The last time I was on salary, 35 years ago, I had a real office; I cannot imagine any work requiring serious thought being performed adequately in a cubicle or, worse, at a random hot desk. (By the way, I'm curious as to how often people at those hot desks have to explain to others where they are.)
Sometimes I miss the excitement I felt when I worked in the Financial District - even though it was just me and my business partner. But that excitement wasn't really about the work; it was the hustle and bustle, the conversations, the lunches in good restaurants.
But times change and the concept of bringing office workers from far and wide to a central location is obsolete. 40% of the building at 25 Adelaide East sits empty, including my old office, 7 months after the end of my lease.