A Clerkenwell councilor is calling for empty commercial properties to be converted into residential housing to help resolve the looming crisis.
The latest data by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities, there were 267,000 new social housing lettings in 2021/22, an increase of 13% from the 237,000 lettings reported in 2020/21. However, this is still 13% lower than the pre- COVID-19 figure of 306,000 in 2019/20, continuing the long-term fall in new lettings.
Councillor Ben Mackmurdie, who also works in construction, said: “The need for housing is greater than any current need for commercial properties. We should be transforming these offices into affordable housing.”
He added: “The amount of unoccupied office space in the area is a big concern. But the empty commercial properties can solve other issues in the wake of Islington’s housing crisis. However, whether the property people are happy to do that is another question.”
The councillor said many businesses are leaving, which he attributes to lower construction levels, minimizing the local economy. “When I look at those businesses in Exmouth Market, I wonder how they will survive in an atmosphere where business rates are so high.”
An employee at Ellis Brown ,Toby Thomas, one of London’s largest commercial estate agents, said there are more empty properties now than pre-covid. With fewer people in the office on a day-to-day basis and businesses choosing to downsize since the pandemic, there are now more vacant properties.
The Museums Association, a charity which has had its office in Clerkenwell since the 1990s, is also looking to leave the area. Neil Mackay, who works for the organization, said that he and his colleagues are “looking for much smaller premises” since moving to hybrid working.
