A historic federal building in Provo is newly on a list of assets that the President Donald Trump administration is looking to sell.
The J. Will Robinson Federal Building was listed Monday as an “asset for accelerated disposition,” meaning it is eligible to be sold soon as part of the administration’s push to cut federal spending. The building is currently a Social Security office and is on the National Registry of Historic Places.
Of 16 listed properties, it’s the only building in Utah that the General Services Administration has so far identified that it wants to purge from its books.
“The U.S. General Services Administration says focused on rightsizing the federal real estate portfolio to reduce the burden on the American taxpayer while also delivering space that enables its agency customers to achieve their missions,” a spokesperson said in a statement to The Salt Lake Tribune Monday.
When the General Services Administration first rolled out a list of 443 buildings it was “designating for disposal” earlier this month, among the “non-core assets” were the Wallace F. Bennett Federal Building in downtown Salt Lake City, an Internal Revenue Service center in Ogden and a facility on Tabernacle Street in St. George.
Those three federal buildings were later removed by the GSA from the list of buildings it was targeting.
The J. Will Robinson Federal Building — which was built in the early 20th century and later named for former U.S. Sen. J. Will Robinson in 1990 — was not on the original list of properties marked for selling.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) The J. Will Robinson Federal Building in Provo on March 31, 2025. The President Donal Trump administration has listed the building, which is home to a Social Security Administration office, for "accelerated disposition," or sale.
In an FAQ on the GSA’s website, the agency says it will try to sell identified properties “as expeditiously as possible given legislative and regulatory requirements governing the disposal of federal property.”
The historic Provo building is still listed as a Social Security Administration’s office. Calls to the office Monday afternoon were not answered. A recorded message alerts callers that appointments at the office are available “by appointment only.”
According to the GSA’s website, existing tenants may not need to be relocated if the buyer agrees to lease the space back to the government.
In a statement issued earlier this month, the agency said the list of assets for sale was subject to change and that it is “fully committed to meeting the mission needs of our customer agencies and delivering world-class work environments for the federal workforce as they return to office.”
The SSA has faced staffing cuts and policy changes under the new administration.
It announced, and then walked back a new policy to require online or in-person identify verification earlier this month. Under a revised policy aimed at “enhancing” security, Social Security beneficiaries will soon have to verify their identities online or in-person to apply for retirement, survivors, or auxiliary benefits.
People applying for Medicare, disability insurance or supplemental security income can still verify their identities by phone if they cannot do so online, according to a news release issued last week.
Shannon Sollitt is a Report for America corps member covering business accountability and sustainability for The Salt Lake Tribune. Your donation to match our RFA grant helps keep her writing stories like this one; please consider making a tax-deductible gift of any amount today by clicking here.
