Plans to build the $3.4-billion headquarters campus for the Dept. of Homeland Security in Washington, D.C., got a jump start thanks to ARRA funding. The U.S. General Services Administration implemented the plan in August when it awarded a $435-million design-build contract to provide a new headquarters building for the U.S. Coast Guard on the site of the former St. Elizabeths Hospital. In additional to federal appropriations, the project secured $162 million of combined ARRA funds from GSA and DHS, which GSA spokesman Michael McGill says accelerated portions of phase one.

Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Coast Guard headquarters in Washington, D.C., will provide 1,000 jobs in the project’s first phase.
Photo: USCG
Coast Guard headquarters in Washington, D.C., will provide 1,000 jobs in the project’s first phase.

The project will include a new 1.18-million-sq-ft office building as well as renovation and modernization of nine historic structures comprising 180,000 sq ft of space. The scope also includes a 1,000-car garage, central utility plant, road system and perimeter security.

The design-build team is led by Clark Construction Group, Bethesda, Md. Saint Louis-based HOK will provide interior design and landscape architecture, and the Washington office of WDG Architecture is the architect of record for the office building.

Design was originally conceived by Chicago-based Perkins+Will under a separate contract. McKissack and McKissack of Washington is architect of record for the parking garage and central utility plant. Quinn Evans Architects, Washington, handles historic preservation duties.

At its peak, phase-one construction will require a daily workforce of more than 1,000, involving more than 100 contractors, subcontractors and vendors.

When completed in 2013, the project will provide 4.5 million sq ft of space to house up to 14,000 employees.

U.S. Coast Guard Headquarters
Jobs Created Anticipated: 1,000
Number of Firms: 100+
ARRA Contract Amount $162 Million
Phase-One Cost $435 Million