U.S. General Services Administration
GSA Administrator Statement on the Passing of Edward A. Feiner
WASHINGTON – U.S. General Services Administrator Robin Carnahan issued the following statement regarding the passing of Edward A. Feiner.
“The GSA family is deeply saddened to hear of the passing of our former chief architect and friend Ed Feiner, a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects, who joined our agency from the U.S. Navy in 1981, became our first chief architect in 1996, and retired in 2005. Our thoughts are with his close friends and family at this time.”
“During his time at GSA, Ed blazed a new trail for public architecture. He championed the idea that federal buildings could and should have excellent designs that stem from our best talent and our highest ideals as a democracy. By creating the prominent role of a lead designer on every GSA designed project, he dramatically strengthened the architecture program at GSA and he had a significant impact on architecture nationwide.”
“Today, Ed’s influence on the federal portfolio can be seen across many federal office buildings, national laboratories, ports of entry, and especially U.S. courthouses due to a massive investment made in the U.S. Judiciary during his tenure. His legacy is nothing less than a bolstered relationship between the American people and their government, a result which has led governments at all levels to adopt his principles and which has reverberated throughout the architecture world.”
“Even 17 years after his retirement from GSA, our Public Buildings Service maintains many of the principles, values, and programs that Ed instilled, including our renowned Design Excellence Awards program.”
“Upon his retirement, Ed said, ‘Architecture and design play important roles in quality of life issues and truly affect how we live, work, play, and conduct ourselves as part of a democratic community. Giving physical form and communicating, through architecture, the values, hopes, and aspirations of our society is the ‘legacy’ of great public buildings.’ I could not agree more, and today GSA renews our commitment to building on Ed’s legacy even as we mourn his passing.”
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About GSA: GSA provides centralized procurement and shared services for the federal government, managing a nationwide real estate portfolio of nearly 370 million rentable square feet, overseeing approximately $75 billion in annual contracts, and delivering technology services that serve millions of people across dozens of federal agencies. GSA’s mission is to deliver the best customer experience and value in real estate, acquisition, and technology services to the government and the American people. For more information, visit GSA.gov and follow us at @USGSA.