Trump's Budget Proposal Includes $768M To Buy DOT's Capitol Riverfront HQ
The federal government is looking to buy the Department of Transportation headquarters, the 1.35M SF Capitol Riverfront building The JBG Cos. built in 2006.
The Fiscal Year 2019 budget proposal President Donald Trump put forward Monday included $767.9M to buy the property, which the General Services Administration said would save the government $49.4M annually.
The building at 1200 New Jersey Ave. SE is the only Cabinet-level agency headquartered in a leased facility. Its 15-year lease with owner JBG expires Oct. 19, 2021, and includes options for the government to purchase the property.
Sitting across the street from the Navy Yard-Ballpark Metro station, the DOT HQ project helped usher in a revitalization of the Capitol Riverfront neighborhood, now one of the busiest areas for development in D.C.
Trump's budget proposal, which still must go through Congress, also includes $229M for the consolidation of the Department of Homeland Security HQ at St. Elizabeths West. GSA Public Buildings Commissioner Dan Mathews has identified the DHS project as a top priority for the agency. The appropriations are part of Trump's proposed $10.7B budget for the GSA, which includes $10.1B to maintain and operate the government's real estate portfolio.
“The proposed funding will enable GSA to continue its unique role as a mission-enabler and allow GSA’s workforce, and our colleagues throughout government, to focus on high-value work," GSA Administrator Emily Murphy said in a release.
