Government

 The United States Institute of Peace will convert a parking lot near the Vietnam and Korean war memorials into a 75,000- to 100,000-sf facility to promote the use of peaceful means in the prevention, management, and resolution of international conflicts. The $31- to $35 million structure will house approximately 60 employees. It will accommodate both conference and research space as well as an exhibit area, and will provide 340 underground parking spaces, to be shared with the nearby Navy medical facility.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has decided that its new 650,000-sf headquarters—called Station Place—will be built adjacent to Union Station and the Thurgood Marshall Building. The architect for the project is New York-based Kevin Roche John Dinkeloo and Associates; it will be developed by Louis Dreyfus Properties, also of New York. December 2003 is the scheduled occupancy date.

The State of California has contracted with Wareham Development for 68,000 sf at the Point Richmond Tech Center to house a new DNA-testing lab for the Department of Justice. Following $300/sf tenant improvements by Wareham, the state will occupy the lab in late 2001, where a DNA database of every criminal in California will be compiled.

 The Organization of American States plans to renovate its General Secretariat building in Washington, where operations will be consolidated onto six floors and a lower level; three remaining floors will be leased. OAS selected the architectural firm Group Goetz and the engineering firm Joseph Loring Inc. to work on the project.

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 The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) will occupy all but the top two floors of a nine-story building being developed by Lowe Enterprises Mid-Atlantic. The interior design will be handled by Hickok Warner Fox.   The FTC expects to occupy 200,000 sf of the 260,000-sf, $65-million structure in July 2002.

The Pentagon anticipates proceeding with its renovation. The announcement of a $620 million contract award to the developer/architectural team of  Colorado-based Hensel Phelps is expected. The 12 to 14 year project would include the reconstruction of 4 million sf in four wedges of the five-story building, each wedge housing approximately 5,000 employees. In addition to Hensel Phelps Construction, the project team includes Shalom Baranes Associates, HDR Architecture, MC Dean, Studio Architecture, and Southland Industries.

The Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco & Firearms' scheduled ribbon-cutting ceremony was postponed by the General Services Administration pursuant to the terrorist attacks. The $104-million building is being designed by architect Moshe Safdie to accommodate approximately 1,100 employees in 295,000 sf. Parking spots for 200 are also included in the project.

The Department of the Interior’s 1.3 million-sf 1930s-era building is scheduled for  modernization. The General Services Administration has awarded Grunley Construction of Rockville, Md., a $18.6 million construction contract for phase one of the project—HVAC central plant work on several levels, some demolition and new construction in part of the building’s northernmost wing. The building currently accommodates approximately 2,500 employees. Completion of the entire project is anticipated in late 2008.

Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, a new 746,000-sf, 10-story building, was dedicated in September. The $203.5-million structure provides office space (296,000 sf); common space, including a conference center, employee cafeteria, and a Monetary Museum (84,000 sf); and support equipment (110,000 sf). An $11-million façade occupies 46,000 sf. Smallwood, Reynolds, Stewart, Stewart & Associates Inc. of Atlanta in association with New York-based  Robert A.M. Stern Architects,   designed the building. BTMI Buildings was the construction manager.

The Office of Homeland Security may move into a 339,000-sf, eight-story stand-alone building with secure parking -- the largest block of contiguous office space available in Washington. The General Services Administration is bidding for the space against CareFirst BlueCross Blue Shield, which is also looking to house its 1,275 employees in the city.

ARAMARK today announced that it has completed the acquisition of ServiceMaster Management Services, the facility services business of ServiceMaster.

The Internal Revenue Service will have a new 45,504-sf office at SouthTech Business Center, a recently completed 260,000-sf complex in Austin. The building will house offices featuring raised flooring. Parking for 192 vehicles is also included. Move-in is scheduled for the first quarter of 2003. The General Services Administration found the space for the IRS. Hill Partners Inc. is the developer of the complex.

The Office of Homeland Security may move into a 339,000-sf, eight-story stand-alone building with secure parking—the largest block of contiguous office space available in Washington. The General Services Administration is bidding for the space against CareFirst BlueCross Blue Shield, which is also looking to house its 1,275 employees in the city.

The Organization of American States plans to renovate its General Secretariat building in Washington, where operations will be consolidated onto six floors and a lower level; three remaining floors will be leased. OAS selected the architectural firm Group Goetz and the engineering firm Joseph Loring Inc. to work on the project.

The Food and Drug Administration’s new 350,000-sf Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition opened in October. The $62.5-million life sciences and chemistry lab facility consolidates three offices from the D.C. area, and accommodates approximately 950 employees. Planning and construction of the building took four years. The general contractor for the project is Tomkins.