Refugees from Ukraine and Afghanistan are set to be housed in part of the Grafton Centre in Altrincham town centre.
Trafford Council's planning committee will next week approve proposals to convert disused retail space within the 80,000 sq ft former shopping mall.
The resulting nine dwellings - five two-storey houses and four one-storey apartments - will be used as emergency accommodation for up to 51 people fleeing Ukraine and Afghanistan.
The scheme will also involve the replacement of the roof, after it was found to contain potentially dangerous Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (RAAC).
The Grafton Centre, which was built in 1974, was bought by Trafford Council for £10.84m in 2018 as part of its investment strategy.
However, plans to redevelop it as a mixed-use scheme were scotched by Covid.
The once-bustling shopping hub, formerly home to the likes of Music Zone Direct, Greggs and Rhode Island Coffee, has been closed since 2016.
The centre - which is bounded by Stamford New Road and George Street - still includes a 91-bedroom hotel run by operator Travelodge, whose lease on the building runs until 2037.
In recommending that Trafford Council approves the application at its planning and development management committee meeting next week, an officers' report said: "The apartments are to be operated as emergency accommodation for individuals who have been displaced by global conflicts in Afghanistan and Ukraine, funded by the Local Authority Housing Fund."
The new homes form part of a potentially much larger redevelopment of the Grafton Centre.
The council has commissioned a future feasibility study to “further understand the emerging town centre trends, and the broader economic recovery post-pandemic”.
