The future of one of the most controversial structures in Washington, DC remains unclear as the Federal Bureau of Investigation has begun a process of moving its employees to the nearby Ronald Reagan Building at 1300 Pennsylvania Avenue.
Located at 935 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, the J. Edgar Hoover Building measures around 2.8 million square feet and was officially opened in the fall of 1975. It is regarded as a classic example of the Brutalist architecture movement which was popular in many government buildings in the 1960s and 1970s.
At 11 stories, the structure, which took a full decade to complete, has been labelled the “ugliest building in Washington,” in an article published by the Harvard University Graduate School of Design.
Beyond its look, the building has also been challenged in recent years by a number of structural issues, including a crumbling concrete edifice. A report published by the Government Accountability Office also noted that the structure suffers from an aging water system.
According to a report published last summer in the Architect’s Newspaper, deferred maintenance in the building is thought to be in the $300 million neighborhood.
In late December, Kash Patel, the current director of the FBI, announced: “We finalized a plan to permanently close the FBI’s Hoover headquarters and move the workforce into a safe, modern facility.”
Patel added that moving the agency into the Reagan building would save taxpayers billions of dollars, with “required safety and infrastructure upgrades already underway” in that structure.
Various reports have indicated that the FBI Building may be redeveloped as a mixed-use property, while the publication Wallpaper has listed it as one of the big federal buildings in Washington most likely to face the wrecking ball.
The building is named in honor of the long-time legendary FBI chief, J. Edgar Hoover, who died in May of 1972.
January 8, 2026
By Garry Boulard
Photo courtesy of National Park Service
