The historic federal courthouse in downtown Des Moines will be sold in an online auction, according to a spokesperson for the U.S. General Services Administration.

A specific date for the auction has not been set, Matthew Doyle, a spokesperson for the GSA, wrote in an email.

“It will take some time to make this property ready and prepare the sale documents for GSA to advertise the auction date, since current tenants will be moving to the new federal courthouse building later this year,” Doyle wrote.

A new federal courthouse is under construction at 101 Locust St. and is expected to be ready for occupancy in mid- to late 2023. The existing courthouse at 123 E. Walnut St. is considered excess federal property and will be disposed of by the GSA, which manages the government’s properties, including their sale.

The first step in disposing of the property was screening proposals for other public uses or needs by groups that work with the homeless. Three proposals were submitted. However, the entities that submitted the proposals did not return formal applications that they were required to complete, Doyle wrote.

“Since there were no other responses … the next step is public sale,” he wrote.

The five-level courthouse, built between 1927 and 1929, is on the National Register of Historic Places. It is one of seven monumental public buildings constructed along the Des Moines River in the early 1900s.

Two others of the monumental buildings – the Argonne Armory building at 602 Robert D. Ray Drive and the police station at 25 E. Court Ave. – also could have new owners. The city of Des Moines currently owns the two buildings.

The city is in the process of purchasing an office building at 1200 Locust St. where it would relocate several departments and the police headquarters.

Officials have said the Armory and police headquarters could be sold.

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