Robert C. Weaver Federal Building
| Robert C. Weaver Federal Building | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Alternative names | Department of Housing and Urban Development Headquarters |
| General information | |
| Type | Government office building |
| Architectural style | Brutalist |
| Address | 451 7th Street SW, Washington, D.C. |
| Coordinates | 38°53′2.46″N 77°1′19.24″W / 38.8840167°N 77.0220111°W |
| Construction started | 1965 |
| Completed | September 9, 1968 |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect | Marcel Breuer |
| Other designers | Herbert Beckhard; firm of Nolen-Swinburne |
| Website | |
| HUD.gov | |
The Robert C. Weaver Federal Building is a 10-story office building in Washington, D.C., owned by the federal government of the United States. Completed in 1968, it serves as the headquarters of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Built by the General Services Administration, it is a prime example of Brutalist architecture. The structure is named for Dr. Robert C. Weaver, the first Secretary of Housing and Urban Development and the first African American Cabinet member.
The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places on August 26, 2008.
In 1962, President John F. Kennedy established the Ad Hoc Committee on Federal Office Space and charged it with developing new guidelines for the design of federal office buildings. On May 23, 1962, the Ad Hoc Committee issued a one-page report, Guiding Principles for Federal Architecture, which established these new design principles. The document encouraged federal planners to consider and build structures that "reflect the dignity, enterprise, vigor and stability of the American National Government" and "embody the finest contemporary American architectural thought."
In 1965, major revisions to federal housing policy resulted in the creation of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The United States Congress passed and President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Housing and Urban Development Act of 1965 on August 10, 1965, which President Johnson called "the single most important breakthrough" in federal housing policy since the 1920s. The legislation greatly expanded funding for existing federal housing programs, and added new programs to provide rent subsidies for the elderly and disabled; housing rehabilitation grants to poor homeowners; provisions for veterans to make very low down-payments to obtain mortgages; new authority for families qualifying for public housing to be placed in empty private housing (along with subsidies to landlords); and matching grants to localities for the construction of water and sewer facilities, construction of community centers in low-income areas, and urban beautification. Just four weeks later, on September 9, President Johnson signed legislation establishing the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
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