In this City & State op-ed, CUF executive director Jonathan Bowles analyzes the growing demand for commercial spaces in New York. He argues that as Mayor de Blasio develops innovative proposals to address the city's affordable housing crisis, the administration should also act to unleash the potential of commercial spaces that have long gone vacant or underutilized.

Bowles points out how the growing demand for commercial spaces stems from the city’s remarkable burst of job creation, specifically from fast-growing Internet startups, creative companies and even some light manufacturing firms who desire cheaper, industrial spaces outside New York’s main commercial business districts. He then proposes a few ideas to open up more spaces for these growing industries, such as incentivizing the upgrading of Class B and C office buildings, recapturing commercial districts like Long Island City that are filled with storage facilities, and unlocking second-floor retail spaces within city’s thriving commercial districts.

To read the full op-ed, click here.