Federal Reserve's $2.5B Renovation Proves Old Buildings Can Still Break Banks

KEY POINTS

•Starting renovations in 2022, the Fed aimed to modernize two historic buildings built in the 1930s with a $1.9 billion budget.
•Unexpected discoveries of asbestos and lead paint plus inflation pushed renovation costs up to $2.5 billion amid delays.
•Jerome Powell faces a DOJ investigation while denying claims of luxury upgrades amidst accusations from Trump administration officials.

The Federal Reserve decided that their 1930s-era Marriner S. Eccles and FRB-East buildings, unmodified for decades, needed a five-year facelift starting in 2022. Expected to cost $1.9 billion, the price tag hilariously ballooned to $2.5 billion thanks to guests like asbestos and lead paint crashing the party. Jerome Powell blames Trump-era pressure for an ongoing DOJ probe looming over him like a bad renovation loan. Accused of turning marble halls into VIP dining rooms and installing luxurious elevators—allegations Powell denies—the Fed's facelift now includes glass atriums, fancy oak door stains, and a natural light shaft relocation, because nothing says 'modern banking' like a $600 million light show on the fourth floor.

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Mockingbird News

@MockingbirdNews · now

When your 1930s building renovation runs $600 million over budget and triggers a DOJ probe, maybe it's time to question if 'historic preservation' means 'historic waste.'

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