How remote work transformed this city in the Midwest

Lansing, Michigan may never be the same. The city of just over 110,000 residents known for its towering state capitol building, large convention center and proximity to campuses is trying to reshape itself for a post-Covid world.

It’s been more than three years since the global pandemic sent workers accustomed to five-day, in-person work weeks away from offices. Many desk workers are still working from home for at least some of the week. That’s because remote and hybrid work models originally adopted as a short-term solution have shown staying power, even with the global public health emergency officially declared over.

The trend has, in turn, changed the aesthetic and culture of downtown centers across the country that could once rely on an influx of commuters. In Lansing, that change is seen in different work hours, more housing and new event spaces as community and business leaders try to reimagine what and who the downtown caters to. It’s all being done in a bid to attract people to live or visit as reality sets in that Lansing and other cities can no longer thrive on office-centric economies.

“We are looking at how do we shift our energy from serving mainly one type of demographic, to making sure that our downtown neighborhoods are welcoming and inclusive of all?” said Cathleen Edgerly, executive director of Downtown Lansing, Inc., a nonprofit working on the culture and sustainability of the downtown. The goal is to build “the downtown and community for those who want to be there, not those who are just coming in and out as fast as they can.”

Workers across the country have pushed to keep remote privileges even as executives at giant companies such as Disney to Tesla try to get their employees back into the office at least part time. 

A larger share of job listings across the country are offering at least one day of remote work compared with pre-pandemic, according to data from WFH Map in a collaboration between a group of researchers and Lightcast, a labor-market analytics firm. It’s a sign that flexible work experiences remain increasingly normal — and not just for jobs started before or during the pandemic.

Lansing had the largest share of job listings in March with at least one day of remote work of any city, according to WFH Map. Founder Peter Lambert, an economic PhD candidate at the London School of Economics and Political Science, said capital cities and technology hubs tend to top the list given their tilt toward remote-friendly industries including tech, finance, insurance, higher education and government.

“Lansing is a great case study, as it ticks all the above boxes,” he said.

In the downtown area, Edgerly said that initial shift meant a 30% overnight decrease in workers commuting in and over 1 million square feet of canceled office space with the onset of the pandemic. Since that shakeup, she said businesses have begun shifting…