WASHINGTON, D.C. — In May 2015, the FCC’s then-Chairman, Tom Wheeler, indicated that the Commission would be moving out of The Portals.
As of today, that’s now official, as an era in Southwest Washington comes to an end.
Effective immediately, the Commission has moved its headquarters location from its previous location at 445 12th Street S.W. to the more accessible and brand-new office tower located at 45 L Street, N.E.
That’s a two-mile difference, and Inside the Beltway it is a big deal — even in COVID-19 times, when the majority of the Commission staff is working from home offices.
“The Portals” were inconvenient to many, and a not-so-quick walk from the L’Enfant Plaza Metro station. Even getting to Capitol Hill offices wasn’t the easiest task.
Now, the Commissioners — upon their post-COVID return to the office — will be just a 20-minute walk from the Hart Senate Office Building, and under a mile from Union Station, a major regional and commuter transportation hub with a morning nonstop Acela Express from New York arriving just before 9am.
The FCC’s lease was up in 2017. And, moving is said to have saved the Federal government some $119 million in costs.
