DOJ Plans To Shrink Office Footprint By Over 150K SF With New Lease
The Department of Justice is looking to significantly downsize one of its D.C. offices ahead of a summer 2025 lease expiration in NoMa's Constitution Square complex.
The General Services Administration revealed in a lease solicitation notice it is seeking between 342K SF and 410K SF of office space in D.C., but it didn't specify the agency or existing building. Developer Doug Firstenberg of Stonebridge confirmed to Bisnow it is for the DOJ's lease at the Two Constitution Square building that his firm developed and manages.
Though the GSA search is routine given the lease expiration, the search parameters represent a more than 150K SF reduction of the agency's footprint. It now occupies the entire 575K SF building, which was developed specifically for the DOJ in 2008 and delivered in 2010. Stonebridge developed the property and sold it to Northwestern Mutual for $305M in 2010.
CBRE is the broker handling the search, according to the GSA posting. DOJ is seeking a 20-year lease for a location within 2,640 walkable feet of a Metro station.
The GSA didn't respond to a request for comment.
Firstenberg, whose firm still manages the property, told Bisnow he believes Two Constitution is up to security and operating requirements, and he said his firm would work with the GSA in reconfiguring its space "to meet the needs of the DOJ as they change their housing.”
“We certainly hope that GSA and the Department of Justice will see the value in the campus they created with us at Constitution Square and stay at Two Constitution Square for a long time,” Firstenberg said.
Two Constitution is part of Stonebridge’s 2.7M SF complex that led the way for development in NoMa 15 years ago. After the building came to life in 2010, Stonebridge added a 55K SF Harris Teeter, a 240-room Hilton Garden Inn and another 500K SF building that was fully leased by the DOJ and delivered in 2019.
The federal government, which is the largest occupier of office space in the U.S., has been looking to downsize its footprint in the post-pandemic work environment. The largest example of that came this winter, when the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office shrunk by 800K SF, giving back two of its five buildings at its headquarters in Alexandria.
This is also not the first time the DOJ has moved to condense its footprint. Last summer, the agency relocated two divisions to a building at 555 Fourth St. NW, reducing their size by 30%.
