Adaptive Reuse

Study: Office Conversions One-Third More Affordable Than New Housing
Where conditions are right for office-to-residential adaptive reuse, projects can be completed faster and at a significantly lower cost than new construction.

Arizona Town Expands Infill Incentive District
The Chandler City Council voted to add the city’s downtown and other areas to an incentive program that supports infill development.

DC Park Aims for Equitable Development
Project leaders working on the 11th Street Bridge Park hope to prevent displacement of residents and bring economic and social benefits to the surrounding community.

From Department Store to Apartments
A former Sears store has a new life as a housing complex.

Creating a New Regional Park by Restoring Degraded Lands
Los Angeles County is transforming 142 acres of the Puente Hills Landfill into parkland, creating the first new regional park in the county in over 35 years. The recently released concept plan and renderings show what the park will look like.

Finding Beauty in Adaptive Reuse
The summer issue of Metropolis Magazine calls on designers to embrace the beauty in circularity.

Former Brooklyn Sugar Refinery Reopens as All-Electric Office Tower
A historic building was reimagined as a 15-story office tower powered by renewable energy.

Adaptive Reuse Successes in Dallas
The rise in office vacancies is fueling a boom in adaptive reuse projects.

Historic Chicago School Building to Become Affordable Housing
The adaptive reuse project will create 50 income-restricted housing units and community amenities.

Easing Regulations for Adaptive Reuse
Cities with ordinances aimed at making commercial-to-residential conversions easier are reaping the benefits.

Chicago Garage Becomes 72-Unit Apartment Building
The East Lakeview project is within easy walking distance of local businesses and transit.

Google Shifts Real Estate Strategy to Adaptive Reuse
The company is moving away from flashy new campuses in favor of converting existing buildings with interesting histories.

The Death of the Office?
Despite efforts on the part of many employers to bring workers back to the office, office buildings are now the most distressed segment of the commercial real estate market.

Survey: Zoning Codes Holding Back Office Conversion
A survey of developers and architects found that many of them find it hard to meet demand for office conversion due to local regulations and zoning restrictions.

Queens Hospital Site Could Provide 3,000 Affordable Housing Units
Local residents are calling for the redevelopment of a mostly abandoned 55-acre psychiatric hospital complex into affordable housing.

Can Pickleball Save Dying Malls?
The popular sport is getting backlash for taking over parks and other facilities. Now, the industry is partnering with mall developers to transform old department stores into pickleball courts.

Orange County Motel Converted to Supportive Housing
The renovated building offers 57 housing units and supportive services to people formerly experiencing homelessness.

Los Angeles Reveals New Citywide Adaptive Reuse Proposal
An adaptive reuse ordinance limited to the city’s downtown core helped create roughly 12,000 units of new housing.

A Historic Courthouse Becomes Senior Housing
A New Orleans courthouse will now provide assisted living facilities, along with street-facing balconies and a bar.

How to Make Office Conversions Easier
To encourage more housing production, lawmakers could help make the costly and time-consuming adaptive reuse process easier and more cost-effective.
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