After a decade in public service, Casey Jones, the deputy director of the U.S. State Department’s Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations (OBO), is leaving to pursue opportunities in the private sector.
As one of the likely many resignations to come as Washington, D.C. prepares for a new administration, Jones’ departure is not entirely the result of the current political climate, he tells ARCHITECT.
“We had set a goal of restructuring the way in which our embassies were designed so that they better reflect the best of America and we had some great progress in that area,” Jones says. “We’ve really elevated the quality of our embassies while keeping them on the same schedule and budget, and we have a great management team in place, so I sort of fulfilled my mission.”
Though Jones declines to name a favorite project completed during his tenure (“That’s like choosing your favorite child!”), he does name the return of competition for federal design commissions as a major accomplishment for the OBO. “We’ve given a new generation of architects the opportunity to design federal facilities, and I think that’s terrific,” Jones says.
“Casey is a visionary leader who thinks strategically,” say Michael Manfredi, FAIA, and Marion Weiss, FAIA, of New York–based firm Weiss/Manfredi, in an email. “He has championed the hiring of good architects even if they did not have prior State Department experience and has been a tireless advocate for good design throughout a process that is often layered and bureaucratic.” Most recently, Manfredi and Weiss worked with Jones on the design of the U.S. embassy compound in New Dehli, India.
Jones remains optimistic about the future of both the OBO and the General Services Administration’s design excellence programs given President-elect Donald Trump’s business interest in real estate. “I can’t help but think that he too will be committed to good quality embassies and diplomatic facilities,” he says Jones.
Ardeshir Kanga, one of Jones’ current deputies, will take over as acting director of the program until a successor is chosen, though Jones expects the position will not be advertised until after the Trump administration takes office on Jan. 20.
Correction: Casey Jones is not the director of Design Excellence at the State Department, but the deputy director at the OBO. ARCHITECT regrets the error.
