DC mayor urges Biden to end telework policies or turn over federal buildings for housing
Cami Mondeaux
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Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser is pushing President Joe Biden to either suspend current telework policies for federal employees or turn over government office buildings located in the district to be repurposed as affordable housing units.
Bowser unveiled the proposal shortly after being sworn into her third term on Tuesday, offering her latest push to address a growing housing affordability crisis in the district. The proposal was part of a larger goal offered by the mayor, which includes revitalizing the downtown area by adding 15,000 residents over the next five years.
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“Right now, 25,000 people call downtown home. Here’s our goal: we will add 15,000 residents over the next five years, and 87,000 more before it’s all said and done,” Bowser said in her inauguration speech. “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 owns or leases roughly one-third of all buildings in downtown D.C., which have been largely vacant since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic due to remote work opportunities, according to Bowser. Now, the mayor is calling on Biden to either return federal workers to the buildings or turn them over to groups that will use them.
“America wins when the place where people come to join and change the world is buzzing,” Bowser said. “Buzzing with new graduates and interns, with the startup that has the big idea to meet with federal partners or the business travelers who are coming to Washington to get work done. And of course, with lobbyists on Capitol Hill. We’ve partnered with this White House successfully many times, [and] I know we can do it again for what matters most.”
Bowser’s push to increase living options in the district is the mayor’s latest effort to combat the housing affordability crisis in the nation’s capital, building on several other proposals offered during her previous term. One such initiative includes new investments in the district’s Home Purchase Assistance Program, which provides funds to those seeking help with purchasing single-family homes, condominiums, or cooperative housing units.
However, her latest push specifically targets growth in the district’s downtown area, which the mayor notes is key to the city’s economy.
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“We must and we will win back our downtown because it is the economic engine that allows us to invest in our schools, our safety net, and our public works — the proverbial goose that lays the golden egg,” Bowser said. “The good news is that we are already taking on pandemic-related challenges like population loss, revenue loss, and tourism recovery.”
She continued, “We know we need more and bolder action. We will reach for new heights — not just with our buildings but with a renewed commitment and resources to attract great employers and good paying jobs.”