Politicians and GSA officials brought the FBI HQ search party to the Hill yesterday, and although a solution might be far off, one GSA expert tells us Maryland might have the inside track.
This morning, Cassidy Turley government leasing guru Darian LeBlanc (snapped at a prior Bisnow event)told us the GSA and FBI might want to look east for a solution, saying the orgs should "take a long hard look at Prince George's County." Darian says the Greenbelt Metro and Beltsville Agricultural Research Center sites the county has been pushing "could each add a lot" to the agency and its 2.1M SF requirement. "Virginia has several very strong options. I think Prince George's will emerge as the more compelling location," he says.
MD Reps.Steny Hoyer and Donna Edwards eagerly promoted PG County yesterday at the hearing before the subcommittee overseeing public buildings.Darian also says the GSA's concept to swap the Hoover Building site toward the cost of a replacement facility may limit its opportunities by shrinking the pool of available buyers. An alternative, Darian tells us, would be to sell the building outright to maximize its value, like it just did with the West Heating Plant as well as the 2010 sale of 7550 Wisconsin Ave in Bethesda. Nevertheless, Darian says the GSA should be applauded for thinking outside the box on the FBI, especially given the fact that it hasn't faced a space requirement this big in quite some time.
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