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Lisbon’s seven hills and waterfront make it visually spectacular. The second oldest capital in Europe, the city has energy. Busy streets and squares, full restaurants, and vibrant night life – the city pulsates. And, the population seems young. All signs of a city on the rise? Earthquake A 1755 earthquake destroyed 85% of the city […]

People living on the street have come to symbolize the global housing crisis but they are only the tip of the iceberg. While the examples of Finland and Houston demonstrate a focussed plan pursued diligently can resolve the housing situation for the chronically homeless, addressing the affordable housing problem is much more complex.  Defining Affordability […]

I love to dance. This is not something new for me. I can’t remember when I didn’t like to move to the music. My first memories of watching others dance come from my childhood in Cape Breton where I would watch the adults square dance. Then, there were the step dancers who would often accompany […]

Kings Cross, once a thriving industrial and transport centre in London, was effectively closed  off  to the public by the end of the 20th century.   Then in 1996, the decision was made to move the British terminus for the Channel Tunnel Rail Link from Waterloo to St-Pancras. The landowner saw a re-development opportunity for […]

I have postulated that cities and towns evolve. That towns and villages first grow in areas where the basics to support life were plentiful. Typically, that means good agricultural land and good access to water. Other valuable considerations include safety, and resilience. The bonus – access to trade routes.  Walt Disney and the Fully Formed […]

Can it be! Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa will be over six days from now! And, in the blink of an eye, the 2023 celebrations will be on the near horizon. Time goes by so quickly as we get older! This year’s seasonal celebrations will be a return to normal after two years of Covid restrictions. […]

I found the last three articles in the “Cities Series”  difficult to write because I wanted to get it right. So, I thought I would change it up this week with some blurbs on different kinds of Places to Live.  Willowbrook Apartments, Los Angeles  Designed by Los Angeles Architect Michael Lehrer, these seven small but […]

A Tale of Two Cities This is a Tale of Two Cities. Houston, Texas is the fourth largest city in the United States. It has a population of about 2.4 million people and Harris County about has about 4.3 million residents. Over the past ten years Houston / Harris has reduced chronic homelessness by 63%. […]

So how did Finland accomplish these results? As already set out in an earlier instalment, Article 19.4 of the Finnish Constitution establishes housing as a basic human right in.  Finland bases its resultant strategy on four guiding principles to eliminate homelessness: 1 – Housing enables independent Lives The homeless can go straight to living in […]

Think First of the Homeless When I think about places to live, I think first of the homeless. Imagine  standing on a street corner at eight o’clock in the evening with all of your earthly belongings. It is drizzling and cold. You have no where to shelter, call your own, sleep, or feel safe. Maybe […]

Love your lawn? Do you hanker for a perfect carpet of green fescue? How many hours do you dedicate to weeding, watering, and mowing to get those perfect geometric stripes?  Has this summer proven difficult for lawns where you live? Watering restrictions? Pests? Perhaps your lawn wars begin in the spring when you take on […]

I hit pause! I needed to take a break and re-focus. I had never intended to write an overtly political blog. However, that was exactly what I had started to do. Politics had taken over a project that I wanted to dedicate to my other interests and, in particular, urban development.  Where to re-start? So, […]