Smithsonian Seeks Partner To Save Mall Landmark

The Smithsonian has hired the Staubach Co., a real estate development firm based in Texas, to help navigate this process. Its chairman is Roger Staubach, the legendary former quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys.

The bare-bones cost for replacing the building's roof and windows, adding more security and fire protection and modernizing the heating and cooling systems is estimated at roughly $55 million, according to the document.

A 2005 study estimated it would cost $416 million to fully renovate the building for use as a museum.

Construction costs can change dramatically during a project. The Patent Office Building, site of two Smithsonian museums, was closed for its overhaul for six years. The cost of the project jumped from $60 million to $250 million.

One possible use is for the National Children's Museum, which lost its home near Union Station and hasn't found a new site. Its board is in negotiations with the developers for space at L'Enfant Plaza. "That has been our priority all along," said Kathy Southern, the museum's president. Still, she is curious about the Smithsonian location but feels the price tag is way beyond her $130 million campaign goal. "Right now we just don't know enough," Southern said.

Rep. Xavier Becerra (D-Calif.), a Smithsonian regent and sponsor of legislation to form a National Latino Museum, reminded his fellow regents in January that his project would need a home, according to minutes of the meeting. The plan for a Latino museum passed the House last year. It has not been approved by the Senate.

Conditions at Arts and Industries have worried preservationists and Smithsonian officials for years. The roof had deteriorated to such a point that a canopy was installed beneath it to catch falling debris. Then, after a severe snowstorm in 2003 collapsed two other historic Washington structures, the Board of Regents decided the building had to be closed for safety reasons.

Richard Moe, president of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, said he was encouraged by the new preliminary moves.

"It is sitting on the Mall crumbling, and there may well be a private solution. I would be open to that," he said. But he warned that selecting a use should be a public process. "We and others would appreciate the opportunity to talk with them and create a transparent process."

The conditions of the landmark are emblematic of the crisis at the Smithsonian over its aging buildings and renovation needs. A study by the Government Accountability Office estimated the Smithsonian needed $2.5 billion to fix all its facilities.