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Federal panel recommends closure and sale of Seattle National Archives facility

Jan 15, 2020, 10:00 AM | Updated: 10:01 am

National Archives Seattle...

The National Archives in Seattle. (Feliks Banel, 成人X站 Radio)

(Feliks Banel, 成人X站 Radio)

A federal panel of the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) facility in Seattle鈥檚 Sand Point neighborhood. If the closure goes through, the research services and historic materials currently held there would be moved to facilities in Missouri and California.

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In a report submitted to the Office of Management and Budget in late December, the Public Buildings Reform Board identified the Seattle facility, known as the Federal Archives and Records Center or 鈥淔ARC,鈥 as a 鈥淗igh Value Asset鈥 that should be sold to generate revenue for the federal government.

This report is a result of the 2016 Federal Assets Sale and Transfer Act (or 鈥淔ASTA鈥), which created the Public Buildings Reform Board and which appears to be looking at federal real estate and federal facilities in a manner not unlike military bases are often analyzed and recommended for closure.

The findings for Seattle鈥檚 NARA facility stated, in part:

The FARC does not meet NARA鈥檚 long鈥恡erm storage needs. NARA may require a short鈥恡erm occupancy agreement to prepare alternate space and to relocate its records … NARA will begin its relocation project upon full Office of Management and Budget approval of this disposition and will have subsequent discussions with its employees. Records will be relocated to NARA facilities in Kansas City, Missouri; archival records will be relocated to a NARA facility in Riverside, California, within which some renovation may be required to house the archives.

Seattle鈥檚 hot real estate market and demand for housing in what鈥檚 a desirable residential neighborhood were likely part of the analysis and the decision to recommend closure and sale.

鈥淩elocating FARC will make 10鈥恆cres of highly valuable land available, likely for residential housing, in the Hawthorne Hills neighborhood just to the west of Lake Washington in the Puget Sound region of Washington,” the report reads.

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However, there鈥檚 also no question that the facility and its archival holdings are invaluable in that specific location for researchers associated with the University of Washington, and with other colleges around the Puget Sound area 鈥 not to mention amateur historians, genealogists, and others whose research benefits from ready access to government archives.

Local staff were unable to comment on the news, which apparently only reached Seattle a few days ago, and instead referred 成人X站 Radio to NARA鈥檚 national spokesperson John Valceanu, who has yet to respond. 成人X站 Radio has also reached out to U.S. Representative Pramila Jayapal鈥檚 office for comment, but have not yet heard back.

It鈥檚 unclear if the recommendations outlined in the report are final, or if local lawmakers and history enthusiasts will have any opportunity to influence the process and help keep the NARA facility in Seattle.

This is a developing story.

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Federal panel recommends closure and sale of Seattle National Archives facility