Federal Real Property: GSA Should Include Community Input Requirements to Help Fulfill Design Excellence Program Goals
Fast Facts
Since 1994, the General Services Administration has commissioned designs for 153 buildings as part of its Design Excellence Program, which encourages the creative design of new buildings for federal agencies.
However, we found that GSA doesn't require this program's architects to obtain and consider community input on building designs. Such requirements could help integrate federal buildings into the local community—and reduce local opposition to the construction of such buildings.
We recommended that GSA include requirements for obtaining and considering community input on building designs.
GSA’s Design Excellence Program helped develop buildings like the U.S. District Courthouse in Mobile, Alabama
Highlights
What GAO Found
The General Services Administration (GSA) commissions the design of federal buildings and accompanying site-specific artwork through the Design Excellence Program and Art in Architecture Program, respectively. Program requirements are generally located in GSA policy, and not in statute. In 2020, both programs were subject to executive orders—now rescinded—that directed GSA to preference classical architecture and avoid abstract art, among other things. This was a departure from prior GSA policy to avoid federal style mandates. The executive orders were in place for a short time, and GSA has returned to its prior policies. However, GSA officials said that since each program's requirements are largely located in GSA policy, GSA could be required to accommodate future executive orders that identify style preferences, which they said could conflict with program goals and complicate compliance with historic preservation laws.
GSA Design Excellence Program and Art in Architecture Program Projects
Both the Design Excellence Program and Art in Architecture Program follow three-phase processes to select a firm or artist and approve a final design. For each program, GSA: (1) develops a solicitation that includes the project's requirements and evaluation criteria, such as past experience; (2) identifies a short list of qualified applicants and then a final awardee; and (3) collaborates with the awardee to identify an appropriate design for the project. In addition, both programs rely on the use of selection panels comprised of GSA officials, industry representatives, and others to review applications and designs.
While GSA recognizes the value of community engagement in its Design Excellence Manual, it does not require community input on building design. For example, the Design Excellence Manual identifies coordinating planning and design decisions with the local community as a goal. However, the Design Excellence Manual does not require the commissioned architect to obtain and consider community input on building design. GSA officials said they did not want to be prescriptive regarding how architects should obtain and consider community input on building design because project circumstances vary and the architect is the design expert. However, GSA could establish community input requirements that still give architects the latitude to decide whether and how to integrate the input. Having such requirements would help GSA achieve its objectives of integrating buildings into the local community and incorporating regional architectural traditions. In addition, collecting such input could reduce the potential for schedule overruns due to local opposition to building designs.
Why GAO Did This Study
Since 1994, GSA has commissioned designs for 153 buildings as part of the Design Excellence Program, GSA's program for the creative design of new buildings and building modernizations for federal agencies. GSA also commissions site-specific artwork for these projects, as part of the Art in Architecture Program.
GAO was asked to review issues related to the Design Excellence and Art in Architecture Programs.
This report (1) describes the requirements and guidance that govern the programs; (2) describes GSA's processes for designing new federal buildings and renovations and commissioning art installations under the programs; and (3) assesses the role of community input in the Design Excellence Program.
GAO reviewed executive orders, statutes, regulations, policies, and other documentation for the programs. GAO also interviewed GSA officials and outside architects. GAO assessed Design Excellence Program policies on community input against the Standards for Internal Control in the Federal Government.
Recommendations
GAO recommends that GSA update the Design Excellence Manual to include requirements for obtaining and considering community input on building design, including architectural style. GSA concurred with the recommendation and said it would develop a plan to address it.
Recommendations for Executive Action
| Agency Affected | Recommendation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| General Services Administration | The Administrator of the General Services Administration should ensure that the Commissioner of the Public Buildings Service updates the Design Excellence Manual to include requirements for obtaining and considering community input on building design, including architectural style. (Recommendation 1) |
In 1994, GSA instituted the Design Excellence Program to select architects and engineers to design new federal buildings as well as modernize existing buildings. The intent of the program is to ensure the development of exceptional public buildings that can serve as landmarks. The requirements for the program are included in GSA's Design Excellence and Construction Policies and Procedures which we refer to as the Design Excellence Manual. In 2023, GAO reported that GSA's Design Excellence Manual did not require awarded architects to obtain and consider community input for their projects, despite community input featuring in aspects of the Design Excellence Program's goals and selection criteria. Specifically, the coordination of planning and design decisions with local community goals is one of the eight goals of the Design Excellence Program. In addition, GSA's criteria for selecting applicants and awardees for Design Excellence Program projects include aspects related to community engagement. Among other processes, GSA's Collaborative Design Process states that GSA should seek input from local officials and stakeholders on building design prior to and, at times, during the design phase of building projects. However, GSA officials said that this input tends to concern adherence to local zoning regarding building setbacks, sidewalk dimensions, and other standards, not architectural style, a key element of building design. Standards for Internal Control in the Federal Government state that management should design policies and procedures, such as GSA's Design Excellence Manual, to achieve objectives and respond to risks. The standards also note the importance of open, two-way communication with external parties to achieve entities' objectives. Without clear requirements in the Design Excellence Manual, architects and GSA may not always pursue the two-way communications needed to obtain and consider community input. In turn, not engaging in two-way communications can increase the risk that Design Excellence Program projects do not achieve GSA's objectives of integrating buildings into the local community and can result in situations in which building designs need to be revised. For example, after an architect created a design for a courthouse in Savannah, Georgia, the city's historic society raised concerns about the architectural style of the building, including that the building did not reflect regional architectural traditions. These concerns led to an extensive re-design of the building. Thus, GAO recommended that GSA update the Design Excellence Manual to include requirements for obtaining and considering community input on building design, including architectural style. In January 2024, GAO confirmed that GSA had provided its regional chief architects with an addendum to the Design Excellence Manual, which requires that architects for Design Excellence Program projects obtain and consider community input on building design, including architectural style. GSA will incorporate these changes into the full Design Excellence Manual at its next revision. By requiring that architects obtain and consider community input on building design, including on architectural style, GSA helps ensure that Design Excellence Program projects achieve GSA's objectives of integrating buildings into the local community.
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