The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is a key partner in many environmental projects in our backyard.
Now, we're learning that hundreds of federal Army Corps employees based in Florida will be looking for a new home.
WPTV reporter Jon Shainman is asking the Corps what that means when it comes to jobs, and we're hearing concerns from one local environmental group.
There is uncertainty for the 800 federal employees who work out of the Army Corps of Engineers' Florida office in Jacksonville. They received word that their building lease will be terminated this summer, two years ahead of its expiration.
"We don't have a directive to move anywhere yet," Corps spokeswoman Michelle Roberts said.
Roberts said their staff is back in the office five days a week, and currently, there's no mention of job loss.
"At this point, we don't know anything other than that," Roberts said.
Roberts said that statewide, there are 1,140 employees. That figure includes field offices in Wellington and Palm Beach Gardens, where an employee told us they have not heard anything about the future.
"The request to terminate the lease only deals with this building, so our district headquarters in Jacksonville," Robert said. "It does not affect our South Florida office or any of our field offices."
"We're extremely concerned about this push that appears to squeeze out the federal government's role in Everglades restoration," Eve Samples with Friends of the Everglades said.
She is wondering about the future stability of the multi-billion dollar partnership between the state and the federal government when it comes to things like Lake Okeechobee water releases and improving the Everglades.
"Three decades ago, the state of Florida was trying to do Everglades restoration on its own, and it failed," Samples said.
Roberts said despite the uncertainty, their environmental missions will continue.
"Our dedication to our mission is the same as it's been for the last 250 years," Roberts said.
The question is where they'll be leading it from.
