Iowa City federal building housing VA clinic, army recruitment and water science center could be sold

An Iowa City building that houses a veterans affairs clinic, a military recruitment office, and a water science center for the U.S. Geological Survey could be sold by the federal government after an announcement Tuesday from the U.S. General Services Administration that it will be reviewing federal buildings to determine the efficiency of the space.

The GSA handles buildings and workspaces for federal agencies. In a Tuesday news release, the agency said it had identified more than 440 properties that are not core for federal operations. Core buildings include “courthouses, land ports of entry, and facilities critical to our national defense and law enforcement,” according to the release.

The release states that the GSA will be reviewing the usage and efficiency of the noncore properties and considering them “for divestment from government ownership … to ensure taxpayers no longer pay for empty and underutilized federal office space.” It also stated GSA will be continually reviewing and updating the list of noncore buildings.

The GSA estimated this review could save the federal government more than $430 million in annual operating costs.

When the release was published Tuesday, it included a link to a list of noncore buildings around the country. The list had been removed from the government website by Wednesday, replaced with a landing page that states a list of noncore properties is coming soon.

As first reported by the Des Moines Register, the list included two properties in Iowa: the Neal Smith Federal Building in Des Moines and the Iowa City Federal Building in Iowa City.

There are five other federally owned buildings in Iowa, according to GSA’s website, all of which are federal courthouses — one in Cedar Rapids, one in Davenport, one in Sioux City, and two in Des Moines.

The Iowa City building, at 400 S. Clinton St., was constructed in 1974 and houses a clinic of the Veterans Health Administration, an office of the U.S. Geological Survey’s Central Midwest Water Science Center, and a U.S. Army Reserve Recruiting Office, according to the GSA’s website.

The army recruiting office and the U.S. Geological Survey could not be reached for comment Wednesday. The GSA also did not respond to a request for additional information about the status of the buildings on the now-removed list.

A representative from the veterans affairs health clinic responded to a request from The Gazette and said the topic is outside the local scope for comment. The national arm of the organization did not respond to a request for comment Wednesday afternoon.

Comments: (319) 398-8328; emily.andersen@thegazette.com