The 8 Biggest GSA Deals On The Market Right Now
The GSA is still the biggest player in town by a huge margin in terms of owning land and leasing office space. After years of inactivity, there are several opportunities on the market for local developers to bag themselves a government whale.
1. The FBI
Size: 2.1M SF
Location: Landover, MD; Greenbelt, MD; or Springfield, VA
Status: Expected award in 2016
Details: Looking to swap J. Edgar Hoover building on Pennsylvania Ave
This is the big kahuna in the DC market right now. Not only is a 2.1M SF HQ substantially bigger than almost anything else in the region, but some of the region’s biggest developers are on the short list for building the complex and securing the prime location the JEH building has on Pennsylvania Avenue. Plus, the Obama Administration announced today it was pledging $1.4B to fund construction of the new HQ.
2. Department of Labor
Size: 850k to 1.4M SF
Location: Washington, DC
Status: Request for Expressions of Interest (REOI) deadline just passed
Details: Looking to swap the 1.8M SF France Perkins building on Constitution Ave
Another major department is looking to move away from its HQ near the mall in exchange for a new building, courtesy of a local developer. The GSA listing says, if the administration decides to move forward with a swap, it wants proposals closer to the 1.4M SF side of the range and within a half-mile of a Metro stop. An official RFP would come soon after.
3. Federal Triangle South
Size: 1.1M SF
Location: 301 7th St SW, 300 12th St SW
Status: RFP issued in July, responses being evaluated now
Details: Looking to trade two buildings south of the Mall for construction services
Three developers are vying for this deal: Hunt Cos, Republic Properties Corp and JBG. The GSA needs a development firm to renovate its HQ at 1800 F St NW and needs services for the Homeland Security campus at St. Elizabeth’s. The two buildings near L’Enfant Plaza—the office complex owned by JBG—house more than a thousand federal employees, but could be a major mixed-use redevelopment.
4. US Citizenship and Immigration Services
Size: 575k SF
Location: DC Central Employment Area; Crystal City/Pentagon City; Southern Prince George’s County
Status: REOI issued September 2014, reissued June 2015
Details: Looking to consolidate the CIS into new, leased HQ
The GSA said in its REOI that it expected to award a lease at the end of 2015, so this should be ready to announce any day now. The CIS wants to move into its new space, within a half-mile of a Metro, by October 2019. An office owner with a big chunk of space is about to get a major windfall…or we may see another re-issue.
5. NIH Consolidation
Size: 539k SF
Location: Montgomery or Prince George’s County, MD
Status: REOI issued December 2015
Details: Looking to consolidate two blocks of space into one by March 2018
The GSA wants these two separate NIH blocks of space—initially approved to be separate—in one contiguous area. The blocks are 345k and 194k SF, respectively, and the GSA wants them in no more than three buildings, no more than 660 feet apart, no more than three miles from a Metro. The leases will be separate, but the buildings must either be commonly owned or submitted as a JV.
6. Federal Election Commission
Size: 105k SF
Location: DC Central Employment Area
Status: The RLP (Request for Lease Proposals) should be going out any day now
Details: Looking for a new FEC HQ
The FEC is looking to consolidate and move out of its current, Douglas Development-owned digs at 999 E St—across from No. 1 on this list, ironically. It leases 137k SF there and the lease expires September 2017. When it releases the RLP, we should have a short list of buildings the FEC is considering. The GSA told Bisnow it expected that on Jan. 22, but the snow might have delayed it a bit.
7. Reston-area lease
Size: 86k SF
Location: Reston
Status: RFP window closed Jan. 13
Details: A high-security building is sought for a presumed contractor
There’s not much info to go on in this mysterious requirement. The GSA wants to lease a minimum of 86k SF in Reston between Baron Cameron Ave, Sunrise Valley Drive, Wiehle Ave and Fairfax County Parkway. The building must have ISC Level IV security requirements, and the GSA is seeking this lease on behalf of a customer, it told Bisnow. Best guess is this is a defense contractor looking for GSA’s helping hand in securing a deal.
8. Webster School
Size: 28k SF
Location: 940 H St NW
Status: Responses to the RFI were due Friday
Details: The building, empty since the ‘80s, is being dangled for redevelopment.
The smallest building on this list is one of the best located. It was bought by the GSA because it sits next to the HQ of the Secret Service, and has been vacant for decades due to security concerns. Apparently, those concerns are a thing of the past, and the government is taking bids from developers who want a piece of the East End market.
