Groundscrapers Will Be the Next Trend in Office

Office will undeniably face major changes following the pandemic. For some, that might look like home offices, for others, it looks like a return to pre-pandemic workplaces. Most, however, are expecting something in between. Architecture firm HLW Los Angeles—the company behind the renovation of Los Angeles’ Westside Pavilion—expects to see increased demand for low-rise office properties, which are better able to provide safe and clean workspaces with lower density.

“We anticipate that there will be a continued shift away from class-A high rises to what we call ‘groundscrapers,’ which create fewer moments for bottlenecks in terms of vertical mobility,” Sejal Sonani, a principal at HLW Los Angeles, tells GlobeSt.com. “As more attention is paid to creating workspaces that employees feel safe returning to, these types of buildings will grow increasingly attractive.”