Heather Gilbertson

Heather Gilbertson serves as a key procurement professional within the Farm Production and Conservation Business Center’s Management Services Division, supporting the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s mission to establish and maintain physical infrastructure for rural agricultural and conservation operations. She manages the acquisition of nonresidential real estate leasing services essential to deploying USDA personnel across underserved regions, ensuring operational continuity for farm assistance, disaster response, and conservation programs. Her work centers on long-term facility leasing arrangements that enable scalable, mission-critical field presence, aligning with federal real property management standards and agency spatial planning requirements. Gilbertson maintains consistent contracting relationships with specialized real estate developers and property management firms, including Greenwood Properties, L.L.P., and McKenzie Construction & Site Development LLC. These partnerships reflect a preference for vendors with proven expertise in securing, renovating, and managing commercial-grade facilities suitable for federal agricultural operations. Her procurement approach emphasizes reliability, compliance with federal leasing guidelines, and the ability to deliver turnkey solutions for mission-essential sites, often requiring coordination with local governments and private landowners. Her contracting activity is entirely non-set-aside, with 100% of awards issued under full and open competition, indicating a focus on technical capability and facility suitability over socioeconomic preferences. This pattern underscores a mission-driven prioritization of geographic coverage, facility readiness, and operational continuity over targeted small business set-asides, though she remains compliant with all federal socioeconomic reporting requirements. Gilbertson’s portfolio is exclusively classified under NAICS 531120—Lessors of Nonresidential Buildings (except Miniwarehouses)—reflecting a deep specialization in commercial real estate leasing for federal use. She procures long-term leases for office spaces, field service centers, and conservation program hubs, requiring expertise in property condition assessments, lease negotiation, and federal real property compliance. Her domain expertise lies in securing mission-critical infrastructure in rural and remote areas, ensuring USDA’s operational footprint remains accessible, secure, and sustainable.