The Public Buildings Reform Board is seeking to revamp underutilized federal office buildings in an effort to branch the Wharf entertainment district to the National Mall’s cultural institution.
In a 29-slide PowerPoint, Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, or SOM, a D.C. architecture firm, provided sketches of how it could assist in turning near vacant federal buildings into residential and commercial spaces.
The PBRB’s Jan. 28 meeting to review SOM’s sketches occurred amid President Donald Trump’s plans to completely overhaul the federal government, having put hundreds of federal employees on leave.
According to the slideshow, the federal government owns or leases 33 million square feet of building space in Washington, D.C., but as of 2023, federal agencies only occupy 12% of this space.
In March 2024, the PBRB published a report to Congress and the Executive Branch outlining how the vacant buildings are a detriment to the district. The report found it could reduce the “federal footprint in the area by as much as 50%” — and the plan has the backing of Mayor Muriel Bowser.
“Currently underutilized properties can be repositioned within communities and add to the tax base or be repurposed to suit community needs,” the report read. “The status quo of nearly empty federal buildings is not financially or politically sustainable.”
The PBRB has identified Southwest Federal Center as offering the “greatest potential for transformation.” It consists of 42 city blocks and 15.3 million square feet of office space, of which 87% is underused.
“Several prime properties are under consideration for disposal, presenting an opportunity to reimagine the future of the capital city,” the slideshow stated.
Among the prime properties included is the Department of Energy, which is completely empty and located at the cross streets of L’Enfant Plaza Sq NW and Independence Ave.
In SOM’s proposal, it would convert 1,381,400 square feet of the 1,920,200 square feet into 56.4% residential space, 28.6% office space, and 15.1% retail space.
The proposal also targets the U.S. Postal Service HQ, which is currently operating at 50% capacity and is located at the crossroads of Maryland Ave. and L’Enfant Plaza SW, as well as nearby federal buildings.
The plan involves putting just 43.4% of the 3,375,800 square feet under federal control. It would introduce hotels, cultural and additional office spaces to the area.
“The coordination with the federal government will be really important,” Pam Frentzel-Beyme, Bowser’s director of real estate, told the Washington Post. The area around the Mall “doesn’t just have to be these somber monuments; it can serve multiple purposes.”
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These plans come as D.C. faced a budget deficit of $700 million last year with an estimated $4 billion gap through fiscal 2029. This resulted in half a billion in cuts and tax hikes.
“You have to keep in mind that the federal government doesn’t pay property taxes on real estate that they own, whereas the owners of real estate that they lease do pay property taxes,” she said. “So that would be extremely positive for the city’s bottom line,” Tracy Hadden Loh, a Brookings Institution fellow focused on real estate, told the Washington Post.
