I just received this email from my husband, it's been forwarded through his command and I've been given permission to share with you all. I thought you might like this :) It's nothing immediate for any of us, as in cash in our pockets or anything, but I believe this is a step in the right direction. KWIM?

I just wanted to let you know that after more than a years worth

of hard work we have finally received CNO's approval designating San

Diego a high cost of living area. While this doesn't have any immediate

financial effect, cash in their pockets, it does have a huge impact on

how we can now plan to support our single sailors and our young families

in new BEQ's and Housing units being planned for the immediate future.

It will make possible PPV ventures that could only be done having this

approval.

My staff and I will be sure to share many of the proposed ideas

as they unfold. Happy 4th of July.



v/r

and this was taken from a PDF that was attached


From: Commander, Navy Installations Comman
To: Commander, Navy Region Southwest
SUBJ: DETERMINATION OF METRO SAN DIEGO AS A HIGH COST AREA
Ref: (a) CNRSW ltr 7000 Ser N00/011 of 07 Jan 08
(b) CNIC ltr 11103 Ser CNI/15962 of 24 Jan 06
(c) OPNAVINST 11103.1B
1. In response to reference (a), your request to designate
metro San Diego as a high cost area and include all E4 single
Sailors in San Diego as a programming requirement is approved
per references (b) and (c) .
2. CNIC (N93) will coordinate with OPNAV (N130) to determine
overall MPN impact in the event of future Unaccompanied Housing
Privatization projects.
3. CNIC point of contact is Mr. Craig Collins at (202) 433-
3623, DSN 288-3623 or email craig.collins@n,avy.mil.
Copy to:
CNO (N130)

That is great my husband was just talking about this a few weeks ago.

So what exactly does it mean?

So what exactly does it mean?

Well, for right now it basically means that the Navy is finally acknowledging that San Diego is a "high cost" area and some changes need to be made to accommodate the fact that it is higher than most areas.

The biggest change right now per this document is that I think they're trying to push for more housing to be built, which otherwise (without this approval) not happen. Because it is such a high cost area, they are acknowledging that most junior sailors (and even senior) can not afford to live out in town, so this is a step in the PPV planning new units to accommodate the amount of sailors (and families) in the community.

Well, for right now it basically means that the Navy is finally acknowledging that San Diego is a "high cost" area and some changes need to be made to accommodate the fact that it is higher than most areas.

The biggest change right now per this document is that I think they're trying to push for more housing to be built, which otherwise (without this approval) not happen. Because it is such a high cost area, they are acknowledging that most junior sailors (and even senior) can not afford to live out in town, so this is a step in the PPV planning new units to accommodate the amount of sailors (and families) in the community.

Thank you :blush that was much easier to understand :giggle That is great because it is expensive here :yes

They are also talking about going to 4 day work weeks and trying to get more money for sailors that live off base to offset the rising cost of gas. My dh has to report each month how many miles he has driven for work. They already do every other week as a 4 day work week.

That would be nice. Gas is killing us here. While Rod was deployed we were getting the extra money and I maybe used a tank of gas every 3 weeks. Since we live on base I can walk to everything. Now with him home we lost the extra money and are using a tank of gas every week. Which is hurting

That's fantastic! The high COL in SD is one of the biggest reasons why we have avoided it like the plague. People think HI is bad, SD is way worse, at least you get COLA in HI.

That's great! Hopefully one of those "improvements" will be COLA, as well as more housing. We're in housing because there's NO way we could afford a place comparable to what we're in plus all utilities for the same amount as BAH.

They're leasing out the new PPV BEQ on 32nd ... I saw a banner for it the other day. It's for all single sailors E4 and above.

I really hope someone will start fighting to get a COLA here in San Diego. I honestly don't understand how HI qualifies for it but San Diego doesn't... :suspect

I really hope someone will start fighting to get a COLA here in San Diego. I honestly don't understand how HI qualifies for it but San Diego doesn't... :suspect

I don't get it either... Maybe this is a step in that direction though..:xfingers

That's great! Hopefully one of those "improvements" will be COLA, as well as more housing. We're in housing because there's NO way we could afford a place comparable to what we're in plus all utilities for the same amount as BAH.

They're leasing out the new PPV BEQ on 32nd ... I saw a banner for it the other day. It's for all single sailors E4 and above.

My first thought was that this will open the door for that to happen. Now that it's being seriously acknowledged and approved as a place with a higher than average COL, I would think that COLA would be one of the next steps in the process to making sure families can maintain the same lifestyle there as anywhere else.

I know the Navy has been talking about getting the land at the end of Santo where it meets the 52 for a new housing area. But because SD wasnt listed as a high COL area, that is as far as it could go, just talk. Hopefully this will help.

That's fantastic! The high COL in SD is one of the biggest reasons why we have avoided it like the plague. People think HI is bad, SD is way worse, at least you get COLA in HI.

I agree! My friends just PCS'd from Hawaii (after living here 8 years) to Camp Pendelton and the first thing she said was "We're broke!" Not totally broke, but after living in hawaii for 8 years and then moving to SD?

Yeah we're avoiding it too......

maybe you guys will end up getting COLA like other areas do? that would rock!

IMO they should start with COLA then work on the housing. If they do build more housing they need to focus on 3 and 4 bedroom housing.

IMO they should start with COLA then work on the housing. If they do build more housing they need to focus on 3 and 4 bedroom housing.

:yes exactly. The wait lists for 3 and 4 bedroom housing are INSANE out here most of the year. There's NO reason for the main housing website's waiting list to say that you should prepare for a 12 month wait for military housing... That's not right.

IMO they should start with COLA then work on the housing. If they do build more housing they need to focus on 3 and 4 bedroom housing.

I agree because COLA will be a quicker fix.......while housing is going to make people struggler longer........

We got a 4 bedroom house and waited only 3 weeks

I am glad to hear that they are looking to do something to help ya'll out over there!

That is so awesome! One of the main reason why we decided to geo-bach while he was in SD was because we just can not afford to live there, even if we did live in housing. That sounds like a step in the right direction! :tu

We got a 4 bedroom house and waited only 3 weeks

we were surprized when housing gave us a 3bed we were on the list for 2bed... we didnt complain cuz it was one of the few available... we were on the list for about 7 weeks.

My husband said this whole thing does include some sort of plan for COLA. I'm not sure how much or when it is supposed to happen but he mentioned to me that San Diego should be getting COLA, I believe. I'll keep ya'll updated if I hear anything else about it.

we were surprized when housing gave us a 3bed we were on the list for 2bed... we didnt complain cuz it was one of the few available... we were on the list for about 7 weeks.

That is what happened with us too. We were on list for three bedroom and got a 4 bedroom. I was surprised but happy. We are going to start looking for a dog now lol.

Sorry for threadjack carry on... :D

We got our house (3 bedroom) the day we got into san diego. So that was helpful for us!

My husband said this whole thing does include some sort of plan for COLA. I'm not sure how much or when it is supposed to happen but he mentioned to me that San Diego should be getting COLA, I believe. I'll keep ya'll updated if I hear anything else about it.

I'd hoped that they'd start COLA out here... the SD area was one of the highest COL areas in the country even before all this crazy gas price stuff. I pay triple out here than what I paid in TX for A LOT of things.. Groceries are the major thing, and it's one reason I won't shop out in town if I can help it. When I do it's Albertson's sales, Henry's or Trader Joe's. (mainly because Henry's and TJ's carry things I can't get at the regular store)

we were surprized when housing gave us a 3bed we were on the list for 2bed... we didnt complain cuz it was one of the few available... we were on the list for about 7 weeks.

That is what happened with us too. We were on list for three bedroom and got a 4 bedroom. I was surprised but happy. We are going to start looking for a dog now lol.

Sorry for threadjack carry on... :D

We got our house (3 bedroom) the day we got into san diego. So that was helpful for us!

We had a house within a few days of moving here as well, but others have had to wait MONTHS to get housing that would fit their needs. We accepted this place because we had no other choice.. it was take this place, or wait in the lodge and have no $$ to eat. Our move money was severely screwed up and it took a month and a half after we moved in here to get it fixed..

We had a house within a few days of moving here as well, but others have had to wait MONTHS to get housing that would fit their needs. We accepted this place because we had no other choice.. it was take this place, or wait in the lodge and have no $$ to eat. Our move money was severely screwed up and it took a month and a half after we moved in here to get it fixed..

Yeah I realize others have had to wait and wait. I was just saying it CAN happen. We were actually offered 3 different places. 1 was ready within 2 weeks, 1 was available now, and this was available now. We chose this one. We got lucky tho

Yeah I realize others have had to wait and wait. I was just saying it CAN happen. We were actually offered 3 different places. 1 was ready within 2 weeks, 1 was available now, and this was available now. We chose this one

I wasn't arguing with you. A lot of the availability depends on the time of year. We were unfortunate enough to PCS here before peak PCS season. Most places weren't going to be opening up for a month or two. They offered us apartments, and we refused those, because there was no way we could live comfortably in something smaller than our last place. I really like our place here, but should he get sea orders for this area, we'll be moving to Chesterton.

I wasn't arguing with you. A lot of the availability depends on the time of year. We were unfortunate enough to PCS here before peak PCS season. Most places weren't going to be opening up for a month or two. They offered us apartments, and we refused those, because there was no way we could live comfortably in something smaller than our last place. I really like our place here, but should he get sea orders for this area, we'll be moving to Chesterton.

Yeah we got here the end of June. So we got lucky as heck. They offered us apartments first and we were like yeah no. It HAS to be a townhome or single family home. I am not doing an apartment with 2 kids. No way, no how

Yeah we got here the end of June. So we got lucky as heck. They offered us apartments first and we were like yeah no. It HAS to be a townhome or single family home. I am not doing an apartment with 2 kids. No way, no how

We got here mid April... just before the "season".. so it was slim pickins'... In all honesty, the main reason we'd want to move, is to get the most for our BAH. We're getting a good deal right now (even though it might be temporary), and are in a really nice area..

My husband said this whole thing does include some sort of plan for COLA. I'm not sure how much or when it is supposed to happen but he mentioned to me that San Diego should be getting COLA, I believe. I'll keep ya'll updated if I hear anything else about it.

That would be awesome!

so Im not in SD but that sounds like great news for those who are!!

that is awesome news... It is about time that COLA and more housing come into effect!!!!

Neat. Shame DB isn't in SD anymore (I already miss it!)... Wait, what the hell am I saying... This will be great when we're *both* in SD. Right now, I'm glad he's heading my way! :P

gee maybe they can have some more housing that lets you have DOGS..thats would really rule

COLA would be awesome to off set the cost of living here. And I am :jealous of you ladies who all got in quick. Our names have been on the the list since April 16th 2007. We've waited over a year and as of today we're number 9 for a 3 bedroom.

that's fantastic news :D