London Mayor Josh Morgan is taking the first step in his plan to turn parking lots and empty office space into high-density housing in the city.

Morgan used his strong-mayor powers Tuesday to direct city staff to identify downtown city-owned parking lots that could be developed into housing.

"The redevelopment of city-owned parking lots will allow us to not only increase available on-site parking, they will also add significant residential density within new high-rise structures above the redeveloped parking facilities," said Morgan in a statement Wednesday.

"A partnership utilizing city land, and the expertise of local developers on strategically selected sites, has potential to deliver hundreds of new parking spaces, and thousands of new residences in our downtown. This strategy will contribute to an unprecedented renewal of London's core over the next decade."

Morgan said the list of sites is expected to be ready for the consideration of council in the coming months.

The update comes as a request for proposal (RFP) has been issued for a mixed-use development at 185 Queens Ave., a site that has been the subject of redevelopment proposals for years.

An RFP was issued in the fall of 2019 for partners to team up with the city to transform the 74-vehicle space surface lot. Then there was a call in January 2020 for developers to turn the lot into a multi-level, state-of-the-art public parking garage. Both ambitions didn't materialize.

Now, the city is seeking a development that would fill the need for market and affordable housing, along with parking for businesses and the public.

"The transformation of surface parking lots into vibrant, high-density housing is one of several ways we can further revitalize our downtown," said Morgan.