News, Events & Comments

From the Saint condos at Church and Lombard to the Social condos at Church and Dundas, the Fleur at Shuter and Dalhousie and the Portland Commons at Portland and Front a casual observer might think Toronto real estate developers have suddenly got religion. But no it’s the same industry with nothing affordable available for the rest of us and condos as the main game in town. The titles of these developments actually tell not a change of heart but a craving for new clothing for the old motivation: profit. Gone from the language is much of the competitive luxury loving individualism of past years as developers like Menkes, Pemberton and Wolfecorp seek a more folksy, or, as they would say “urban” feel for their projects. Urban in 2021Toronto means unaffordable for most and squeezing of the Toronto footprint for fewer and fewer of the local population. What is going on as the world passes on from the reality TV period of louder is better right-wing populism is credit appropriation. The change of language hints at a change of culture, yes, but revolutionary it aint. Time to build affordable housing for the people. Now there’s a cultural revolution we need. Oh yes, one of these photos photo above is of Vancouver (no prize for guessing which) because the urban housing unaffordability disease resulting from neoliberalism extends from east to west and back across Canada. And beyond...