FAIRBANKS (AP) -- Military officials want more housing built to meet an expected rise in the number of soldiers in the next four years, but builders are cautious because they don't know how many homes should be built.

Michael Meeks, director of public works for the U.S. Army, said a Stryker Brigade battalion originally bound for Fairbanks went to Anchorage due to lack of housing. But those soldiers, estimated to number 600, are due in Fairbanks this year after returning from Iraq.

In addition, about 1,500 soldiers belonging to an aviation task force are transferring to Fairbanks, Meeks said.

The Army plans to lease about 250 houses for the anticipated soldiers, Meeks said, but was reluctant to say how many more need to be built.

"Many people want to know how many houses the military needs," Meeks said. "That's not an easy answer to come by ... What the Army does not want to do is say, 'Go build 500 homes.'"

"The impression that I got is they want the community to step up," said Peter Micket, owner of McKinley Electric. "But they didn't make an absolute commitment to fill houses."

Building industry officials said they feared Outside contractors may meet the demand, but with housing unfit for Fairbanks' frigid winters.

"We've seen the (government housing) built by Outside companies," said Dave Dillard, past president of the Alaska State Homebuilding Association. "They were poorly built for the conditions of our climate."