WASHINGTON, March 29 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Exemplary work in public design took center stage today as the U.S. General Services Administration honored 18 projects for excellence during its Design Awards ceremony at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center.

"I am proud of the outstanding contributions made by each of these award winners in the area of federal design and construction," said GSA Administrator Lurita Doan. "Each provides a stunning and exciting example of how Americans may expect and receive quality results and creativity from their government."

A jury of private sector professionals chaired by Boston architect Joan Goody reviewed more than 120 projects for this cycle of GSA's Design Awards, receiving submissions in 17 categories such as architecture, preservation, engineering, art, workplace environment, urban design, sustainability and construction.

"GSA's efforts to provide our nation with dynamic, functional and attractive facilities can be seen in the sheer diversity of these honorees," said GSA's Public Buildings Commissioner David Winstead. "Our projects demonstrate enduring value to the American taxpayers and the communities where GSA builds."

The GSA Design Awards, a biennial program now in its 17th year, recognizes outstanding achievements resulting from partnerships among the federal government, private firms and distinguished professionals from across the country.

Eligible for the awards were projects authorized by GSA and completed between January 1, 2001, and October 2, 2006. There is also a category for new architecture projects "on the boards" that have been approved by the Commissioner of Public Buildings Service during this same period. The awards program is open to contract design professionals, artists, and/or organizations that completed or are working on projects for GSA or under GSA authority as well as current or former GSA employees with professional responsibility for a GSA-authorized project.

For more information about the GSA Design Excellence Awards, visit http://www.gsa.gov/.

  The following is a complete list of GSA Design Award winners:

  Architecture -- Completed Projects
     -- U.S. Courthouse, Fresno, Calif. -- HONOR AWARD
          Gruen Associates/Moore Ruble Yudell, Joint Venture Architects

     -- Oklahoma City Federal Building, Oklahoma City, Okla. -- CITATION
          Ross Barney Architects
          The Benham Companies

     -- Carl B. Stokes U.S. Courthouse and Federal Office Building,
        Cleveland, Ohio -- CITATION
          Kallman McKinnell and Wood Architects
          Karlsberger Architecture

     -- U.S. Border Patrol Station, Murrieta, Calif. -- CITATION
          Garrison Architects

  Architecture -- On-the-Boards
     -- Peace Arch Port of Entry, Blaine, Wash. -- HONOR AWARD
          Bohlin Cywinski Jackson

     -- Jacob K. Javits Broadway Entry Pavilion, New York, N.Y. -- CITATION
          Lehman Smith McLeish

  Lease Construction
     -- Internal Revenue Service Center, Kansas City, Mo. -- CITATION
          BNIM -- 360

  Modernization
     -- Des Moines Federal Building Façade Replacement, Des Moines, Iowa --
        CITATION
          SmithGroup, Inc
          DesignBuild Solutions

  Preservation
     -- Howard M. Metzenbaum U.S. Courthouse, Cleveland, Ohio -- CITATION
          Westlake Reed Leskosky

  Conservation
     -- U.S. Custom House, Chicago, Ill. -- CITATION
          Berglund Construction Company
          Kellermeyer Godfryt Hart

  Interior Design/Workplace Environment
     -- Bannister Federal Complex -- Atrium, Kansas City, Mo. -- HONOR AWARD
          BNIM Architects

  Engineering and Technology
     -- Fritz Lanham Federal Building Modernization, Fort Worth, Texas --
        CITATION
          Huitt-Zollars

     -- U.S. Patent and Trademark Headquarters, Alexandria, Va. -- CITATION
          Syska Hennessy Group, Inc.

  Sustainability Adaptive Reuse
     -- Social Security Administration Teleservice Center, Auburn, Wash. --
        HONOR AWARD
          TVA Architects Inc.

  Sustainability/Workplace Environment
     -- U.S. Census Bureau Headquarters, Suitland, Md. -- CITATION
          Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP

  Graphics
     -- GSA Stewardship of Historic Buildings: Two Volumes -- CITATION
          Cox & Associates, Inc.

     -- Workplace Matters -- CITATION
          Stuart McKee Design

  Construction Excellence
     -- Food and Drug Administration Center for Drug Evaluations and
        Research, White Oak, Md. -- CITATION
          Heery/Tishman, A Joint Venture
          Centex Construction

Founded in 1949, GSA serves as a centralized procurement and property management agency for the federal government. GSA manages more than one- fourth of the government's total procurement dollars and influences the management of $500 billion in federal assets, including 8,300 government-owned or leased buildings and 170,000 vehicles. GSA helps preserve our past and define our future, as a steward of more than 420 historic properties, and as manager of USA.gov, the official portal to federal government information and services. GSA's mission to provide superior workplaces, expert technology solutions, acquisition services, purchasing and e-travel solutions and management policies, at best value, allows federal agencies to focus on their core missions.

Did You Know? The Design Excellence Program is the center for GSA's advocacy of design quality and artistic expression. The foundation of the Design Excellence Program is the "Guiding Principles for Federal Architecture" issued by President Kennedy in 1962. It seeks the finest -- and most appropriate -- architects and artists for GSA commissions and their best design solutions to produce facilities of outstanding quality and value.

Source: U.S. General Services Administration

CONTACT: MaryAnne Beatty of the U.S. General Services Administration,
+1-202-501-1231, maryanne.beatty@gsa.gov

Web site: http://www.gsa.gov/