Among federal agencies, the General Services Administration (GSA) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) score at the top of the class for green building. That’s according to the annual Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Sustainability…
Author: Kurt Stout
Living Building Challenge is an Even Greener Alternative to LEED
LEED has been the sustainability standard for federal construction and renovation since 2003, but as discussed in an earlier post, the GSA is currently reviewing competing green building certification systems as required by law. Many assume…
The Federal Employment Trend Revisited
Politicians and economists can be accused of willfully obfuscating the “government employment trend” to serve their ideology. As an example, Republican Senator Rand Paul and liberal economist Paul Krugman engaged in a heated debate last Fall over…
Green Globes Offers Alternative to LEED for Government Buildings
Since 2003, the General Services Administration (GSA) has required basic LEED certification for all federal buildings, and it upped the ante in 2010 by requiring LEED-Gold. But every five years, thanks to the Energy Independence and…
Modernized Edith Green-Wendell Wyatt Federal Building Re-Opens
On May 30, Portland, Oregon, celebrated the completion of a $139 million renovation of the 18-story Edith Green-Wendell Wyatt Federal Building (EGWW). First opened in 1975, the boxy, concrete-and-steel high rise, aging home to the IRS,…
“Better Buildings” Bill Introduced to Promote Energy Efficiency for Owners and Tenants
Reps. David McKinley (R-WV) and Peter Welch (D-VT) introduced bipartisan legislation on May 23 that would facilitate landlord and tenant cooperation toward improved energy efficiency in commercial buildings. H.R. 2126, known as the Better Buildings Act…
2013 Federal Property Summit
This morning, Bisnow, hosted its 2013 Federal Property Summit featuring a great cast of speakers including: Dan Tangherlini, the acting (and soon to be permanent) head of the GSA; Dorothy Robyn, GSA’s Public Buildings Service Commissioner; Norman…
Downsizing the Federal Real Estate Footprint
It has been almost two weeks since the Economic Development, Public Buildings and Emergency Management Subcommittee of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee convened its May 22nd hearing entitled “Saving Taxpayer Dollars: Freezing the Federal Real…
Sales Market Insights
Our GSAXCHANGE team, the investment sales and finance arm of Colliers Government Solutions, just published their inaugural “Government Market Insight” report, which includes an overview of sales activity and trends in the federal sector. Among their…
Are Federal Agencies “Hiding” Surplus Buildings?
A recent (March 21) decision by the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia in a 25-year-old lawsuit against the government found that many federal agencies have been inaccurately reporting the number of unused properties…