http://allaboutcities.ca Cities - why they work, trends, and what makes them fascinating Fri, 11 May 2012 05:06:52 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en I apologize for being late to the pink-slime-in-meat discussion, but unlike 99% of blog post ideas that fail to make it to cyberspace, this one keeps weighing on my mind. I’ve been pondering the relationship between really poor quality food and an auto-centred lifestyle.  Here’s how I think the link works: The mid-20th century suburban [...]]]> http://allaboutcities.ca/pink-slime-and-sprawl/ It’s hard to solve a problem without first identifying what it is.  Solving the “housing affordability crisis” is no exception. What is meant when someone says there is an affordability problem?  Affordability of what? for whom? Here are four common things that I think people mean when they talk about housing affordability (feel free to [...]]]> http://allaboutcities.ca/step-1-define-affordability/ It has come to this. Every time some bank or other organization releases a new study about housing affordability in various cities I want to scream. Usually, the press release and all media stories have some sensational headline like “Vancouver 2nd most unaffordable city in the world.” As if. Those of you living in San [...]]]> http://allaboutcities.ca/housing-affordability-porn-enough-already/   Kate Ascher, The Heights: Anatomy of a Skyscraper (New York: Penguin Press, 2011) Skyscrapers are a vital component of modern cites.  They allow tens of thousands of people to work in close proximity, allowing them to share ideas.  Tall residential buildings have also become important to supporting vibrant 24 X 7 downtowns, keeping thousands [...]]]> http://allaboutcities.ca/skyscrapers/   A new survey in the United States revealed that only 12% of future home buyers wanted to purchase a home in the suburban-fringe. A decade ago, it is quite possible that the number would have been reversed with over 80% wanting a large suburban home.  Certainly, house prices were more expensive on a per [...]]]> http://allaboutcities.ca/the-great-urban-shift/ “[I was struck by]…the sheer diversity of the crowd… to see people across so many diverse ethnic groups celebrating side by side…[was] very uplifting.” Seattle Times reporter Danny O’Neil in Vancouver to watch the Stanley Cup finals from Granville St. Anytime I’m away from Vancouver this absence of an internationally-sourced and blended population often stands [...]]]> http://allaboutcities.ca/the-sheer-diversity-of-the-housing/ In cities around the world people have been occupying key streets to express frustration over a variety of issues.  Many protesters have commented on “growing inequality” as being one grievance.  But what if the real cause of this apparent phenomenon is demographic rather than a result of economic or financial systems, or something abstract like [...]]]> http://allaboutcities.ca/demography-a-key-cause-of-occupiers-discontent/ It was intriguing that General Motors ran an advertisement last week depicting the bicycle as the inferior competition to its product. Instead of trying to compete with Honda or Toyota, they chose the bicycle. Although GM was shamed on Twitter into pulling the ads, the concept makes sense if you look at it from an [...]]]> http://allaboutcities.ca/what-gms-anti-bike-ad-tells-us/ The Occupy Wall Street movement is spreading to financial districts across North America and the world.  Seems an appropriate time to think about who actually owns and profits from that real estate. Union pension funds are the owners of many office towers in Canada’s financial districts Increasingly Canadian union pension funds are buying up US [...]]]> http://allaboutcities.ca/be-mindful-of-who-owns-financial-districts/ ESPN recently ranked Toronto as the worst sports city in North America.  They calculated this based on a ratio of ticket prices to wins by the city’s teams.  Toronto’s sports fans loyally pay top dollar to see their favourite teams lose all too often. I think this affects the psychology of the city, including the [...]]]> http://allaboutcities.ca/the-worst-sports-city-in-north-america-%e2%80%93-it-matters/