By Brian Trompeter
Virginia leaders are calling for an investigation – and reversal – of the U.S. General Services Administration’s decision to locate the FBI’s new headquarters in Greenbelt, Md.
The new facility, which would be built on 61 acres now owned by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA), would replace the FBI’s crumbling circa-1975 headquarters in Washington, D.C. GSA officials rejected Virginia’s proposal to build the headquarters in the Franconia-Springfield area and dismissed another proposed site in Landover, Md., as well.
“GSA determined Greenbelt to be the best option for the FBI and the United States government because the site was the lowest cost to taxpayers, provided the greatest transportation access to FBI employees and visitors, and gave the government the most certainty on project delivery schedule,” GSA officials said in a media statement. “It also provided the highest potential to advance sustainability and equity.”
Factors officials considered included FBI proximity to mission-related locations; transportation access; site-development flexibility and schedule risk; promoting sustainable siting and advancing equity; and cost.
GSA now will begin the acquisition process for the Greenbelt site and begin development of a comprehensive project fact sheet for submission to Congress, agency officials said.
But Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R), U.S. Sens. Mark Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-Va.) and several Virginia members of the U.S. House of Representatives on Nov. 9 issued a statement inveighing against the GSA’s decision.
“We have repeatedly condemned political interference in the independent, agency-run site selection process for a new FBI headquarters,” their statement read. “Any fair weighing of the criteria points to a selection of Virginia. It is clear that this process has been irrevocably undermined and tainted, and this decision must now be reversed.”
Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Chairman Jeff McKay (D) told the GazetteLeader that the decision was “profoundly disappointing and defies common sense.”
“This decision will not serve the long-term needs of the FBI or its employees nearly as well as the Virginia site would,” McKay said. “Sadly, it’s come to light that there may have been a potential conflict of interest that I believe must be investigated. This is essential to ensure that the legitimacy and transparency of the selection process is upheld. If issues do come to light, the right thing to do would be to eliminate the Greenbelt site entirely and choose from the remaining two sites.”
That alleged conflict of interest pertains to former WMATA employee Nina Albert, who as commissioner of GSA’s Public Buildings Service reportedly overruled the selection panel’s selection. Albert also serves as the District of Columbia’s deputy mayor for planning and economic development.
Virginia officials cited media reports that FBI Director Christopher Wray had opposed the decision, stating that the three-person selection panel – consisting of two GSA representatives and one FBI employee – unanimously had favored the Springfield location.
The GSA operates a massive warehouse off of Loisdale Road in Springfield, which Virginia officials said would be an ideal site for the FBI’s headquarters. The property is located near the Transportation Security Administration’s headquarters and Northern Virginia Community College’s Medical Education Campus.
The 58-acre site is within walking distance of the Franconia-Springfield Metrorail station, Springfield Town Center and several other shopping areas. It also has ready access to Fairfax Connector buses, Interstates 95 and 495, and rail service by Virginia Railway Express.
In addition, Virginia officials in February highlighted that the Springfield site is federally owned and thus would offer significant cost savings and speed up the project’s construction. The property is just 27 miles from FBI’s facility at Quantico, Va., they added.
U.S. Sens. Warner and Kaine (both D-Va.) issued a joint statement Nov. 8, after news of the decision leaked.
“We’re deeply disappointed that despite the clear case that Virginia is the best home for the FBI, the Administration went a different direction,” they wrote. “It’s especially disappointing that the FBI’s initial criteria for this decision – developed independently by the GSA and affirmed by Congress just last year – were changed at the 11th hour by the Administration following political pressure.”
Kaine and Warner said they had spent years criticizing the Trump administration for allegedly politicizing the new FBI headquarters, only to have the subsequent Biden administration allow politics to taint the selection process.
“We know from our experience recruiting Hilton, Capital One, Northrop Grumman, Amazon, and many other companies to Virginia that our Commonwealth is the best state for business, and we’ll continue to focus on promoting economic growth and supporting law enforcement in the Commonwealth,” their statement read.
U.S. Rep. Gerald Connolly (D-11th) expressed his displeasure in remarks posted on X (formerly Twitter).
“In making this decision, GSA has shamelessly caved to political pressure, putting blatant politics over the merits and amending the weighting of long-established criteria to make this decision all but predictable,” Connolly wrote.
Supervisor Patrick Herrity (R-Springfield) agreed that something was amiss.
“The FBI headquarters selection process was clearly tainted by political motives, as the chosen location was entirely different than the one unanimously recommended by the selection working group,” Herrity said. “The decision to locate the headquarters in Maryland is a disservice to employees of the FBI, many of whom live in Fairfax County.”
Supervisor Rodney Lusk (D-Franconia), in whose district the Franconia-Springfield site is located, said he was surprised by GSA’s decision.
“Originally, we felt strongly that we met the criteria that the GSA had set out for their relocation of the FBI,” he said, including cost and access to transit, federal facilities and airports. “It’s just a shock and disappointment that decision has actually been made for Greenbelt and Prince George’s County.”
Albert’s changes for the site’s criteria led to Greenbelt’s selection, he said.
“I’m holding out hope that there’s going to be a review of it and hopefully a reconsideration of the decision, based on what’s been brought to light,” Lusk said. “We were not apprised of the decision until we found out Greenbelt had won.”
