Nearly half of the federal government’s unused properties are fit to be converted to housing units, an architectural firm says.
San Francisco-based architecture firm Gensler has worked with the federal government’s property portfolio in the past, analyzing hundreds of buildings to see which ones would be best suited for residential conversions.
The majority of government-owned buildings that were built in the 1960s and 1970s have the characteristics that would make an office-to-residential conversion possible, including access to natural light and smaller floor plates.
“It’s really the only way forward,” Gensler’s global leader of building transformation and adaptive reuse Steven Paynter told the Globe and Mail. “They’re just the least desirable of all office space.”
Paynter estimates about 45% of the federal government’s total property would qualify for residential conversion.
Ottawa announced plans to offer housing on underused federal lands in response to growing frustration over the housing shortage. This would also cut down maintenance costs for the taxpayer, as the government aims to reduce its property by 50% over the next decade.
“If the federal government isn’t using buildings then it should definitely sell the properties,” Franco Terrazanno, federal director of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation told True North.
The federal government owns about 50% of its portfolio while leasing the other half. Residential conversions are being considered for both.
According to the Globe and Mail, 154 of the government’s buildings that are three storeys or more are located within cities, towns and municipalities with a population of over 10,000, making them ideal for a conversion.
Alternatively, they offer optimal land to develop housing on as many contain large parking lots.
”There is room for the federal government to reduce the cost of maintaining those buildings, and also an opportunity for buildings to be used as homes,” Minister of Public Services and Procurement Jean-Yves Duclos told the Globe and Mail.
However, in its latest budget announcement, the federal government acknowledged that it didn’t have up-to-date accounting for all of the land it owned, nor what land would offer good potential for housing development.
But what is known is that the majority of underutilized government property are office towers in Ottawa, which currently have a vacancy rate in the double digits.
COVID-19 policies saw many public servants begin working remotely, and the bulk of those employees have been defiant about returning to the office now that the restrictions are over.
This has raised concerns with local retailers who’ve seen a drop in business as well as Ottawa’s mayor.
According to the latest federal budget, about 50% of the government’s six million square metres of office space is either underused or entirely vacant.
“This is not an effective use of resources, particularly at a time when Canada is facing a shortage of homes,” said the budget.
It’s estimated about 50,000 housing units could be made available out of the properties that could be converted. The conversions are also likely to see less pushback against development from local neighbourhoods, as the buildings are already there.