Director of National Intelligence James Clapper said: “I believe this world-class facility is a beautiful addition to the community.” Mark Lennihan / AP
Intel Community Opens Campus in Suburban Maryland
Clapper dedicates site for 3,000 set in motion under BRAC.
Some 3,000 employees of the 17-agency intelligence community have begun switching their commute to report to a “state-of-the-art” campus that opened on Wednesday in Bethesda, Md.
Director of National Intelligence James Clapper was among the officials at the ribbon cutting hosted by the Defense Intelligence Agency. “I believe this world-class facility is a beautiful addition to the community,” Clapper said. “This facility is – in so many ways – the physical manifestation of 'intelligence integration.’ ” It will house ODNI’s National Counterintelligence and Security Center, the National Intelligence University and DIA.
In fulfillment of the 2005 Base Closure and Realignment Act, intelligence community planners in 2011 began reconfiguring the summer campus of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. The result, situated in what Clapper’s office calls “the heart of the intelligence community,” is a “sleek glass façade that wraps around the three pre-existing buildings to create a unified modern structure that centralizes and efficiently distributes mission services.” Also added was a six-story parking garage.
By preserving existing structures, the intelligence community produced a state-of-the-art facility for roughly 60 percent of the cost, according to Jim Manzelmann, ODNI’s new assistant deputy director for facilities who oversaw the project as DIA’s director for mission services. “Finding a way to take a campus where some of the buildings were 70 years old and converting it into a brand-new facility makes this extremely special,” he said.
The buildings, which feature exterior paneling and earth-tone pigmented walkways, are designed to be environmentally friendly. One hall will feature light-emitting diode lighting technology that uses only 10 percent of the energy used by standard office lighting, as well as daylight sensors to reduce electricity use, according to ODNI. The building will consume 69 percent less energy than it did before renovation and can also achieve zero-net energy use through photovoltaic solar panels. Its Vehicle Control Center uses groundwater heat pumps, temperature control and energy-efficient glass.
Overall, the campus is expected to use 31 percent less energy than before renovation, planners said.