The Anthony J. Celebrezze Federal Building, one of Downtown Cleveland’s largest buildings as measured in square feet, will be disposed of by the federal government. The 1.2-million-square-foot building is slightly more than half-full with about 4,000 workers on-site (Google). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.
Feds say sale to save taxpayers big bucks
The U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) today announced it will initiate a public sale of the 32-story Anthony J. Celebrezze (AJC) Federal Building, 1240 E 9th St, in Downtown Cleveland that it claims could potentially save more than $430 million in total annual operating costs.
By including the AJC Federal Building in President Trump’s plan to shrink the government’s real estate portfolio, the GSA said in an official statement that “We expect to save taxpayers over $180 million in maintenance and redevelopment costs.”
That’s ACJ’s projected repair and renovation tab confronting the GSA right now. NEOtrans was first to report earlier this week that renovation work by general contractor Whiting-Turner at the 1966-built skyscraper was halted just as it was getting underway with some walls removed and construction materials already purchased being left on site.
A GSA spokesperson said they would provide more information about the cessation of $31 million in renovation work but never did. This follows NEOtrans breaking the story in on March 31 that GSA intended to dispose of the AJC property, according to a spokesperson for Congresswoman Shontel Brown (D-Cleveland).
Some of Downtown Cleveland’s office buildings will be asked to take in some of the 30 agencies that occupy about 665,000 square feet of space in the silvery block of the AJC Federal Building, just left of center in this view from Terminal Tower (NEOtrans).
“The disposition of the Celebrezze Federal Building is part of a larger strategy to evaluate underutilized assets and shrink the federal footprint,” said a GSA spokesperson in a written statement.
“This is the first step in GSA’s disposition process, under which the properties could be transferred, exchanged, or sold to a federal, state, or local entity — or to the public — after input and engagement with stakeholders,” the statement continued. “GSA remains committed to solving long-term problems that exist in the federal portfolio of assets.”
GSA has also coordinated with communities and local officials to keep them informed of the disposition process — including opportunities for engagement with the goal of continued use of properties, such as advancing local economic development and employment. Interested parties are urged to contact accelerated.disposals@gsa.gov.
AJC totals about 1.2 million square feet and has about 4,000 employees from among 30 agencies. They would be relocated to newly leased spaces in existing, privately owned buildings mostly in Downtown Cleveland which could help heat up downtown’s cooling for-lease office market.
The tall building in the foreground is the 32-story Celebrezze Federal Building, standing at the southwest corner of East 9th Street and Lakeside Avenue as it has since 1966 (Google).
Barely more than half of the AJC is occupied, or 665,000 square feet of office space. After it is vacated in three years, the building will be closed and offered to local and state governments first at a deep discount, if not for free, per federal law. If there are no takers, then it would go to a public sale offering by the GSA.
But it could not be considered as a site for a new Consolidated Cuyahoga County Courthouse of nearly 900,000 square feet, not including atriums or parking, said County Executive Chris Ronayne.
“We are in an active request for proposals process,” Ronayne told NEOtrans. “Rules governing that preclude its entry. It would have had to enter before the deadline back when (in 2023).”
Along with the disposition of the Celebrezze building, GSA said it will continue to consider assets for divestment from government ownership in an orderly fashion to ensure taxpayers no longer pay for empty and underutilized federal office space, or the significant maintenance costs associated with long-term building ownership.
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