Not every downtown high-rise is a good fit for an office-to-housing conversion, but some officials and developers see benefits in turning unused space into new residential units.
The Austin situation is too far gone for projects like these to make a dent. Plus, people who can afford to live downtown would much rather have land out in Westlake.
The solution to the housing crisis, much as I hate to say it as someone who’s a fan of infill and transit, is more single-family homes. At least here. People want to get out of renting and start families, not another apartment but this time 15 stories up and far from an HEB.
Counter point, I think that Vancouvers new policy has a solid chance of working, and that’s basically the opposite of single family housing. It will take a few years to take effect, but it should have an effect.
This is why few big things get done in America. My city took 30 years to build light rail because every time it came up people whined about how long it would take to build and the attendant inconvenience of the build, but now we have it and it’s in the process of being expanded because it’s so popular.
The Austin situation is too far gone for projects like these to make a dent. Plus, people who can afford to live downtown would much rather have land out in Westlake.
The solution to the housing crisis, much as I hate to say it as someone who’s a fan of infill and transit, is more single-family homes. At least here. People want to get out of renting and start families, not another apartment but this time 15 stories up and far from an HEB.
Counter point, I think that Vancouvers new policy has a solid chance of working, and that’s basically the opposite of single family housing. It will take a few years to take effect, but it should have an effect.
This is why few big things get done in America. My city took 30 years to build light rail because every time it came up people whined about how long it would take to build and the attendant inconvenience of the build, but now we have it and it’s in the process of being expanded because it’s so popular.