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Many Manhattan Office Workers Still Working From Home

Many folks are still not back to work in Manhattan offices, which have declined in value because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Rob Byrnes is the President of East Midtown Partnership, which helps promote local businesses . He says only 30 percent of office workers are back in Midtown, leaving ground floor businesses like restaurants hanging on by a thread.

“What do I see happening. By the end of the year, most offices will have started to come back. Is that going to be enough to sustain the ground floor food establishments, the retailers. I don’t know.”

A report by the State Comptroller says the value of Manhattan office buildings is down more than 16 percent because of the pandemic. Byrnes thinks it may be a good idea to turn some outdated commercial property into residential buildings.