Saved from the wrecking ball? New plans for OSS HQ, historic home to the nation’s top spies

Three cheers, and perhaps a 21-gun salute for a rare cultural victory in the age of hasty conclusions and insta-buildings. The General Services Administration is now mulling over practical ways to preserve one of the most unique clutch of buildings in the nation’s capital, all previously faced with a most undignified tear down. The august former headquarters of the Office of Strategic Services - that’s the precursor of the CIA - were at risk of facing the bulldozer, potentially to fall in favor of new office space for the Department of State, which stands close by, as does the Lincoln Memorial, Kennedy Center and the sprawling National Mall.

But hip-hip-hurrah. After several years of consideration, the GSA revealed Tuesday that it was now considering four different plans to preserve the historic acreage first deeded to the U.S. in 1791. This is happy news. We’re talking rehabilitation and redevelopment in a useful and appropriate way for a site now referred to as “Potomac Hill,” which includes the old OSS headquarters where General William “Wild Bill ” Donovan once directed the high stakes clandestine activities of World War II. The original Naval Observatory is also part of the parcel.

“This plan will guide the future rehabilitation, renovation, and development of Potomac Hill into a world-class federal office campus envisioned to serve the long-term needs of the U.S. Department of State as an institution of American diplomacy,” the federal agency notes in a mission statement.

“We are very grateful the senior officials at the State Department, GSA, and the National Capital Planning Commission share our belief about the importance of preserving these buildings that served as the birthplace of the American intelligence community. I would say this bodes well,” says Charles Pinck, president of the OSS Society, a historic interest group that includes some OSS alumni among its membership.