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New data shows Loop vacancies ballooned over the recent third
quarter as post-pandemic work trends continue to impact and
impede demand. All told, companies reducing their footprint in
the area over just the last two years have cost the business
district 2.3 million square feet, or nearly twice the amount of
space vacated during the Great Recession of 2009-2010.
“One of the problems that is being faced right now in Chicago is
that for so long downtown has been centralized for businesses
and now in a post-COVID world, where more and more companies
realize that remote work is possible, you suddenly have people
wondering what is there downtown to be offered,” Estabine told
The Center Square. “There has been some return to the office,
but a lot of companies are opting to remain remote. One way that
the city could address this is by making it easier to have
commercial to residential building conversion. This is something
that New York's Midtown Manhattan has been doing recently with a
large degree of success.”
With rising interest rates also prominently figuring into the
mix, Estabine adds lawmakers would be wise to act now.
“Downtown has become this place where people drive in in the
mornings to go to work, then leave in the evenings,” she said.
“There's nobody in the area after they've left work for the day
to stay and be paying customers. By looking at this as a way not
to just decrease the vacancy rates but also to revitalize the
downtown region can become a community and not just somewhere
that people commute for work.”
As the city also struggles with an ongoing housing crunch,
Estabine adds any campaign designed to convert more Loop offices
into units residents can call home could go a long way toward
solving both problems.
“Chicago is considering a central area plan and what steps the
city will take,” she said. “One of the priorities of this plan
is to revitalize the downtown area and then the nearby
surrounding areas leading up to 2045. I think it'll start taking
effect within the next couple of years.”
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