The General Services Administration is considering redeveloping an area that includes the Energy Department complex, FAA buildings, GSA offices and the old Cotton Annex.

It’s part of an effort to “to make this a more vibrant neighborhood and infuse a mix of uses while it still would be a very federal presence,” said Diane Sullivan, lead sustainability planner for the National Capital Planning Commission, in an interview with The Federal Drive with Tom Temin and Emily Kopp.

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Map courtesy of National Capital Planning Commission.

GSA has issued a notice of intent to request information from the private companies in this redevelopment area. The NCPC is working with GSA on its SW Ecodistrict Initiative, to make the district a model of a sustainable, urban environment.

Sullivan said the commission is applauding GSA for taking a “holistic” approach to examining this district for redevelopment.

One of the main changes would be an overhaul of the Energy Department headquarters, which spans 10 blocks, she said.

“We felt the benefits of actually taking that down would far outweigh ones for leaving it,” Sullivan said.

For one, the complex is “extremely inefficient” because of its size.

“We think the Department of Energy, of all agencies, should probably have a much more sustainable building,” Sullivan said.

The next step for NCPC is to redesign the promenade — the street itself — that connects the National Mall to the waterfront.

“Everybody wants a better connection between those two areas … The SW Ecodistrict Initiative is the impetus,” she said.

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