Fairfax County, Va., and Prince George's County, Md., are going head-to-head to be the next home of the FBI.
The new FBI headquarters was authorized last month by a Senate committee. On Jan. 10, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors voted to send a letter to Congress asking lawmakers to consider a vacant warehouse site in Springfield.
Washington Post Columnist Steven Pearlstein criticized Fairfax County in a column last month, calling the county "piggy" for eating up all the economic development opportunities in the region.
County Chairman Sharon Bulova argued that the county would be remiss not to try and develop an area that has been targeted for redevelopment.
Meanwhile, Prince George's County officials are working on their own proposals for an FBI site. They will be enlisting support from Maryland's congressional delegation to draft a plan for several sites across the county.
Prince George's County Executive Rushern Baker told News4 that it's his county's turn to cash in on the boost a new FBI headquarters would bring.
"If you look at what the government has said they're looking for, in terms of availability around a Metro site, the ability to be in a place that's going to expand, Prince George's County has all of that," Baker said.
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The government says it needs space for a 2.1-million-square-foot complex that is close to the Metro and the Beltway.
The move is expected to take place in the next few years.
