Dive Brief:
- The real estate division of the federal government, the General Services Administration (GSA), has announced it will issue a request for proposals in January from construction managers to build the new $2 billion FBI headquarters, according to the Washington Business Journal.
- The location of the new facility is still unknown, but the GSA has narrowed the future site down to three locations in Maryland and Virginia. The FBI has said its current headquarters, the J. Edgar Hoover Building, is no longer sufficient for its needs.
- If Congress green lights funding for the new building, the GSA will reveal its contractor choice and site selection in March. Design and construction is expected to last at least five years.
Dive Insight:
According to the GSA’s pre-solicitation notice, the contract delivery method for the new FBI headquarters will be design-build. The selected construction manager will oversee design and coordinate all financial, documentation and process aspects of the project. The GSA also specified that all bidders must have an "established local presence" in the DC area as well as all necessary security clearances.
In October, the GSA threw cold water on Maryland’s lobbying efforts to win site approval prior to the retirement of influential Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) by announcing that it would hold off on making a decision until 2017. Some Maryland officials also feared, according to the Business Journal, that a Hillary Clinton presidential win would result in favoritism toward Virginia, as her running mate, Sen. Tim Kaine, represents that state. The GSA has maintained that politics will play no role in site selection.
No matter which construction firm ends up with the FBI contract, the building will likely feature the energy-efficient features for which federal government buildings have become known. The latest U.S. Energy Information Administration Commercial Building Energy Consumption Survey found that government buildings lowered their energy intensity by 23% between 2003 and 2012, almost twice the rate as that of privately owned commercial buildings (12%). Energy efficient, or "high-performance," buildings save money but are also easier to maintain, have less environmental repercussions and reportedly provide workers with a better sense of well-being.
