White House Pushing to Convert Empty Commercial Space to Housing

(Bloomberg) -- President Donald Trump’s administration is looking at ways to convert a glut of commercial real estate resulting from the coronavirus pandemic and ensuing lockdowns, into affordable housing, Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson said Wednesday.

One lesson of the public health crisis is that people can telework better than previously thought, and that may leave virtually every major U.S. city with excess commercial space, Carson said in a television interview with Fox Business.

“I don’t think it’ll ever go back to the way it was before, and there are a lot of people who are going to be able to work from home,” Carson said. “That’s going to free up a lot of commercial space, which can be converted to affordable housing to take some of the pressure off.”

Carson said “we are very much looking at that right now,” and he called on city officials and local councils to pursue working on such projects with the Trump administration. “The federal government will work with you to make these transitions occur,” he said.

Talks between the White House and Congress on a so-called Phase 4 federal stimulus bill are set to ramp up next month, as the U.S. sees its daily Covid-19 caseload trending up again. Meanwhile, Trump makes little mention of the virus’s ongoing toll and social distancing practices recommended by health experts while he resumes his travel schedule.

He held a de facto rally on Tuesday in Arizona, where cases are surging, and the room was full with very few attendees wearing masks.

The administration is watching death and hospitalization rates in particular as it continues to monitor the pandemic, presidential adviser Kellyanne Conway said on Wednesday while speaking to reporters at the White House. “This is still with us, obviously. Covid-19 is here,” she said. “It remains a major priority.”

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