The FBI is poised to announce the site for its new headquarters and Prince George’s County officials are hopeful that the facility, scheduled to be built in 2025, will be located in their backyard. However, Greenbelt residents question the level of congestion that would accompany the new building.
Greenbelt Mayor Emmett V. Jordan said he is excited that Greenbelt is among the top three sites to possibly house FBI headquarters.
Officials from the FBI and the General Services Administration met Feb. 13 with residents and locally elected leaders to unveil details of the facility should it be built in Greenbelt, Md.; Landover, Md. or Springfield, Va. “The hope is that we provide adequate parking for whatever site we go to and we want to be a good neighbor to make sure that our employees are not parking in the neighborhoods,” said Doug Grant, FBI project executive. “Our goal is to get along with the community.”
In addition to Greenbelt, officials from the FBI and the General Services Administration scheduled briefings in Landover on Feb. 15 and Springfield, Va. on Feb. 17. These sites are being considered for a massive new building to handle thousands of workers from 11 different locations.
Greenbelt Mayor Emmett V. Jordan attended the meeting where residents voiced concerns over the impact of traffic congestion with the proposed project. “We are excited. It’s not what we planned for but if it is Greenbelt we hope that they can mitigate some of the concerns over congestion, but we have the capacity with the Green Line,” said Jordan, adding that if the site adjacent to the Greenbelt Metro Station is selected it would be a tremendous impact in terms of “contractors and service workers,” that would be hired to support the facility.
Prince George’s County Council member Todd Turner (D-District 4) said he is optimistic, because the odds are in the county’s favor to win the headquarters. “We are excited too if the three sites are in the county.”
But Judy Blumenthal, a resident of College Park, Md. who attended the meeting said, “We can’t handle any more traffic, the area is not meant for mega development.”
On Feb. 16, federal officials are scheduled to bring their charts and graphs to the Kentland Community Center in Landover, Md. The meeting will take place from 6 – 7:30 p.m. Grant said federal officials will let the community know the proposed headquarters in March when they release the Environmental Impact Study regarding the project.
Greenbelt officials said they are hopeful because the site is closer to Metro and MARC rail lines along with retail and office space.