UMVA has learned that the Department of National Defence is poised to off‑load a massive cache of real‑estate assets in a bold bid to meet sweeping federal savings targets.
Internal documents reveal a plan to sell 28 government buildings and more than 1,400 acres of Crown land, a move projected to carve out nearly $100 million in savings over the next three years.
Among the properties slated for divestiture, 23 structures belong to the historic Royal Roads campus, a former military college that has lain dormant since its 1995 decommissioning.
The remaining five sites remain unnamed, but officials describe them as “underutilized, obsolete or surplus,” earmarked for disposal to trim maintenance, utilities and tax‑replacement costs.
By shrinking its property footprint, the defence department aims to safeguard operational readiness while slashing day‑to‑day expenses.
A parallel government briefing highlights that the federal estate now spans 63.5 million square feet, with roughly half deemed excess and ripe for sale or closure—a process expected to stretch over two and a half decades.
Pre‑pandemic analyses had already flagged a 40 percent vacancy rate in federal office space, burdening taxpayers with $2.4 billion in annual operating and upkeep costs.
These revelations come as the finance ministry touts a broader fiscal plan that promises $60 billion in savings across the next five years, underscoring a sweeping drive to streamline government assets.
