Warner welcomes NSF staying in Alexandria, calls for better agency relocation process
Senator tells The Alexandria Brief that GSA must improve transparency following displacement of 1,600 employees
Sen. Mark Warner said Thursday he was pleased the National Science Foundation will remain in Alexandria after being displaced from its Eisenhower Avenue headquarters, but called on the General Services Administration to improve how it handles future agency relocations.
“I’m glad that NSF is staying in Alexandria, my hometown,” Warner told The Alexandria Brief during a remote media availability with Virginia reporters Thursday. “I think these are extraordinary people who work at the NSF making the decisions about where the funding goes. And obviously, I strongly support the research activities of the NSF.”
The comments came six days after GSA announced Nov. 14 that NSF would relocate to the Randolph Building at 401 Dulany Street in early 2026, keeping the agency’s approximately 1,600 employees in the city.
Warner’s office also confirmed Thursday, in response to questions from The Alexandria Brief, that GSA had responded to a June letter from the Virginia delegation seeking answers about the displacement. The Sept. 17 response came nearly 10 weeks after the lawmakers’ July 11 deadline.
Warner, along with Sen. Tim Kaine and Rep. Don Beyer, had requested detailed answers to 19 questions about GSA’s decision-making process, projected costs, coordination with NSF and HUD, and plans for accommodating affected employees.
GSA’s two-page response outlined the rationale for relocating HUD into NSF’s Eisenhower Avenue building, citing projected savings of $500 million in deferred maintenance costs and increased building utilization under the USE IT Act, but did not provide specific answers to many of the questions, including cost estimates, timelines and details about which officials were consulted.
“This announcement provides some reassurance for the National Science Foundation and for the roughly 1,800 employees who work out of its headquarters in Alexandria after they were abruptly displaced from their current headquarters in June,” Warner said in a statement provided by his office. “I’ve always said the Commonwealth of Virginia has the capacity to serve as a great home for any federal agency, but going forward, the General Services Administration must operate with greater transparency and in greater collaboration with affected stakeholders.”
During Thursday’s media availability, Warner told The Alexandria Brief that communication between the administration and Congress has been inadequate.
“One thing that is again so disappointing with this second Trump administration is they frankly blow off letters from Congress, Democrats and Republicans alike,” Warner said. “And there is a lack of seriousness in terms of how the administration views Congress’s role to ask these kinds of questions.”
Warner also criticized broader research funding decisions, calling cuts “a huge economic and frankly national security mistake.”
The NSF relocation concludes nearly five months of uncertainty that began June 25 when HUD Secretary Scott Turner, Gov. Glenn Youngkin, and GSA Commissioner Michael Peters announced HUD would take over NSF’s building at 2415 Eisenhower Avenue.