COLLEGE PARK, Md. — The FBI is headed to Maryland, and local business owners are hoping this means lots of sales for them.
The GSA announced Wednesday that the FBI Headquarters, a $4 billion project will go in Greenbelt Maryland – passing up a site in Springfield, Virginia.
It's bad news for Springfield but good news for Prince George's County business owners like Abdul Baig.
"I always wanted to have my own business," Baig told WUSA9 inside his shop, Pizza Roma.
Baig opened Pizza Roma more than two decades ago.
"When I started almost 20 something years ago, there was no Halal places. So I changed this place into a Halal. So everything we sell here, whether it's pepperoni, beef topping, sausage – they're not pork products at all they're all certified Halal products. So that's what makes this place more known to the community because we sell Halal food," he said.
His pizza shop is located inside the Hollywood Shopping Center, about half a mile from the Greenbelt Metro Station.
"I'm excited. I think anytime a new business comes especially as big as the FBI building is going to be it's going to be huge impact on the businesses in the area," said Baig.
The new FBI headquarters is expected to bring about 2,000 jobs to the area. Also, the more than 7,000 FBI employees at the current headquarters in D.C. will move to the new location. Officials estimate more than $4 billion in economic activity as a result of the new location.
"So there's no more conversation," Maryland Gov. Wes Moore said during a during a Friday morning press conference celebrating the decision to bring the new headquarters of the FBI to Prince George's County. "There's no more deliberation. There's no more questioning. It's over the FBI building will be coming to Maryland and we could not be more excited and we are ready."
The new FBI headquarters is expected to bring about 2,000 jobs to the area. Also, the more than 7,000 FBI employees at the current headquarters in D.C. will move to the new location. Officials estimate more than $4 billion in economic activity as a result of the new location.
Moore said his administration is excited to work with the FBI.
"This isn't selling, this is a celebration," Moore said at the press conference. "We're ready to get to work."