Topping off Liberty Village Published Dec. 16, 2010 By Senior Airman David Dobrydney 48th Fighter Wing Public Affairs ROYAL AIR FORCE LAKENHEATH, England -- Another milestone has been reached in the $220 million Liberty Village housing project. Nearly 200 people, representing RAF Lakenheath, RAF Mildenhall, Defense Estates, the Air Force Center for Engineering and the Environment and Mansell construction, came to see the 'topping out' ceremony Dec. 15, which marked the completion of the roof of the 606th house. "This is a key milestone, we're now on the downward spiral," said Jason Flatt, 48th Civil Engineer project manager for Liberty Village. "On a project of this size, this represents seven years of effort," said Mr. Flatt. The last roof tile on plot 542 was cemented into place Dec. 15 by Col. William Lewis, 48th Fighter Wing vice commander, and Col. Michael Winters, 100th Air Refueling Wing vice commander. "I live in Liberty housing, and it's fantastic," said Colonel Lewis to the gathered construction workers and dignitaries. In addition to laying the final roof tile, Colonels Lewis and Winters placed unit coins for the 48th FW and 100th ARW into the wet cement. "This represents not just our commitment to better housing, but also our continuing alliance between the U.S. and U.K. It's a symbol that we're going to be here for a long time," said Colonel Lewis. At this time, 515 of 606 Liberty Village homes have been turned over to residents. While the structural part of the construction is now complete, the interiors are still being finished. To date, eight million bricks have been laid, enough to cover the Lakenheath runway from end to end. With seven to 10 houses being turned over every month, the final handover is expected to be held in October 2011.