Unoccupied office buildings in major US cities are sending their downtowns into a so-called “urban doom loop.” With the widespread adoption of hybrid work, the influx of office-goers to central business districts has drastically dwindled. As a result, retail and restaurant businesses in these areas are struggling, urban transit systems are losing ridership, and city governments are grappling with the loss of tax revenue necessary to maintain public safety and sanitation. So, how can cities bring people back into their central business districts? While discussions on transforming offices into housing have given fruition significant city and federal incentives across the United States, what solutions exist for offices that aren't viable for such conversions?
Discussions surrounding the conversion of offices into housing have spurred substantial city and federal incentives. However, not all offices are viable for such adaptations. According to a comprehensive Gensler study analyzing over 1000 buildings in over 123 cities in the US, only 25% of these structures are adaptable to residential. While older office buildings, usually smaller and with lower ceilings, have seen successful transformations, newer constructions with larger floor plates pose more significant obstacles due to considerations like lighting and HVAC systems.
Research taken from the 2023 AFIRE International investor survey shows that 90% of institutional investors predict converting several offices to residential and other uses in the next five years. With this looming oversupply prompting the need for transformation, exploring alternative programs that drive foot traffic downtown becomes essential.
What defines an appealing downtown? A thriving and resilient urban landscape hinges on a variety of experiences and uses. It's about striking the right balance between first, second, and third places – encompassing housing, a variety of job centers, and vibrant social hubs. The vulnerability of US downtowns was put on display during the COVID-19 pandemic, revealing a disproportionate reliance on office-centric environments.
Imagining a vibrant and experientially diverse downtown experience, Gensler proposes an “office-to-everything” strategy. Their vision involves approaching office adaptations nuancedly and partially changing office buildings depending on local desirability and needs, using building assets strategically. They argue that office structures could keep portions of the existing office spaces while incorporating other uses depending on the neighborhood's needs. This approach entails maximizing building efficiency through flexible lease arrangements and internal configurations to accommodate diverse activities.
Similarly, the McKinsey Global Institute argues for creating hybrid spaces that could provide amenities to attract people depending on tenant and location. They argue developers should start “earning the commute” from office workers and shoppers. For instance, office buildings can create shared communal spaces and attractive events for all tenants, while retail developers can do something similar by providing more experiential shopping experiences. An example they use is a sporting goods company that doubles as a community sports center.
HOK's David Weatherman presents a bold reimagining of the 8 Canada Square office building in London, envisioning it as a vertical neighborhood with diverse functions. His speculative proposal would break the building into a series of zones that would be stacked vertically. The new programs include residential, hotel, office labs, and creative spaces, which he argues are programs relevant and necessary to the area. Shared spaces would be located between zones, creating communal and collaborative areas. It addresses the daylighting difficulties that a deep floor places in office building transformation by keeping all new programs to the perimeter of the building. In this scheme, daylighting would also be addressed by recessing the facade of the building in different ways throughout the building and creating terraced spaces in the residential units. On top of that, he reimagines the transformation of the existing lobby into a space open to the public, activated with shops, dining, art, and maker spaces.
The crisis confronting many US cities may have unfolded irrespective of COVID-19, stemming from the vulnerability inherent in mono-programmed urban areas. While changing offices into housing might be the answer to dealing with some of these vacant structures, this might not be the one-size-fits-all solution. Office buildings, their different sizes and configurations, and their diverse contexts require a case-by-case approach, as well as thoughtful and out-of-the-box strategies. Now might be the time to rethink not only mono-program neighborhoods but also massive mono-program buildings, transforming vast office structures created purely for office work and production into community-building experiential mixed-use hubs.
