The PBS Mid-Atlantic Region hosted the 2008 PBS Customer Leasing Workshop, Strategies for Success, on June 3-4 at The Union League in downtown Philadelphia, PA. Over 115 customers joined GSA to gain a better understanding of the GSA leasing process and strategies for ensuring a successful lease.

With nearly half of all federal employees now working in leased space, GSA relies heavily on its leasing program to house the federal government. The workshop was held to facilitate successful leases that help GSA customer agencies accomplish their missions.

Following opening remarks by Barbara L. Shelton, GSA Mid-Atlantic Regional Administrator, and Rob Hewell, PBS Mid-Atlantic Assistant Regional Administrator, GSA provided an overview of the leasing process. Step-by-step, presenters guided the audience through the process, highlighting critical elements along the path to space occupancy, including: surveying the market, the Solicitation for Offers, lessons learned in workplace design, substantial completion, space acceptance, occupancy, and lease administration. Other presentation topics included a who’s who in PBS Mid-Atlantic, the lease prospectus process, Interagency Security Committee Standards and their impact on leasing, Reimbursable Work Authorizations, and disaster preparedness.

In addition to the presentations, GSA program experts sponsored information tables where they provided information and discussed a variety of topics including environmental planning, sustainable design, workplace accessibility, workplace design, green building occupancy, and new space occupancy planning services available through the GSA Federal Acquisition Service.

All attendees surveyed said they would attend a similar event if held again in the future. “The presentations were very informative,” commented Phyllis Patricco, Administrative Officer with the Federal Bureau of Investigation. “The information presented proved very beneficial to me in effectively doing my job.”

We invite you to visit www.gsa.gov/r3leasingworkshop to view the Workshop presentations. Thank you to all those who attended and participated in making the 2008 PBS Customer Leasing Workshop a success.