Trump plan to sell four federal buildings in Vermont up in the air after list is retracted

Confusion surrounds a plan by the Trump Administration to sell 443 federal buildings across the country deemed “not core to government operations,” after a list of the buildings published on the U.S. General Services Administration website on Tuesday was replaced on Wednesday with a blank space and a new headline that read, “coming soon,” according to USA Today.

The list published on Tuesday included four buildings in Vermont: the former U.S. Passport Agency and former Customs House in St. Albans, an impressive brick structure more than 100 years old; the Winston Prouty Federal Building in Essex Junction, which houses the Lake Champlain Fish and Wildlife Conservation Office; the Social Security Administration building in Montpelier; and a “shed” at the Derby and Port of Entry.

The list of buildings also included some of the federal government’s most iconic buildings, many on the National Register of Historic Places. USA Today reported the list included the Robert F. Kennedy building in Washington, which houses the Department of Justice, as well as the headquarters of nearly every major federal agency.

When asked why the list was taken down, Stephanie Joseph, acting associate administrator for the GSA’s Office of Strategic Communication, said in a statement that the agency is reviewing the properties. She said it will consider “compelling offers (in accordance with applicable laws and regulations) and do what’s best for the needs of the federal government and taxpayer,” according to USA Today.

St. Albans City Manager: ‘It’s hard to imagine a building more linked to the city’

St. Albans City Manager Dominic Cloud told the Burlington Free Press on Thursday he is “monitoring” the situation with the U.S. Passports Agency building on Main Street, but that he had heard nothing directly from GSA.

“It’s obviously a prominent building that contributes to the city’s sense of place,” Cloud said. “It’s full of murals on the inside that date back to the long history of the Customs House. It’s hard to imagine, frankly, a building that isn’t more inextricably linked to the identity of the city than that building.”

Cloud said the building is also an important economic driver for St. Albans, as people come from across the region to get passports.

“A regional federal agency where people come from out of town, then have a few hours to kill while waiting for their passports is kind of the gold standard (for attracting business),” he said. “That’s exactly why Sen. Leahy had the foresight to put (the passport agency) there, reflective of his vision to save small towns.”

Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vermont, retired in January 2023 after eight terms in the Senate.

Cloud also stressed that the building is in great condition, despite its age.

“The federal government has consistently invested in it, this is no white elephant,” he said.

And he worried about the fate of the 75-100 employees he said work in the building, who he said were recently ordered to return to the office instead of working from home.

“If you’re selling (the building) where are the employees going?” Cloud asked. “A month ago they were all ordered to come back to work. Now the building is for sale. It’s hard to get a bead on where it’s going.”

Contact Dan D’Ambrosio at 660-1841 or ddambrosio@freepressmedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @DanDambrosioVT.