GSA Offers Help in Getting to Green

The GSA has several programs and services that federal real property professionals can use to determine whether real property inventory is surplus or underutilized - and if so, how it can be used or disposed of to meet current federal requirements.

Gordon Creed, Acting Deputy Assistant Commissioner for Real Property Disposal in the GSA's Office of Real Property Asset Management, explained the GSA's offerings at the recent professional conference of the Federal Real Property Association (FRPA).

In a presentation titled, "How GSA Can Help You Get to Green," Creed gave an overview of several programs and services, such as:

• Targeted Asset Review (TAR)
• Value Added Services (VAS)
• Asset Relocation Program
• FirstGov Portal - Federal Asset Sales (FAS)

The TAR initiative was launched in FY 2002, Creed said. The program helps agencies develop and implement sound asset management and redeployment strategies. TAR was pilot-tested with US Coast Guard's Civil Engineering Unit in Miami, and in 2003 the program was expanded to the real property portfolios of other agencies.

TAR assists agencies with asset management by increasing financial knowledge of individual assets and assessing the role of each asset in support of agency mission objectives, said Creed. The program also helps evaluate current and future utilization alternatives, and helps collect and organize title, environmental, historic and cultural information. It also assists in identifying real estate and community issues affecting the property, Creed added.

VAS is an Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract with five real estate and technology firms: Cushman & Wakefield of Virginia, Inc.; EG&G Technical Services; Jones Lang Lasalle; Prescient, Inc.; and Thompson, Cobb, Bazilio and Associates. According to Creed, these firms provide services ranging from financial audits to due diligence responsibilities.

Contracting with the firms is easy and open to all federal agencies, Creed said. Hourly rates have been pre-negotiated to help get projects quickly underway.

GSA's Relocation Program is an Asset Management Tool adopted from the private sector, Creed explained. It enables an agency's mission to be relocated to a new location from a high value property that is not fully utilized. Funding is provided by GSA to acquire new space facilities, and GSA generates proceeds by taking vacated property to sale, Creed said.

Finally, Creed explained FAS, part of the President's expanding e-Government initiatives, managed by the GSA. GSA is implementing the Federal Asset Sales initiative in phases. The first phase, released on September 30, 2005, modifies FirstGov.gov's "Government Sales and Auctions" webpage. On September 30, 2006, GSA launched GovSales, the second phase in developing a single website that will ultimately include all government assets available for sale.

More information on the programs and services available from GSA can be found by visiting http://propertydisposal.gsa.gov/property, or the GSA Resource Center at http://RC.gsa.gov/ResourceCenter.