This approach adds to both schedule and cost. The Office of the Chief Architect Center
for Design Excellence and the Arts needs to hire a competition advisor and invite peer
j u rors to evaluate submissions. To allow adequate time to write a pro g ram and rules and
c o o rdinate schedules, this process begins at least two months in advance of the
competition. Each lead designer-A/E team has 30 days to develop its ideas, at which
point, the jury evaluates the submissions and gives a report to the A/E Evaluation Board.
As in the case of charrettes, the A/E Evaluation Board must understand that the
competition is not being used to select a project design but rather to evaluate potential
lead designers and their design teams, enabling GSA to understand in greater depth each
lead designer-A/E team's design approach and its interpretation of a project's design
priorities. In addition, to help avoid impressive but unrealistically expensive schemes,
competition submissions must include a confirmation that the construction cost of each
design is within the project budget.
There are benefits to this selection process. It generates a rich spectrum of design
options and ideas. It is a public confirmation of GSA's commitment to Design Excellence,
and it brings national attention to the importance of architecture as an expression of our
democracy and its institutions. These are worthwhile objectives.
Whatever process is chosen, it is critical that the FedBizOpps announcement accurately
describe the process and decision-making criteria to avoid adverse consequences and
unnecessary delays.
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section 5.3
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