Boston's downtown at risk as workers stay remote

[TexasTowelie]

AMERICA IS DOTTED with remnants of economies of the past. Think gold rush towns, factory cities, rail towns, and coal towns, to name a few. All served their purpose, and either evolved into something else, or slowly collapsed.

Now, the durability of remote and hybrid work poses an increasingly grave threat to Boston and other downtown areas. With COVID infection rates plummeting and more and more offices open, remote workers could come back now if they wanted to. But surveys consistently show a large swath of remote workers are just not interested in returning, particularly not full time. A new Pew survey finds the majority (59 percent) of workers who say their jobs can be done remotely are working from home most or all of the time.

Downtown economies are built around massive daily inflows of workers. That flow slowed dramatically when COVID began, and remains far below pre-pandemic levels. Boston will need to find another way to fill vast empty spaces in the hulking monuments to an economy that no longer exists.

It’s not just surveys that highlight the risk. We also have real world experience to point to. Remote workers didn’t come flooding back to Boston at any of the moments when they could have. They didn’t return in that blissful period after the vaccine rolled out but before the Delta variant hit. They haven’t come back as Omicron has faded, or not in large numbers anyway.

Read more: https://commonwealthmagazine.org/news-analysis/bostons-downtown-at-risk-as-workers-stay-remote/

[smb]

1. Cities Will Have To Adapt

remote workers could come back now if they wanted to

Since large numbers of them don't want to, for obvious reasons (commuting is bad for both the individual and the planet, and thus best avoided where possible), that's an irrelevant observation.

(It's only fair to note that, reading the whole article, the author acknowledges that.)

[SheltieLover]

2. And BA.2 is ramping up.

The risk is to real estate investors.

Turn empty offices into housing! And don't sell it to oligarchs!

[Demovictory9]

5. serious re-engineering required to account for lack of inner windows

[SheltieLover]

6. And most not even thinking ventilation or air purification!

Astounding!

[MichMan]

3. Large cities are going to have to figure out how to slash budgets to make up for the loss in tax rev

[IbogaProject]

4. Cities need more affordable housing

Many cities have built too much class A office space and way too much luxury housing. Our Mayor here in NYC just wants to snap his fingers and bring the before times back. Best move NYC could make is more affordable housing and more flexible live work spaces for the creative types.