Chris Spoke
@ChrisSpoke
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If big tech is overstaffed by 2-10x, can you imagine government?
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@lionel_trolling
Canadian border patrol has been instructed to never let you in. Too dangerous.
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It’s important that we not permit four storey towers in our neighbourhoods.
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Toronto is roughly 20% as dense as Paris. We’re so far from full, even in our biggest cities.
We just need to build more housing.
‘A rising number of immigrants hate it here and want to go home.’
Great news! Stay away or go back. We’re full.
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Home savings account comes into effect:
First-time homebuyers will have the ability to save up to $40,000 and contributions will also be tax-free. Individuals can contribute up to $8,000 a year.
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This guy’s 36 years old and gets it. And I think he gets it, in part, because he’s 36 years old.
We need younger politicians.
There was a hearing in Montana today on a bill sponsored by State Senator Daniel Zolnikov (R - Billings) to legalize multifamily & mixed-use development in commercial zones in Montana's larger cities.
You need to see his answer to a question about neighborhood character.
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@graceclarke
At some point most of us realize that our careers are pretty silly, and certainly not a source of enduring meaning or purpose. Good to have had kids when that pin drops.
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I’m walking through Montreal’s residential neighbours and realizing that this is Canada’s only real city. The middle is not missing here.
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Toronto’s Committee of Adjustments just refused an application for minor variances on an infill proposal that features ten family-sized units in walking distance to two subway stations in Canada’s largest and most expensive city.
The member who moved the motion to refuse said…
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Please, no setback requirements.
@CityPlanTO
Toronto is growing. We need new ways to house more folks in all our neighbourhoods with services like schools, parks and transit.
Part of that's allowing more "missing middle" housing on residential major streets.
Consultations are open until Dec. 14:
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Our economy is not outperforming my expectations.
Our economy continues to outperform expectations, with inflation now down to 2.8%!
This is good news for Canadians at the grocery store checkout.
But rent and mortgage costs are still far too high. That’s why we’re building more homes — faster than any previous government.
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There’s this phenomenon I’ve noticed in politics where those in power give you many good reason why it’s not politically astute to do the obvious thing—like legalizing missing middle housing in cities.
Political capital is to be carefully preserved, they tell you, to be deployed…
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One of the many consequences of restrictive zoning: service workers can’t live in the city they serve.
I'm speechless at the state of the Kitchener line. This train has 6 coaches with 12 doors and 10 of those doors were blocked by bikes. This is a serious
@GOtransit
safety hazard. Imagine if an evacuation was needed? The 2 bike per coach rule must be enforced asap.
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A handful of municipalities across Ontario are starting to legalize fourplexes on all residential lots.
To do it right, at minimum:
- no max height lower than 13m
- no max depth shorter than 19m
- reduce min side setback as much as possible (ideally to 0m)
- eliminate FSI limit…
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Did you know that you're not allowed to build grocery stores in Toronto's Apartment Neighbourhoods, like this one at High Park?
Maybe we can start by changing that.
On WSJ wires, scoopage: "Canada's industry minister is weighing a list of a dozen foreign grocery companies--from the U.S., Germany, Turkey and Portugal, among others--to potentially lure to the country in a bid to increase competition in the domestic food-retailing sector."
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@shl
@scared_ape
I think you have to be very deep in tech to think that writer is more high status than vc.
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It’s very obvious that municipalities will need to be bullied into permitting more housing.
Speaking about housing, PM Trudeau says Conservative leader
@PierrePoilievre
wants to “bully” communities into doing what he wants; says feds want to work with municipalities (in reference to Conservatives’ vow to withholdfunding from cities that don’t build enough houses)
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Here’s an otherwise pleasant street that’s been ruined by a four storey tower.
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It's best to ignore highrise developers on policy proposals like these—most will just talk their book.
Permitting 6-storeys as-of-right on major streets would be a major win for the city. Let's get on with it! 💪
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“The federal government cannot alter municipal zoning codes, but it can offer incentives to do so. It could set up a set of minimum standards (call it a National Zoning Code), and any municipality that altered its zoning code to be compliant could be given one-time per-capita…
As he prepares to brief the federal Cabinet this week on the subject,
@TheHubCanada
was pleased to publish
@MikePMoffatt
’s ideas for a “war-time effort” on housing construction.
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If Toronto’s Major Streets policy doesn’t legalize this, it’s a miss. (As currently drafted, it does not legalize this.)
@CityPlanTO
A handsome new 6-story building with 11 homes on a narrow lot.
This should be legal in every city in America by right!
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@seandsweeney
A midlife crisis is a realization that you're going to die and that you might as well do cool shit before that happens. Lean into it.
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Toronto is a Potemkin city. The illusion of a proper urban fabric is shattered as soon as you walk down a side street.
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Given that we appear to be cool with safe injection sites, can we get a cigar lounge or two in Toronto?
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Fun fact:
GWLRA wanted to put a grocery store by the arrow below, amid a bunch of high-rise housing, but the City wouldn't allow it as only small-scale retail is permitted in Apartment Neighbourhoods.
So many of these residents (including me) now drive for their groceries.
An impressive amount of development activity is occurring around Major Transit Station Areas (MTSAs) immediately west of Downtown
#Toronto
. Notably along the Kitchener GO rail line at Bloor-Dundas and the future St Clair-Old Weston station 🚉 .
#ToRE
#urbanplanning
#transit
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This is our enduring advantage. Smart and ambitious people from around the world want to move here, and for the most part, we want to let them in.
Now let’s build a bunch of new housing (and transit, and hospitals, and schools, etc.) for them.
🇨🇦
Canada's population grew by 1.2 MILLION people in the past year as of Q2.
All for thoughtful immigration, but this is an absurd, crazy, irresponsible number.
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This should have min 5x more density. The Province needs to get involved.
When fully realized, Villiers Island will be the first climate positive neighbourhood in Canada with leading-edge sustainability features and will also include a significant quantity of affordable housing, and diverse economic and cultural uses. More: .
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Would you want your kid to live in a four storey tower? I don’t think so.
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Pathetic.
NEW: After lots of internal deliberations about fourplexes (four units as-of-right) province wide - Premier Doug Ford shuts down the effort.
Ford says that’s “off the table for us” largely because there would be push back from residents.
#onpoli
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@anymanfitness
“This guy is right but I’m going to dunk on him anyway.”
Peak Twitter right here.
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@moseskagan
Hsieh & Moretti are pretty convincing in arguing that America would be much much richer if it didn’t constrain the supply of higher density housing types in cities.
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The problem with urban planning is urban planning. The solution is less urban planning.
Naturally, urban planners don’t get this.
At the Midrise Guideline review with
@MoreNeighbours
Advocates and builders have complained that angular plane and shadow rules are $ burdensome and bad for architecture + the environment.
What does City planning propose? More rules ofc!
Planners, why are you like this?
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The worst thing about four storey towers is that they’re four storeys. And towers.
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There are many reasons why Toronto’s neighbourhoods look more like the left image (or worse) than the right image (or better), and the absence of a fed-funded catalogue of pre-approved drawings is not one of them.
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“What if Toronto raised its growth targets to add another million people? What if it aimed to be a city of abundance, with more people in its walkable neighbourhoods, better social services, parks and pools and more customers in its corner cafés? What if it aimed to welcome as…
In today’s
@globeandmail
, my advice for Toronto’s mayor: a trickle of social housing won’t solve anything. 🧵
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Meanwhile, in Apartment Neighbourhoods, the City continues to enforce its ban on any commercial amenity other than “small scale retail”.
That is, no grocery stores, no gyms, no doctor’s offices, etc. Make it make sense,
@CityPlanTO
.
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New study says that the high price of housing in Toronto is driven by people stubbornly wanting a roof over their heads, not low housing supply.
New study says long waits for health care in Canada are driven by high demand, not low supply of doctors. By
@Campbellian_
#cdnpoli
(subs)
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If you look closely, you can see a four storey tower sandwiched in between some otherwise fine housing.
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Toronto needs to update its multiplex permissions to increase max height from 10m (3 storeys) to 13m (4 storeys).
Imagine letting Guelph build higher density missing middle infill housing than we can…
@CityPlanTO
Yesterday
@citywaterloo
unanimously approved the motion to permit as-of-right zoning up to 4 units & 4 storeys across the city.
We're ready to partner with the Federal govt & committed to using all the tools in our toolbox to tackle the
#AffordableHousing
crisis.
@SeanFraserMP
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Why isn’t density similar to that cluster around Leaside station permitted around all Bloor-Danforth stations?
This is a real question with a real answer.
Updated look at development activity along the eastern portion of the Eglinton Crosstown LRT and future Ontario Line, including the latest Transit-Oriented Community (TOC) proposed at Thorncliffe Park Station.
If you built it, they will come…
#Toronto
#urbanplanning
#transit
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Four unit permissions will slowly work their way through more and more municipal councils in Ontario. Good.
The Province could have saved us all a few years and taken more of the credit by requiring it themselves with Bill 108, 109, 23, or 97. Why didn’t they?
London City Council is meeting today to consider
@JoshMorganLDN
‘s resolution to permit 4 units as-of-right.
This would make it easier to build more homes in London without requiring a zoning by-law amendment.
Looking forward to the vote and to paying you a visit soon!
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There are two types of Toronto urbanists:
Those who think a Sphere at Ontario Place would be awesome, and those who want to preserve old brutalist libraries.
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I for one think that this is awesome and that we should build much more housing and transit to accommodate all Canadians.
WOW! Canada's population is up 430,000 in just 3 months. Now at 40.5 million.
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Start over.
The revised plan for Villiers Island in the Toronto port lands. 9000 units on 33 hectares, including parks. Is this right? Enough? Arbitrarily too low?
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Claude Cormier is great because he knows how to design parks for cities.
No fake swampland biodiversity bullshit. Instead, plenty of hard landscaping + benches + something to look at.
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@fordnation
The carbon tax will affect fewer Ontarians if we allow for more housing development within walking, cycling, transit distance of major employment centres.
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Should this be permitted on Avenues? If yes, these guidelines (or guidelines in general) need a rethink.
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If I were a partisan Conservative, I would note that most of
@SeanFraserMP
's mounting credibility on housing is being generated by Ontario municipalities permitting four units on any residential lot and receiving federal dollars for their troubles.
I would further note that this…
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@liberal_party
I now buy a box of plastic bags with my groceries cause I can’t use grocery bags as garbage bags anymore.
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The Missing Middle Summit is officially happening!
When: Thursday, May 25th, 2023. All day.
Where: The Broadview Hotel, 106 Broadview Avenue, Toronto.
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What happened to “get it done”?
@fordnation
In a letter to Ont Housing Minister
@PaulCalandra
, fed Housing Minister
@SeanFraserMP
says province has until end of day today to resubmit its action plan for meeting federal housing targets or risk losing $357M for affordable housing (first reported by
@robertbenzie
)
#onpoli
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Paula Fletcher used to be the leader of the Communist Party of Canada in Manitoba.
Now, in her role as Toronto City Councillor, she wants to protect millionaire semi-detached homeowners from having to live next to multiunit housing and renters.
Amazing.
Q (Fletcher): In favour of multiplexes, but wants to "protect small semi detached homes from large multiplexes"
A: City will be monitoring this. Some of this can already happen with how the by-law is currently written.
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Tel Aviv: 2.6 kids per couple.
Opinion: Housing plans’ impact on Canada’s fertility rate would strain economy, increase social tensions
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City Planning is not understaffed, it just loves piling on the unnecessary work.
Toronto will be making tweaks to zoning over the next few years: major streets, midrise rear setbacks, transition zones, etc. Could save a lot of effort if we just proposed elimination of all residential categories except R and raised the height limit to 6 stories everywhere.
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1. Upzone cities;
2. Produce and export more LNG;
3. Build more nuclear reactors.
What big-ticket items would you add to this list?
*NEW* Canada's GDP grew by 1.1% between the 4th quarter of 2022 and 2023, while its population grew by 3.2%. That means GDP per capita is now falling at 2% annually (roughly the difference). Zero economic growth in more than 6 years.
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"The idea that individuals in a neighbourhood could be financially penalized for standing up against development has a chilling effect."
This is great!
Toronto neighbourhood group opposes development, gets hit with $10k in legal fees - Toronto |
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I hate when unbridled market economics require that any new development in Toronto’s Neighbourhoods land use designation respect and reinforce the existing physical character.
Unbridled market economics caused the housing crisis and won't be able to fix it on their own. Non-market housing – including affordable, social, non-profit and cooperative housing – is required to relieve the crisis.
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We can’t improve housing affordability without increasing supply, we can’t increase supply where it’s most needed without upzoning, and we can’t upzone without generating a windfall for some landowners.
This is ok, economic value being unlocked.
Solving the Canadian housing crisis is going to take a herculean effort by government and private developers.
Some developers will create massive wealth by helping to solve this crisis.
Citizens and politicians need to be OK
with this.
It can’t be an ‘us vs them’…
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If I were
@PaulCalandra
, I’d get single egress to 6 storeys done before Halloween as a demonstration of less talk, more action.
There are no politics to navigate here (fire chiefs can go on a tour of Europe); it’s a slam dunk.
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The
@fordnation
government is developmentally delayed. There’s no other explanation.
With today’s housing bill, they’re bringing a water gun to a forest fire.
These are not serious people.
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Doug Ford’s legacy could be a tonne of new transit and a tonne of new housing surrounding every major transit station throughout Canada’s most important economic region. That would be something to be proud of.
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Real cities do not require front and side yard setbacks in their neighbourhoods.
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The mayor's takeaway here is that the applicant, Baseload Power, "did not consult widely or early enough".
The correct takeaway is that we need to end community consultation altogether. It's just not worth our continued relative economic and environmental decline.
NIMBYism is the biggest obstacle to prosperity in Canada and it goes beyond housing.
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Canada’s housing debate is mostly “the left chart should look like the right chart” vs. “the right chart should look like the left chart”.
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Let's say that I'm buying seven detached houses to assemble for a high-rise development site. Would this stop me?
This is bad policy on its own narrow terms that has the potential to be terrible policy if broadly interpreted and applied.
This one is interesting (and I suspect will be quite popular): Canada banning "very large corporate investors" from buying existing single-family homes.
I don't think this really happens much at scale in Canada, but boy do I hear people talk about it a lot on Twitter.
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Given that
@BonnieCrombie
has proposed 4-storeys + 4-units everywhere, and has been very public and vocal about it, the risk to
@fordnation
implementing the same seems like it should be greatly diminished, as there's nowhere angry voters could turn to.
The risk to being on the…
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We should not have unit caps within a permitted built form!
Think about this practically. Unit caps are inflexible. They don’t adjust to whether you bought a 20’ or 80’ wide lot.
Just as Toronto killed FSI caps on multiplexes given form-based zoning, let’s also kill unit caps.
@OntarioNDP
If I were y’all I’d leapfrog both the Greens and the OLP by commiting to allowing 8 units by 4 stories everywhere, 10 stories on major streets, and up to 30 stories within 500 metres of a transit station and 15 stories within 1km.
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628 proposed new homes are being held up because the City believes that the proposal “will have a negative impact with regard to the heritage attributes of scale, form, and massing.”
Context: Toronto is facing a generational housing crisis.
This is not a serious city.…
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1. An aggressive subway and regional rail network expansion program;
2. Major upzoning near major transit stations; and now
3. New nuclear energy generation.
The Province could be doing much more, much faster, and for much less, but this is all pretty great.
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@alexbozikovic
@gdiamond87
Aside from providing more housing, this has the added benefit of being repeatable at scale. You can outbid families for properties all day long if this is what you're allowed to build.
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The backlash will come—quickly—if we don’t build more housing.
Canada let in a million immigrants last year.
The equivalent for the US would be 9 million.
Public opinion of immigration is very positive & broadly supported.
How?
Canada is selective about who it admits, with eligibility criteria that value higher education & skilled work.
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Not wrong.
I don't even have the heart to tell y'all that a lot of the things y'all be mad at Trudeau at is really Doug Ford's fault 💀💀💀
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So,
1. Bailao
2. Cressy
3. Filion
4. Minnan-Wong
5. Wong Tam
?. Anyone else?
... leaving
Time to get some yimbys elected.
@MoreNeighbours
Please see my statement regarding the upcoming municipal election.
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@gabedsouza13
They could be, politically. That’s why the “as much as possible”. Were I king, this would be permitted everywhere:
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“A lot of people, myself included, thought
@fordnation
might get the housing crisis right. He might be the strong leader we needed, one who could tell those comfortable shouters and screamers that the housing crisis is important enough to override their petty concerns. He’s not…
#Opinion
Doug Ford's fourplex fumble was a dismal moment for anyone who cares about affordable housing
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The City will let us know over the next few months whether it actually wants to see these built at scale. The purpose of a system is what it does.
Let’s see what it does.
[Blog] Toronto wants small-scale apartments on its major streets
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@TheStalwart
Georgism works best with YIMBYism as Georgiam taxes your land to its highest and best use and YIMBYism extends what that highest and best use is.
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Toronto real estate twitter (x?),
Do the words "DC exemption" excite you?
Are you the type of person who would rather receive a COA approval than a birthday present, and it's not even close?
Have you ever ranted to your friends about second egress requirements? (Looking at you…
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@KahlonRav
Here’s a fun challenge:
How quickly can you make this change? One year? Why not one month? One week?
I’ll make the max permitted donation to the BC NDP minus $1 for every 6 hours that passes starting at noon today. (Anyone else?)
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Here’s a random, small Montreal side street—there are hundreds like it—with the ~same density as most of Danforth Ave., our major arterial running alongside a subway line.
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“Thirty per cent of young new Canadians, aged 18-34, and nearly a quarter of university-educated newcomers, say they are likely to leave Canada in the next two years.”
And we’re still debating whether fourplexes should be permitted in our neighbourhoods.
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