Washington, DC– The District will break ground on its $220 million Consolidated Forensic Laboratory and move the Metropolitan Police Department’s First District headquarters into a former school site next month Mayor Adrian M. Fenty announced on Monday during a press conference where he provided an update on a series of public safety and government facility projects.
(Washington, DC) – The District will break ground on its $220 million Consolidated Forensic Laboratory and move the Metropolitan Police Department’s First District headquarters into a former school site next month Mayor Adrian M. Fenty announced on Monday during a press conference where he provided an update on a series of public safety and government facility projects.
“We promised to keep these projects moving and get them finished as fast as possible,” Mayor Fenty said. “We are continually working to manage our public facilities more efficiently. In many of these cases we will save millions of dollars over the long term by moving our operations out of leased space and into government-owned facilities.”
MPD First District Headquarters Relocation
Next month, MPD will move its First District headquarters and its Criminal Investigations Division to the former Bowen elementary school in Southwest. The Bowen school closed last year. Within a little more than seven months the Office of Public Education Facilities Modernization and the Office of Property Management and have nearly completed the renovation work for MPD. The First District station is currently housed at Fourth and E Streets, SW and the District is planning to build its Consolidated Forensic Laboratory in its place.
Consolidated Forensic Lab
The District expects to break ground on its $220 million Consolidated Forensic Laboratory next month. The six-story facility will house the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, Public Health Laboratory and Metropolitan Police Department Forensic Services Division under one roof. The District’s Public Health Laboratory recently activated its Annex at Blue Plains to include a high-security BSL-3 rated facility that gives us important capabilities to rapidly diagnose outbreaks during public health emergencies. The CFL project is both on schedule and on budget and the District expects to complete construction by late 2011.
Parcel 69
Last fall, the District receive three proposals from developers seeking to redevelop a pair of District-owned sites adjacent to the CFL site in Southwest including the current Engine Co. 13 fire station. The Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development is currently vetting the proposals and a community meeting is planned for February 25 at 800 Water Street, SW where the development teams will share their ideas for the sites. The teams proposed a range of development scenarios that included up to 465,000 square feet of new development including office, hotel and retail uses. The District is requiring the teams to incorporate a new fire station into their plans and allow for the facility to remain in operation throughout the project. The Deputy Mayor’s Office expects to select a development partner late next month.
Evidence Warehouse
The District is planning to build a new 30,000 square-foot evidence warehouse for MPD at DC Village. MPD has outgrown its current facility – which is in leased space – and the District expects to save additional funds by moving this function to government-owned land
DHCD/Office of Planning Moves
The Department of Housing and Community Development and its 180 employees recently moved out of leased space on North Capitol Street to the Anacostia Gateway at Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue, which was developed in part by the District of Columbia.
The Office of Planning recently relocated its offices from the same leased North Capitol Street building into the Reeves Center.