Homes

Municipal Elections, Issue 59

October 26, 2021

Québec has municipal elections on a set date every four years. Candidate campaigns are now in full swing with voting scheduled for November 7. Items high on the agendas in most municipalities – housing and population density. Focus Pointe-Claire I live in Pointe-Claire, an on-island suburb of Montréal. It has a lot going for it […]

Public Spaces, Issue 55

August 9, 2021

Sociologist Ray Oldenburg coined the term  “Third Place” in 1989. He defined home as the First Place and “the office / factory floor/ etc” the Second Place. Oldenburg’s Third Places were neither home space nor work space. Boundaries between work, home, and play fade Since 1989, information and communication technologies have helped fade the boundaries […]

Hands Off Chinatown, Issue 51

June 1, 2021

Developers have their eyes set on Montréal’s Chinatown, a tiny  but very accessible area of the city near the central business district. This distinctive neighbourhood just a short walk from Old Montreal, University of Montréal Hospital Centre, and McGill University, anchors Montréal’s Chinese community. Additionally, it is an area of the city where people congregate. […]

Part 4, Solving the Housing Crisis, Issue 48

May 4, 2021

Targeted Housing should come in many formats and could be a dynamic part of any neighbourhood.

Part 2, Solving the Housing Crisis, Issue 46

April 21, 2021

Any serious strategy for the ambitious development of  Targeted Housing requires affordable land. Private developers scour city neighbourhoods to find the best locations. In many municipalities, market forces have driven up prices to “beyond affordable”. Post acquisition,  developers spend years seeking various zoning changes for usage and density through height. Without these changes most planned […]

Part 1 – Solving the Housing Crisis, Issue 45

April 15, 2021

Canada, the United States, and Australia each have a growing affordable housing crisis. We have seen the headlines: Canada’s Housing Bubble Is Getting Way Worse, And Young People Are Screwed, Vice World News, March 18, 2021 Affordable Housing Crisis Affects One In Five Renters In Canada: Study,  Rental Housing Magazine After the eviction cliff, a […]

Vienna, Issue 43

March 23, 2021

In December 2019, we spent two weeks in Vienna. We wanted to visit its famous Christmas markets. Also, I had to see what made Vienna the world’s most livable city. Vienna has now topped Mercer’s Quality of City Living Index for ten years in a row. It is also a perennial leader in both Monocle […]

Homelessness, Issue 40

March 9, 2021

There is a shortage of quality social and affordable housing in most Western nations. Based on pre Coronavirus statistics, there are 35,000 homeless Canadians on any given night. This does not account for the approximately 50,000 couch surfers. In Canada , over 235,000 individuals experience homelessness every year. 200,000 of these use homeless shelters. The […]

Street Competition 4, Issue 33: Up-Zoning

January 28, 2021

Ugly urban sprawl

Trends in Housing After Covid 19, Issue 2

April 2, 2020

More density on single family lots versus high-rise living.