New Life for Old Bones: The Challenges of Adaptive Reuse

With office vacancy rates at historic highs, the cry to "convert it to housing" is louder than ever. But adaptive reuse is not a simple swap. It requires a forensic understanding of the existing structure and a creative vision to solve complex physical constraints.

The Floor Plate Problem

Modern office buildings have deep floor plates (the distance from the core to the window). Residential code requires every habitable room (living room, bedroom) to have a window.

• The "Bowling Alley" Unit: Deep units result in long, narrow layouts that are hard to lease.
• The Solution: Cutting light wells into the center of the building or using the dark core for amenities (gyms, theaters, storage).

Plumbing and Mechanicals

An office building has one or two bathrooms per floor in the core. An apartment building has a bathroom and kitchen in every unit, spread across the entire floor. Coring through concrete slabs to run hundreds of new waste lines is expensive and technically difficult.

The Facade

Many 1980s office buildings have glass curtain walls that are energy inefficient and don't meet modern residential energy codes. Replacing the skin of a high-rise is often cost-prohibitive.