Posted on 10/30/2023 9:39:28 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
I work with building codes and permitting most days.
To try to convert ten to thirty year old office buildings into low income housing will not work.
Let’s look at one tiny aspect first. Electricity. Any major redesign will need to comply with new electrical codes and new building codes. That means all AFCI and GFCI electrical circuits or outlets. All the lighting will need to be converted to mostly LED lamps to get the kw per square foot lighting loads down to meet building codes. Each “housing unit” will need 240 volt stoves, electric dryers, and water heaters, probably all separately metered (shared electric heat or electric hot water needs to be separately metered in the name of conservation under current codes and natural gas is not considered green).
If that is not enough how does one get enough plumbing into existing concrete/brick walled buildings so that each “housing unit” has enough bathrooms, kitchens, etc.? Most office building floors do not have shower facilities, or enough toilets or kitchen sinks, garbage disposals, etc. to handle a typical number of housing units on a per 100 square foot basis. Offices use far less plumbing and electrical infrastructure.
And let’s not even bring up HVAC.
It is not going to work unless the new low income housing is “traditional slum lord” substandard housing were bathrooms, kitchens, and heating and cooling systems often don’t work. But the federal government could never structure an entitlement program around a slum lord model.
Keep them in the cities … that’s all I ask
Better even yet is ship the illegals to the Ukraine for cannon fonder.
Turn them into psych hospitals and detox/addiction treatment facilities. Way more effective.
Five to ten years? Much faster than that!
The pressure on cities to house bums, druggies, and invaders is intense. Have you seen the pics of what they do to upscale hotel rooms? They are ruined in WEEKS.
Then who pays for the rent?
It was reported the other day here that 80% of federal office space is ‘unoccupied’.
All this demonstrates is the federal government’s incredible ability to waste $$.
“Then who pays for the rent?”
Do you have a mirror handy?
In the good old days, poverty was concentrated in places like Cabrini-Green instead of being pushed out into the suburbs like today.
This is simply the beginning bailout of the collapsing commercial loan industry.
I always wondered why empty high rises downtown were not turned into apts/condos. If no developer wanted to do it the reason is obvious. Now that Biden makes $45 billion of our hard earned pay available, you know it won’t work out financially.
More money for BLUE corrupt Democrat cities.
These will be turned into high-rise slums.
I see developers are now turning old shopping malls into part condo/apartments. Many people no longer go to malls to be harassed by the yute thuggery and "helped" in stores by Green haired tatted up nosed ringed kids on their cell phones pretending to work.
“I see you’ve applied to move into one of our newly renovated apartments. Since you’re a white person, we will need your social media posting history, your voting history and a picture of any stickers you currently have on your car. We can’t have just any riff-raff moving in here.”
I suspect some city tax-revenue people will argue that if you give up on office space...you will never get the ultimate tax revenue level back.
Another argument (particularly in SF)...what little commerce you have left, if they know what your plan is...massive shut-down of grocery/store-fronts will start up. You might find a 20-block circle where no coffee shop or grocery exists near a designed ghetto section.
All you are designing is a release for the stupid owners or banks left holding the non-use office building or hotel.
First, stop digging. Close the border.
His next idea will be caves due to global warming.
Got to have a front for every scam
Questions abound. Assume you can convert offices into homes, who wants to live in them? Is a tear-down cheaper?
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No, DO NOT ASSUME you can convert offices into homes!
As a developer/builder for 50 years this is another Democratic Party/Federal Government boondoggle.
Yes, people can live in tents and under bridges but spending money on converting an office building to “apartment homes” is “economically” impossible.
I could write a book on how this fantasy will not work! In shear stupidity, the idea rivals the 80 billion in equipment left in Afghanistan (by democrats) and the 15 billion thrown away on Littoral Combat Ships and the Federal Government boondoggle list is endless. Rise up and wake up people!
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