Seven million square feet of Orange County office space has been removed from the market or converted to housing, and Newport Beach businesses near John Wayne Airport are feeling the squeeze.

That figure, cited by Michael Pollack, executive vice president of real estate at Irvine-based Premier Workspaces, underscores a shift accelerating in the city's Airport Area. Orange County had 89 million square feet of total office space in the first quarter of 2026, according to Cushman & Wakefield. The 7 million square feet already removed or in conversion represents roughly 8% of that inventory.

Several office-to-residential conversion projects planned near the airport will shrink the commercial footprint further, according to a report published Monday, July 20, in the Orange County Business Journal.

Premier opened a 23,800-square-foot flexible office center in mid-April at Lincoln Property Company's Redstone campus, 4041 MacArthur Blvd., taking over one floor of a former two-story WeWork location. As of mid-July, the space is about half leased, roughly three months after opening.

"You've got a lot of clients that are being displaced, companies that are looking to find temporary solutions," Pollack told the Business Journal.

Pollack said lawyers, accountants, wealth managers, startups, and larger companies using satellite offices fill the Redstone center. Some were forced to move by redevelopment projects converting their former offices to apartments.

Parke Miller, executive vice president at Lincoln Property Company, said the WeWork at Redstone had reached over 80% occupancy before it closed. WeWork's nationwide restructuring shuttered the location despite strong demand on the ground, Miller said.

Lincoln chose Premier as a smaller-scale replacement. Premier operates 25 locations across Orange County, including seven in Newport Beach, and keeps its centers under 50,000 square feet. About 95% of its nearly 90 locations nationwide are occupied.

City planning decisions clear the path

The commercial squeeze is enabled by Newport Beach planning policy, which has increasingly approved residential projects in the Airport Area.

The City Council voted in mid-July to cut affordable housing requirements from 15% to 6% for projects built for sale near John Wayne Airport, a move city officials said is needed to meet state-mandated housing targets. Voice of OC reported that state transportation officials and airport commissioners have said the change does not follow their guidelines for the area.

On Thursday, July 9, the Planning Commission voted 7-0 to approve a 139-unit townhome community at 1301 Dove St. in the Airport Area, replacing an existing office building and parking structure. The project includes no affordable units.

City staff noted in a January 2026 presentation that the 2006 General Plan envisioned up to 2,200 dwelling units in the Airport Area. Approximately 1,877 units have been approved or are in the pipeline. The state has mandated Newport Beach zone for at least 4,845 housing units this decade.

The Newport Beach Aviation Committee meets Wednesday, July 22, at 5 p.m. in City Council Chambers, 100 Civic Center Drive, where OC Board of Supervisors Vice Chair Katrina Foley is scheduled to update the committee on county airport-related matters.