The Arcata Field Office of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service/National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Fisheries, located at 1655 Heindon Road in Arcata. | Photo by Andrew Goff.

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President Donald Trump and Elon Musk’s plan to dramatically downsize the federal government has placed a bullseye on an Arcata field office that houses roughly two dozen 65 full-time employees of agencies including the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, NOAA Fisheries and Redwood National Park.

Following the first wave in a massive purge of federal employees carried out by the Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), the administration now plans to close more than 2 million square feet of office space being used by the Department of the Interior, which oversees the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the National Park Service, the Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Geological Survey and other agencies.

The General Services Administration’s (GSA) lease-termination list includes 1655 Heindon Rd. in Arcata, a 25,500-square-foot office building off Giuntoli Lane, near Toni’s 24-Hour Restaurant. According to a former federal employee who spoke on condition of anonymity, the office’s lease is scheduled to be terminated at the end of September.

Congressman Jared Huffman, who represents the North Coast and serves as ranking member of the House Natural Resources Committee, slammed the Trump administration’s plans in a press release issued Friday:

The federal government exists to serve the people—not abandon them. But Trump and Musk are taking a wrecking ball to our country—slashing staff, cutting vital funding, and creating widespread chaos and economic devastation. Shuttering these physical locations goes hand in glove with DOGE’s “destroy the government” approach, and it will make their illegal cuts even more challenging to reverse. The economic fallout will ripple across America, hitting small towns and cities where federal offices are many communities’ only lifelines.

The Arcata office building is owned by Larry and Lisa DeBeni. Reached by phone this morning, Larry DeBeni was reluctant to talk about the particulars before making some phone calls to get more information about the plans, but he confirmed that he and his wife have been informed about the office closure plans, which they find disappointing.

“It makes us sick to our stomach to think about these people losing their jobs or being displaced from the community,” DeBeni said. 

In memos and press releases, Trump has boasted of having a voter mandate for his sweeping federal reforms, but DeBeni said this is not what most people signed up for.

“This is extremely disheartening — absolutely devastating for the country, in my opinion,” he said. Referring to the local terminations specifically, DeBeni said, “It’s sickening. It’s just cruel — especially when it comes from the richest men in the world. … We’re sick about it.”

The Outpost has spoken with several off-the-record sources who said local employees of the National Weather Service and NOAA Fisheries were terminated late last week. Both agencies responded via public affairs officers who emailed identical statements: “Per long-standing practice, we are not discussing internal personnel and management matters.”

According to Huffman’s office, the GSA plans to close 164 offices across multiple states. The full list, which you can download by clicking here, includes 25 offices of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, 34 U.S. Geological Survey locations and 33 National Park Service facilities.

Huffman’s comments on the lease-cancelation plan continued:

The impact on Bureau of Indian Affairs offices will be especially devastating. These offices are already underfunded, understaffed, and stretched beyond capacity, struggling to meet the needs of Tribal communities who face systemic barriers to federal resources. Closing these offices will further erode services like public safety, economic development, education, and housing assistance—services that Tribal Nations rely on for their well-being and self-determination.

The National Park Service will lose space for boots on the ground at national monuments and parks they manage, kneecapping their ability to protect public safety and provide recreational access.

This is nothing short of a direct attack on working people and the communities they serve. In many places around the country, the federal government keeps local businesses afloat and ensures families have stable jobs. This decision defies all logic.

While the Trump administration demands a return-to-office, GSA is shutting those offices down—eliminating jobs, destabilizing local economies, and gutting essential services. The most vulnerable communities will bear the brunt of this reckless decision, and if they think we’ll stand by and watch it happen, they’re dead wrong.

The Trump administration issued a memo last Wednesday instructing agency heads to “promptly undertake preparations to initiate large-scale reductions in force.” Federal agencies must develop reorganization plans by March 13.

[CORRECTION: This post initially understated the number of federal employees working at 1655 Heindon Rd. The Outpost regrets the error.]

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