Washington mayor urges Biden to bring federal workers back into offices or create affordable housing
DC Mayor Muriel Bowser called for White House's 'decisive action'
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The mayor of Washington, D.C., is calling on the Biden administration to bring federal workers back into offices or convert the empty spaces into housing.
On Monday, Mayor Muriel Bowser delivered her third inaugural address after being sworn in for a historic third term.
"We need decisive action by the White House to either get most federal workers back to the office most of the time or to realign their vast property holdings for use by the local government, by nonprofits, by businesses and by any user willing to revitalize it," she told gatherers at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center.
Bowser said that while the District has built the "largest housing production trust fund in the nation" because of its growing downtown, as well as better social programs, "all of that is at risk if [they] can't change the space" and fill it amidst the impact of COVID-19 pandemic-related challenges.
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DC Mayor Muriel Bowser speaks during a D.C. Mayoral and Council swearing-in ceremony at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center on Jan. 2, 2023, in Washington, D.C. ((Photo by Matt McClain/The Washington Post via Getty Images) / Getty Images)
The mayor said there needed to be more and bolder action and that converting office space into housing was "key" to unlocking the "potential of a reimagined, more vibrant downtown," with a goal of bringing in 100,000 new residents.
"That’s a bold goal, but the fact is, no matter what we do, it won’t be fast enough without the help of the White House. The federal government represents one-quarter of D.C.’s pre-pandemic jobs and owns or leases one-third of D.C.’s office space," she added.
President Biden returns to the White House on Jan. 2, 2023, in Washington, D.C. ((Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images) / Getty Images)
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Bowser said that her government had partnered with the Biden administration successfully many times and that she knows they could "do it again for what matters most."
General view of Pennsylvania Avenue and the United States Capitol in downtown Washington D.C., on July 19, 2022. ((Photo by DANIEL SLIM/AFP via Getty Images) / Getty Images)
Right now, 25,000 people call the downtown area home, with the city planning to add 15,000 residents over the next five years and 87,000 more "before it's all said and done."
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According to Bowser's Housing in Downtown Abatement Program, 92% of the central business district consists of commercial space, with residential space only accounting for 8%.