GSA Blog

Historic Preservation Month May 2021

C. Clifton Young Federal Building and US Courthouse, Reno, NV, was recently listed in the National Register.

Every year the number of GSA buildings recognized for their historic, architectural, and cultural significance grows. Today, GSA owns 512 historic buildings listed in, or eligible for, the National Register of Historic Places. These historic buildings account for about one-third of GSA’s owned portfolio and house more than 40 percent of its rentable square footage.

To keep these buildings performing for our client agencies and the communities they serve, GSA must continually balance stewardship mandates with fiscal responsibilities to respond to an environment of evolving missions and economic circumstances. Innovative stewardship solutions and reinvestment in historic buildings provide job opportunities to preservation architects, skilled craftsmen, historians, and architectural conservators, many of which are small businesses, and deliver best value to the American taxpayer. From space consolidation and backfill projects achieving lease cost avoidance to private outleasing partnerships invigorating local economies, learn how GSA is meeting these challenges and achieving results, which are captured in GSA’s FY2018-2020 Section 3 report [PDF] prepared in accordance with E.O. 13287 Preserve America.

Last month, the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation (ACHP) released a report entitled Leveraging Federal Historic Buildings [PDF], the result of a year-long effort identifying ways to advance the use of historic federal buildings through outleasing. GSA was proud to contribute to the working group and to receive the ACHP/National Trust for Historic Preservation federal partnerships award last fall for its Section 111 Outleasing program. In FY20 more than 58 percent, or $12.1 million, of GSA’s outleasing revenue was earned in historic buildings. Under provisions of Section 111 of the National Historic Preservation Act, this revenue is reinvested in historic building projects across the country. Outleasing excess space in the U.S. Post Office and Courthouse at 312 North Spring Street in Los Angeles enables this federal courthouse, nationally significant for promoting public school equity for the state’s diverse population, to remain a public place currently supporting the state judicial system. The outlease of the Greyhound Bus Station in Montgomery, Alabama, which is part of the Frank M. Johnson Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse complex, to the Alabama Historical Commission houses the Freedom Rides Museum. The National Historic Landmark courthouse and the museum together tell the stories of the 1961 Freedom Rides and critical judicial history of the struggle for Civil Rights.

In addition to representing the strength and permanence of the federal presence in communities nationwide, GSA’s historic buildings are resilient and green, earning a third of GSA’s LEED certifications to date. In a series of award-winning “firsts,” sustainable preservation projects have led the way: the John W. McCormack U.S. Post Office and Courthouse—LEED Gold; the Hipolito Garcia Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse—LEED Platinum; and the Wayne N. Aspinall Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse–the first target net-zero building listed in the National Register.

These are just a few examples that confirm GSA’s enduring stewardship commitment and its adaptability to address changing needs and emerging challenges. We are invigorated by the excitement and awareness that Preservation Month fosters; yet at GSA the preservation ethic of delivering the best value in real estate as a critical component of our mission is an ongoing endeavor.