The FBI has one of the flyest pads in South Florida with a brand-new, technologically advanced building in Miramar -- and it wasn't cheap. The stylish new digs cost $156 million, but don't worry about that, taxpayers, because it was built to be environmentally-friendly and help the Bureau save on its light bill.
After 28 years of catching fraudsters and child pornographers from its North Miami Beach location, the FBI relocated to a 330,000 square foot facility at 2030 SW 145th Avenue in Miramar. The new building will have space for more than 1,000 employees. The FBI says the new building will allow it to centralize its South Florida presence by bringing together several offices under one roof.
The $156 million price tag is actually substantially less than the original expected cost, which was $190 million, according to a post last year by The Next Miami. The building, which was dreamed-up by Chicago-based architecture firm Krueck+Sexton, is designed to reduce energy consumption and renew energy on site. Here's how the architects say that happens:
The office building consists of two 70' narrow bars which run in an East to West orientation in order to minimize solar heat gain, while taking advantage of maximum daylight on the office floors. The 6 and 7 story bars are joined at their midpoint by a connecting link, and enclose two landscaped, exterior courtyards. The façades consist of floor-to-ceiling high-performance glass in a unitized curtainwall system in order to admit a maximum of available daylight. They are dynamically articulated in response to sun angles, views from the interior, and subtle reflections of the surrounding sky and wetlands. Exterior perforated sun screens are deployed at the south-facing sides to shield solar gain before it enters the building. A combination of rainwater capture, well water, and use of municipal reclaimed water will reduce consumption of potable water by approx. 95%. Solar photovoltaic arrays on the roofs of the Annex and Garage provide renewable electricity.
The building also gives a nod of appreciation to the Florida's wetlands, which have been restored in the area around the building. "By careful siting and thoughtful shading, courtyards will allow the users of this Federal Office Building to engage regularly with the natural restored habitat," Krueck+Sexton says.
Suddenly, the FBI sounds like a nice place to have a picnic.
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