1257 replies to this topic

[Matt R.]

I think we call it the Tableland mountains in canada, same same. Gros Morne park, quite something to see.

[Mike K.]

Don’t they teach grades 9 and 10 social studies on Salt Spring?

[Matt R.]

I don't follow.  Are you inhaling turtle wax again?

[Mike K.]

Who taught you geography?

[Matt R.]

Oh, I think I get it now.  Yes, the Appalachian mountains stretch that far north. Who taught you geography?

[Mike K.]

Are you high?

You must be high.

[Matt R.]

I'm high on life, Mike.  You know this by now.

[Mike K.]

Maybe I’m high.

Could it be true, Newfoundlanders are also Appalachians? Why hasn’t there been a movie about this yet?

[aastra]

Methinks the ocean in between Newfoundland and the mainland probably threw you off. Pardon me, I mean the Gulf of St. Lawrence.

[G-Man]

Wow I never knew this! Fascinating. 

[G-Man]

The Fogo Islands keeps coming up. The pictures I have seen make it look so amazing. I think it is definitely on the list for next time. 

[Matt R.]

Yes. Make time for a visit to the Inn. We spent a few nights and it was stunning.

[Matt R.]

Are you high?

You must be high.

Are we good? You had me second guessing myself.

[Matt R.]

Maybe I’m high.

Could it be true, Newfoundlanders are also Appalachians? Why hasn’t there been a movie about this yet?

Screen adaptation of Come From Away. Sold!

[Mike K.]

I’d go!

I think a lot can be explained, by what we’ve learned about the Appalachians in Newfoundland. Old Man Randall, if he were still around, would be mightily impressed.

[G-Man]

The second post about my recent trip to Newfoundland is up. Here is St. John's! Have a read and let me know what I missed

https://www.sidewalk...ns-newfoundland

[G-Man]

The latest Sidewalking Victoria article is up. This time I did a collab with Strong Towns Nanaimo on missing middle housing. Have a read of both articles!
https://www.sidewalk...g-towns-nanaimo

[aastra]

 

...the suggestion was to show off some examples of missing middle housing. Often the focus is put on the ‘missing’ aspect, and it can ignore the fact that we may have great examples to use as blueprints already in our cities. That is definitely the case for Victoria.

 

But G-Man, the focus is put on the "missing" aspect because it's the first frickin' word in the branding for this agenda. We're supposed to believe there's a crisis in every city everywhere because those "middle" housing forms are always missing or otherwise severely underrepresented (regardless of any particular city's particular built form, particular development history, particular population density, particular demographic trends, etc.). But if there are countless examples of the supposedly missing forms in a city like Victoria (or any other city), then what does that say about the overall agenda? Something is amiss.

 

As your photos indicate, in Victoria this "middle" is most definitely not missing. In the CoV itself the supposedly "missing" middle forms are actually the predominant forms in many neighbourhoods.

 

For a long time I've suggested Victoria's development crises and controversies could be resolved simply by relaxing and doing the kind of things that Victoria has always done. There's no need to subscribe to a heavy-handed international agenda that raise all kinds of questions re: its actual ultimate purpose. If Victoria's mix of SFDs, small apartments, large apartments, junior highrise buildings, and the odd genuine highrise building has worked all along then why not continue doing it? Why accept the premise that something more severe and sweeping needs to happen?

 

If this agenda gets a head of steam then I'll be very surprised if it doesn't eventually involve the wipe-out of many old houses and small apartment buildings. Sometimes I even find myself regarding old houses through this lens. "That old place would be a beauty if they fixed it up, but they must be letting it go to eventually take advantage of the program."

Remember a few years ago when letting old places slide so they could eventually be replaced was the bread and butter of evil landlords who were aggravating the housing crisis? Now we're flip-flopping and saying that same approach could be a great way to alleviate the housing crisis.

If central neighbourhoods already have a lot of variety and a lot of character because of the variety, then why is our focus on those neighbourhoods?

[aastra]

I'll toss a bone to the sincere supporters of MM and say this: if it makes people more aware of the actual built form of their neighbourhoods, then good. But if it hastens the transformation of those neighbourhoods into a more generic/standardized form that ultimately strips away the remaining traces of local character, then not good.

[aastra]

Also, don't you think the Nanaimo group's examples demonstrate the murkiness of this program? To my eye the housing they're showing is neither missing nor middle. It's just housing, generally. Housing of all types.