BOMA testifies before congress on GSA

BOMA International testified before congress on June 6 about making the General Services Administration (GSA) lease and construction process efficient, transparent and user-friendly. Gail Seekins, senior property manager with Akridge and a past president of the Apartment and Office Building Association in Washington, D.C., represented BOMA before a house hearing of the Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings and Emergency Management Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. Seekins praised GSA as one of BOMA's largest and most valued members, stressing that all comments were intended to highlight improvement opportunities to help the federal government and the private sector companies that build and lease to government agencies, and to better streamline the processes to save money for all parties involved. Speaking about the construction process, Seekins discussed some of the problematic aspects of GSA's construction process, including complications with the scoring rules created by federal mandate. Seekins also spoke to the committee about some of the barriers that occur during the leasing process, such as prospectus rental rates that have not kept up with the rapid increases in construction materials and labor costs, as well as leases that are not always landlord-friendly. On the staffing and operations side, Seekins recommended that GSA consider modifying its excellent intern program to include more technical training in the leasing and facilities management area and target specific hires for careers in real estate leasing.