help sailors thrive rather than merely get by, adding that the design prioritizes well-being, connection, fresh air and space to recover and feel at home. Stann also said service members' federal rent allowance often fails to cover maintenance costs, which is why HomePort Hampton Roads 2 is structured to reserve funds for long-term maintenance and retain millions of dollars in surplus for sustainment — a response to what WAVY describes as years of deferred-maintenance horror stories in private military housing.
Capt. Daniel Patrick, commanding officer at Naval Weapons Station Yorktown, described HomePort Hampton Roads 2 as the pinnacle of the Navy's response to quality-of-life shortcomings. Patrick said the Navy owes sailors a living environment that honors their service, protects their health and gives them a home to be proud of. The broader push traces back to a 2023 nationwide Navy initiative launched after a probe into local suicides found systemic shortcomings in Navy quality-of-life provisions, as previously reported by the Virginian-Pilot's coverage of the project's funding details.
Part of a Much Larger Hampton Roads Buildout
HomePort Hampton Roads 2 is part of a $1.7 billion Navy investment in Hampton Roads military housing that will build or renovate more than 8,000 beds across 16 facilities region-wide. The Navy also plans to add 712 bedrooms across seven buildings at Naval Air Station Oceana, 614 bedrooms across three buildings at Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek-Fort Story, and 5,272 bedrooms across six buildings at Naval Station Norfolk, according to Virginia Business.
A separate five-year, $1.7 billion Hampton Roads barracks management contract announced last month also involves Hunt Military Communities, covering more than 12,000 beds for junior sailors across Newport News, Norfolk and Virginia Beach, per WHRO. That same report describes the largest portion of the new barracks space as a 5,000-bed Newport News complex that will replace Huntington Hall — a figure that appears to conflict with other accounts describing HomePort Hampton Roads 2's capacity at 1,500 sailors, and it remains unclear how the two descriptions of the Huntington Hall site's scope relate to one another.
