Clark Completes New Social Security Administration Headquarters

Baltimore, MD – A January 14 ribbon cutting ceremony marked the completion of the new two-building Social Security Administration Headquarters. Clark constructed the 538,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art facility on an 11-acre campus in northwest Baltimore. The headquarters features two office buildings, five and seven stories respectively, along with an adjacent 1,076-car, above-ground parking garage, and a separate field office.

Clark's scope of work also included the demolition of an existing Maryland Transit Authority training complex, integration of complex landscape and hardscape designs, installation of elaborate planting schemes, and site security provisions. The headquarters' antiterrorism/force protection measures include blast-resistant precast and glass, two exterior entry vestibules, and perimeter anti-ram walls.

The new headquarters is designed to earn LEED-NC Silver certification. Among the campus’ sustainable elements are a green roof, a large park, bio-retention ponds, green screens, and a self-sustaining green wall located in the six-story atrium. The facility's proximity to Baltimore's Metro helps the federal government achieve its sustainability goals and the state grow transit ridership, and its economy.

"It was just two short years ago we stood here, in the parking lot, and broke ground," said Baltimore City Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake. "This [project] means a lot to Baltimore's future ... the type of transit-oriented project we want Baltimore to be known for.

Utilizing small businesses throughout the construction process was a priority for project stakeholders. Clark exceeded the forty-three percent small business goal set forth by the owner, achieving forty-eight percent small business inclusion. Similarly, Clark exceeded the established goals for all small business subcategories, including small disadvantaged, women-owned, HUBZone, veteran-owned, and service-disabled-veteran-owned businesses. The project team also forged a mentor-protégé relationship with Cain Contracting, a service-disabled-veteran-owned business whose scope of work included managing the installation of the elevators, drywall, and steel work. Serving as a project engineer, an employee of Cain worked on site for the duration of the project. Daily interaction with Clark's project management staff afforded him the opportunity for real-time training in subcontractor management, budgeting, and schedule development.

S2N, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Clark, managed the design and installation of the project's low-voltage technology infrastructure, including fiber and copper backbone cabling, the paging system, and first responder radio system.

Developed and owned by The JBG Companies, in a partnership with Klein Enterprises, the headquarters building is being leased to the General Services Administration. AECOM served as the project architect.

For more information on the Social Security Administration Headquarters project, click here.