Some communities are turning abandoned campuses into offices, art studios, and housing.
First, it was office buildings and malls. Now, schools are getting into the adaptive reuse game as some shuttered campuses are getting new lives as artist studios, restaurants, housing, and community spaces.
Writing in Smart Cities Dive, Amanda Loudin points to the example of the Bok Building, a former South Philadelphia high school now home to over 200 businesses and nonprofits. “The businesses in the Bok Building employ more than 600 people, 75% of whom live within a mile-and-a-half radius of the site, said Lindsey Scannapieco, managing partner of Scout, the development and design firm behind Bok’s revamping.”
With 755 schools closed in just the 2021-2022 season, these buildings offer a valuable new source of commercial and residential space. However, “A lack of funding and community pushback are some of the hurdles that face school-repurposing projects.” Successful projects have often relied on some combination of private financing to fund renovations.
FULL STORY: Adaptive reuse breathes new life into abandoned schools
San Diego School District Approves Affordable Housing Plan
The district plans to build workforce housing for 10 percent of its employees in the next decade and explore other ways to contribute to housing development.
Over 71K Office-to-Apartment Units in the Pipeline for 2025
Adaptive reuse projects are continuing to bring thousands of new housing units onto the market as demand for office space remains low.
Midtown Manhattan Rezoning Proposal Could Yield Almost 10,000 Housing Units
A plan to alter zoning for parts of Midtown would permit new housing and make it easier to convert office buildings to residential units.
Manufactured Crisis: Losing the Nation’s Largest Source of Unsubsidized Affordable Housing
Manufactured housing communities have long been an affordable housing option for millions of people living in the U.S., but that affordability is disappearing rapidly. How did we get here?
Americans May Be Stuck — But Why?
Americans are moving a lot less than they once did, and that is a problem. While Yoni Applebaum, in his highly-publicized article Stuck, gets the reasons badly wrong, it's still important to ask: why are we moving so much less than before?
Using Old Oil and Gas Wells for Green Energy Storage
Penn State researchers have found that repurposing abandoned oil and gas wells for geothermal-assisted compressed-air energy storage can boost efficiency, reduce environmental risks, and support clean energy and job transitions.
San Antonio Remains Affordable as City Grows
The city’s active efforts to keep housing costs down through housing reforms and coordinated efforts among city agencies and developers have kept it one of the most affordable in the nation despite its rapid population growth.
What Forest Service Cuts Mean for Cities
U.S. Forest Service employees work on projects that have impacts far beyond remote, rural wilderness areas.
North Texas Transit Leaders Tout Benefits of TOD for Growing Region
At a summit focused on transit-oriented development, policymakers discussed how North Texas’ expanded light rail system can serve as a tool for economic growth.
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