The Newseum, an interactive news museum managed by the Freedom Forum, had outgrown its 72,000-square-foot exhibition space in Rosslyn, VA. The Freedom Forum hired Studley to secure a highly visible site in the Washington, DC area that would allow the Newseum to expand its facilities and strengthen its position as an international tourist destination.
Consideration and Analysis
After surveying the available large blocks of space in the DC metropolitan area, Studley recommended that the Freedom Forum submit an unsolicited, comprehensive proposal to the DC government for the purchase of the Department of Employment Services site at 6th & Pennsylvania Ave NW, which at the time was one of the last remaining large blocks of land available for sale in the District. In an unprecedented move, Studley and the Freedom Forum also invited other bidders to respond to the initial bid in order to avoid a protracted RFP process. During the extensive, complex negotiations, Studley’s team worked diligently and in complete collaboration with the DC government to bring this deal to completion in a timely manner.
Result
After six months of negotiations, Studley represented Freedom Forum in its purchase of the Department of Employment Services site at 6th & Pennsylvania Ave NW for $100 million, allowing the Newseum to relocate from the Virginia suburbs to Washington, DC and more than double in size. The Freedom Forum pre-empted the public bid process with a $100 million dollar offer that included a $75 million bid for the land, plus a $25 million grant for affordable housing initiatives within DC, contingent on the transaction being completed by the end of 2000. Studley’s creativity offered the DC government: 1) a unique use for the site; 2) an unsolicited, sole source bid; and 3) significant citizen, developer, and political support for the project. As a result, the Freedom Forum was able to oversee the development of a 476,000-square-foot multi-use complex which included museum, office, restaurant, retail, and condominium space. Today, the Newseum is an extraordinary 250,000-square-foot tourist attraction that sits on Washington's most coveted corner: historic Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, DC, between the White House and the US Capitol Building and adjacent to the Smithsonian museums on the National Mall.
