Government

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is engaged in a five-year, $40 million renovation of its laboratory space at the John Wesley Powell Building in Reston. The sixth phase of an eight phase project, the renovation will create state-of-the-art labs enabling the USGS to provide reliable biological science information. Designed by Burt Hill Kosar Rittelmann, the general contractor for the project is Grunley Construction, with Bovis Lend Lease as construction manager.

The General Services Administration is engaged in a $122-million expansion of the E. Barrett Prettyman U.S. Courthouse in Washington, D.C. The 248,000-gsf annex will add nine courtrooms and 19 judges’ chambers connected by an atrium to the original building. Construction began in April 2002 and is expected to reach completion in November 2005. The project architect is Michael Graves/Smith Hinchman & Grylls Joint Venture, with Centex Construction as general contractor.

Fairfax, Va.-based federal contractor Anteon International is relocating its 400-employee systems engineering group from Crystal City to 50,000-sf in the new Federal Gateway Building in Washington, D.C. Anteon will occupy four of the building’s six floors.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is constructing the $62.5 million Global Communications Center in Atlanta. The 200,000-sf building broke ground in December 2002 and is slated for completion in early 2005. The facility will accommodate technology-equipped classrooms, a learning resource center, a public health library, broadcasting production studios, auditoriums, and a public health museum. Designed by Thompson Ventulett Stainback & Associates, the building incorporates security measures while remaining accessible to the public.

The U.S. Secret Service has selected Johnson & Jennings General Contracting to build out 11,000 sf of office space in San Diego’s 550 Corporate Center. The project architect was Benito Design Group.

The General Services Administration has leased 97,785-sf for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in DeKalb County, Ga. The CDC will house its epidemiology program and two Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry divisions in the Century Center facility.

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has selected Dietz Construction to build-out its new 650,000-sf headquarters facility at Station Place in Washington, D.C. Interior construction is slated to begin in fall of 2003 and reach completion in November 2004.

The U.S. Postal Service has selected general contractor J.E. Dunn Construction to build its new $167-million distribution center sited on 50 acres in southwest Philadelphia. Replacing the city’s main post office, the 937,000-sf Philadelphia Processing and Distribution Center broke ground on August 11, 2003 and is slated for completion in November 2005. The project architect is Kling of Philadelphia. J.E. Dunn’s joint venture partner on the project is Intech Construction of Philadelphia.

The University of Pittsburgh is developing a regional biocontainment laboratory with $18-million in funding from the National Institutes of Heath’s National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. The laboratory, one of nine regional biocontainment labs funded by NIH, will be sited in the Biomedical Science Tower 3 in Oakland, Pa. Additionally, a bioterrorism research center established by Johns Hopkins University will move most of its operations to Oakland in fall of 2003 to become the Center for Biosecurity of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.

The University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) at Galveston is creating one of the first national biocontainment laboratories with a $120 million grant from the National Institutes of Health. The University will contribute the remaining $40 million to build the $160-million, 170,000-sf project. The laboratory will house flexible, high-level biocontainment facilities, clinical facilities, and research support space.

The Buffalo Federal Court is planning to construct a new $100-million courthouse in Buffalo, N.Y. Designed by Kohn Pederson Fox of New York, the ten story, 262,000-sf facility will begin construction in 2004 and reach completion in late 2006 or early 2007.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City has selected J.E. Dunn Construction Co. to manage the construction of its new 600,000-sf headquarters. Sited on 15.7 acres in Kansas City, the facility is expected to reach completion in late 2007 or early 2008. The headquarters will house 1,100 workers.

Nueces County is renovating its historic 1914 courthouse facility to create a 78,000-sf science and technology museum in Corpus Christi, Texas. The architect for the $20 million project is Sween McGloin of Corpus Christi, with Stoddard Construction Co. as general contractor. The first phase is slated for completion in two years.

NASA/Ames Research Center in Mountain View, Calif., has awarded the University of California, Santa Cruz a $330 million, ten-year contract to manage the development of a University Affiliated Research Center. As the first such development established by the space agency, the center will focus on interdisciplinary research in information technology, astrobiology, biotechnology, and nanotechnology. NASA is also creating a 200-acre research and education park at Moffett Federal Airfield.

MetroSafe Emergency Communications System is planning a centralized communications center in Louisville, Ky. Linking dispatchers for fire, police, EMS and other first responders, the center would merge nine existing Louisville dispatch centers into a central dispatch communicating with all emergency workers in the metro area. The system is expected to cost between $40 and $60 million.