Category: US GSA

Source: United States General Services Administration

August 9, 2022

Study to examine community impacts of port expansion and modernization project

NOGALES, Arizona ㅡ The U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) met with community stakeholders in Nogales, Arizona, on Wednesday, August 10, 2022 to discuss a planned feasibility study for the Dennis DeConcini Land Port of Entry (LPOE). The study is a technical analysis of the proposed modernization and expansion project for the port to determine its feasibility and make a formal recommendation of whether to proceed. The study would also provide insight into how the proposed project would increase port security and improve the efficiency of travel and trade.

“The DeConcini LPOE struggles to accommodate current and projected traffic volumes,” said Anthony Kleppe, LPOE Program Manager for GSA’s Pacific Rim Region. “This study is one of the first steps in GSA’s planning process because it helps identify the project’s goals and priorities by incorporating community feedback. This helps ensure that GSA is able to deliver a port project that aligns with customer and local development goals. It’s just one of the ways our agency strives to be a good neighbor in the communities where we operate.”

Elected official representatives, federal, state and local government officials, business groups, regional stakeholders, and community leaders participated in the discussion that was held at the Santa Cruz County Government Complex. GSA presented the findings of a recently completed technical assistance study and how a similar study for Nogales might help incorporate regional planning goals into GSA’s DeConcini LPOE project. GSA also discussed the City of Nogales’ Community Plan and the State of Sonora’s Infrastructure and Mobility studies.

In March 2022, Congress appropriated $500,000 for the DeConcini LPOE modernization and expansion feasibility study that is expected to start December 2022 and conclude in December 2023.

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About GSA: GSA provides centralized procurement and shared services for the federal government, managing a nationwide real estate portfolio of nearly 370 million rentable square feet, overseeing approximately $75 billion in annual contracts, and delivering technology services that serve millions of people across dozens of federal agencies. GSA’s mission is to deliver the best customer experience and value in real estate, acquisition, and technology services to the government and the American people. For more information, visit GSA.gov and follow us at @USGSA

Source: United States General Services Administration

August 10, 2022

TACOMA, Wash. — On Wednesday, August 10, the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) hosted an event in the rotunda of the historic Union Station to celebrate the transfer of ownership of the property from the city of Tacoma to the federal government. GSA Administrator Robin Carnahan, retired U.S. Congressman Norman Dicks, Tacoma Deputy Mayor Catherine Ushka, and Chief Magistrate Judge J. Richard Creatura of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington, spoke about the importance of Union Station in Tacoma’s history, and the federal government’s renewed commitment to its future in the community.

“The historic Tacoma Union Station is an iconic landmark building that connects the community of the region to its rich history,” said GSA Administrator Robin Carnahan. “GSA is honored to continue our decades-long partnership with the city by taking stewardship of this property to ensure it continues serving the public and our federal courts for many years to come.”

“We proudly commit ourselves to ‘equal justice for all.’ This Union Station Courthouse and those who work in it have now served that singular purpose for more than thirty years, and we look forward to another 100 years in this historic building,” said Chief Magistrate Judge J. Richard Creatura of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington.

In 1990, GSA entered into a 30-year lease agreement with the city of Tacoma to use Union Station as a U.S. Courthouse, housing ten courtrooms for judges of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington. GSA exercised an option to purchase the property from the city of Tacoma for $1 at the end of the lease term and will continue its ongoing stewardship.

Following the remarks, Tacoma Deputy Mayor Catherine Ushka presented GSA Administrator Carnahan with a ceremonial key to the building.

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About GSA: GSA provides centralized procurement and shared services for the federal government, managing a nationwide real estate portfolio of nearly 370 million rentable square feet, overseeing approximately $75 billion in annual contracts, and delivering technology services that serve millions of people across dozens of federal agencies. GSA’s mission is to deliver the best customer experience and value in real estate, acquisition, and technology services to the government and the American people. For more information, visit GSA.gov and follow us at @USGSA.

Source: United States General Services Administration

August 10, 2022

Federal government seeking new owner for historic Chesapeake Bay lighthouse

PHILADELPHIA — The U.S. General Services Administration announces the opening of the online auction sale of the Hooper Island Lighthouse. The federal government is searching for a new steward to purchase the lighthouse, located about four miles west of Middle Hooper Island in the Chesapeake Bay, Maryland.

Hooper Island Light is a caisson (sparkplug) lighthouse built in 1902. The lighthouse stands in 18 feet of water with a focal plane height of 63 feet. The lighthouse was added to the National Register of Historic Places on December 2, 2002.

The property is subject to:

• The United States Coast Guard’s continued operation and maintenance as an Aid to Navigation on the lighthouse.
• Historic preservation covenants of the lighthouse.
• The execution of Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with the United States Navy. The lighthouse is located within a Navy controlled surface danger area. For safety purposes, the successful bidder will be required to enter into an MOA that governs when access is prohibited.

The online auction began August 8, 2022. Those interested in bidding are required to register in advance and submit a $5,000.00 registration deposit. The starting opening bid is set at $15,000.00. Inspection of the structure must be done from a safe distance. Tying off to, climbing, anchoring to or trespassing on the Property is strictly prohibited due to safety concerns.

Investors are encouraged to begin their buyer due diligence now. The deadline to register and place a bid is September 21, 2022.

Investors can register to bid on this auction at www.RealEstateSales.gov.

Questions should be directed to:
Tod J. Taylor, Realty Specialist, GSA
404.215.6751 (o)
404.215.8600 (f)
tod.taylor@gsa.gov

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About GSA: GSA provides centralized procurement and shared services for the federal government, managing a nationwide real estate portfolio of nearly 370 million rentable square feet, overseeing approximately $75 billion in annual contracts, and delivering technology services that serve millions of people across dozens of federal agencies. GSA’s mission is to deliver the best customer experience and value in real estate, acquisition, and technology services to the government and the American people.

For more information, visit GSA.gov and follow us at @US_GSAR3.

Source: United States General Services Administration

August 5, 2022

Program will drive sustainable innovation by piloting emerging technologies

LAKEWOOD, CO — Today, the U.S. General Services Administration’s (GSA) Center for Emerging Building Technology (CEBT) launched an Applied Innovation Learning Laboratory (AILL) at the Denver Federal Center campus to test innovative zero-emission charging technologies. GSA was joined by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, BEAM Global, Fermata Energy, and WeaveGrid to plan three electric vehicle supply equipment (EVSE) pilots. These pilots aim to support GSA’s ability to deliver on the commitments in Executive Order 14057 “Catalyzing Clean Energy Industries and Jobs Through Federal Sustainability” and accelerate the transition to an all-electric federal fleet.

Announced by GSA Administrator Robin Carnahan in a visit to the DFC earlier this year, AILL sites are designed to serve as hubs for two existing CEBT programs – GSA Green Proving Ground (GPG) and Pilot to Portfolio – and encourage federal partners, industry and local utilities to work together to test new kinds of clean energy technologies.

“We’re thrilled to be working with innovative companies and utilities to test new kinds of clean energy technologies that support zero-emission-vehicle charging infrastructure at federal properties,” said General Services Administrator Robin Carnahan. “Providing the space for practical, hands-on testing and demonstrations of charging station technologies is vital to accelerating the transition to an all-electric fleet and building a cleaner, healthier future for the country.”

2022 EVSE Technologies to be Piloted at the DFC AILL

• BEAM Global | Renewable, transportable EV charging station combines solar, battery storage, and emergency power. Can be independent or grid-tied.
• Fermata Energy | Bi-directional EV charging turns EVs into energy storage assets, increasing resilience and lowering the cost of EV ownership.
• WeaveGrid | EV charge management optimizes charging based on vehicle use, utility rates, and the carbon content of delivered power.

The three EVSE technologies at the DFC will join six existing GPG pilots. Other DFC GPG projects include: a DC Microgrid, quad-pane windows, alternative water treatment for cooling towers, and circulator pumps with automated control.

“The Denver Federal Center has a long history of partnering with GSA’s Green Proving Ground program to drive data-driven investment in new technologies,” said Kevin Powell, Director of the Center for Emerging Building Technology. “Fleet electrification is a transformational moment in transportation infrastructure, and we’re thrilled to be partnering again with the DFC to understand how we can best derive optimum value from an all-electric fleet.”

Reference above to any specific company, product, technology or service does not constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by GSA. More information on the above technologies and other ongoing evaluations can be found at GPG’s Ongoing Assessments webpage.

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About GSA: GSA provides centralized procurement and shared services for the federal government, managing a nationwide real estate portfolio of nearly 370 million rentable square feet, overseeing approximately $75 billion in annual contracts, and delivering technology services that serve millions of people across dozens of federal agencies. GSA’s mission is to deliver the best customer experience and value in real estate, acquisition, and technology services to the government and the American people. For more information, visit GSA.gov and follow us at @USGSA.

Source: United States General Services Administration

August 3, 2022

GSA announces $117 million contract to improve efficiency at 12 Georgia federal buildings

ATLANTA, GA – Today, U.S. General Services (GSA) Administrator Robin Carnahan joined White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) Chair Brenda Mallory and Congresswoman Nikema Williams (GA-05) at the Sam Nunn Federal Center to announce new energy and water efficiency investments, and promote the Biden-Harris Administration’s efforts to make the federal footprint more sustainable and cost-efficient. Administrator Carnahan announced the award of a $117 million Utility Energy Service Contract (UESC) that will provide efficiency improvements in 12 Georgia federal buildings.

Chair Mallory also announced the launch of the Biden-Harris Administration’s Climate Smart Buildings Initiative, which will leverage public-private partnerships to modernize federal buildings to better meet agencies’ missions, create good-paying jobs, and cut greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. By setting and meeting emissions reduction targets for federal buildings, the Climate Smart Buildings Initiative is expected to catalyze over $8 billion of private sector investment by 2030 to modernize facilities through energy savings performance contracts. The initiative is expected to create and support nearly 80,000 good-paying American jobs and achieve up to 2.8 million metric tons of GHG reductions annually by 2030.

“The investments we’re making here in Georgia demonstrate how investing in sustainability is a triple win – creating good-paying clean-energy jobs, reducing energy costs, and tackling climate change to ensure a healthier future for the next generation,” said Administrator Carnahan. “The federal government wants to lead by example by leveraging our scale and buying power to help drive these efforts.”

“President Biden has made clear, climate change is a crisis, and it won’t go away without ambitious, decisive action,” said White House CEQ Chair Mallory. “Through the Biden-Harris Administration’s Climate Smart Buildings Initiative, we will replicate work Administrator Carnahan is leading at GSA to cut Federal building energy costs and emissions in Georgia and across the country. This means creating good jobs, saving taxpayer dollars, and accelerating our Made in America clean energy economy.”

The UESC award to Southern Company will provide energy and water efficiency improvements in 12 Georgia federal buildings through infrastructure improvements in chillers, boilers, air handler units, digital building controls, lighting, electrical transformers, low flow and flush water fixtures, spring water capture, and renewables technologies. The improvements will include the first wind-powered renewable energy system installed in a GSA federal building. UESCs are contracts between a federal agency and utilities for energy management services, including energy and water efficiency improvements and energy demand reduction.

The event showcased the Biden-Harris Administration’s leadership in decarbonizing the federal footprint and making federal buildings more efficient, while saving taxpayer dollars, creating clean energy jobs, and strengthening American leadership and competitiveness. The Administration has set the ambitious goal of sourcing 100 percent carbon pollution-free electricity (CFE) on a net annual basis by 2030, including 50 percent 24/7 carbon pollution-free electricity.

In addition, Administrator Carnahan and Chair Mallory detailed the importance of the historic Inflation Reduction Act currently under debate in the Senate, which would make the single largest climate investment in U.S. history, as well as President Biden’s Fiscal Year 2023 Budget Proposal, which includes a $72 million investment for critical system and infrastructure improvements at the Sam Nunn Federal Center.

GSA recently announced that it had achieved a 51% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from GSA-owned buildings. The reduction of more than a million metric tons annually represents the equivalent of taking 223,000 cars off the road every year. GSA has also avoided over $638 million dollars in energy costs since 2008 through energy efficiency improvements and other upgrades.

For more information on GSA’s leadership in tackling the climate crisis and investing in a more sustainable future, please see here.

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About GSA: GSA provides centralized procurement and shared services for the federal government, managing a nationwide real estate portfolio of nearly 370 million rentable square feet, overseeing approximately $75 billion in annual contracts, and delivering technology services that serve millions of people across dozens of federal agencies. GSA’s mission is to deliver the best customer experience and value in real estate, acquisition, and technology services to the government and the American people. For more information, visit GSA.gov and follow us at @USGSA.