Office-to-residential conversions are gaining momentum in Ottawa, says a new Avison Young report.

Two downtown office buildings, 130 Slater Street and 360 Laurier Avenue West are slated to be converted as the Ottawa marketplace grapples with increasing vacancy and availability in the sector. So far this year, office absorption is down 745,000 square feet.

“Vacancy consistently continues to increase across all asset classes and submarkets of the Ottawa office market,” said Avison Young.

Inventory will decrease slightly as more core office properties are converted to residential buildings, the report states. An older office building at 473 Albert Street was converted into “nicely appointed” purpose-built apartments.

Avison Young’s findings come after the Ottawa Business Journal reported that two federal office buildings are sitting vacant in the nation’s capital.

Jean-Yves Duclos, the public services and procurement minister, has stated that the federal government plans to repurpose more of its Ottawa office buildings into residential properties.

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