UW prof with a moderate following

Burner account for folks trying to build a more progressive Waterloo. H/T to Dan Brotherston for the comment that inspired the screen name.

[UW prof with a moderate following @watpoli]

As @KarenCoviello said recently, "the disconnect between this body of local government & its citizens is bigger than ever"

Well, we intend to conduct credible local opinion polling to find out.

What issues/polling methods would best test this theory?

1/

[UW prof with a moderate following @watpoli]

@cd_klein The hammer!

This could have been very popular and effective legislation.

Instead we're getting bogged down in Greenbelt and council mechanics.

[UW prof with a moderate following @watpoli]

This is a great point.

NIMBY mobs have distorted local decision making for decades, cheered on by cities obsessed with 'public engagement.'

The surprise isn't that someone is taking a hammer to this system, it's how poorly it's being used so far.

[UW prof with a moderate following @watpoli]

This is a great slate to vote for in Waterloo.

Chantal is a breath of fresh air, and Jim is steady as she goes in a good way.

[Karen Coviello 🌻 (she/her) @KarenCoviello]

@BecLizWag @robdeutschmann @WR_Record The most engaged Regional Council (W) candidates are @JimErbWaterloo and @ChantalHuinink - unless something really exciting happens this week, they have my votes. (They are also great candidates!)

[UW prof with a moderate following @watpoli]

A friendly reminder that our universities have outsized influence over local politics, and it doesn't always turn out great.

[Mike Boos (he/him) @mikeboos]

@Sean_YYZ It's disastrous for wayfinding, though perhaps not as boneheaded as making a bunch of ION stops mid-block (making efficient cross-corridor bus connections impossible) so WLU could have its "own" stop (800 m from their main campus...)

[UW prof with a moderate following @watpoli]

@mikeboos @farwell_WR @ajreinhart @TenilleUptown @OuthitRecord @PenderRecord @GoereeReport This is perfect. Mike Farwell: the human version of the Facebook algorithm.

You will feel dumber and ashamed for having engaged but it's just too tempting!

[UW prof with a moderate following @watpoli]

Not sure I've ever heard anyone so contrite on their voting record prior to an election.

This says more about Freeman as an increasingly unhinged politician than it does about speed limit signage.

[Mike Farwell @farwell_WR]

“I totally regret that I made that vote. I’m totally having buyer’s remorse ... I know nobody’s going to drive 30.” https://t.co/bWF5x2IMdc

[UW prof with a moderate following @watpoli]

That sound you hear is provincial politicians fuelling up their steam rollers to flatten local control of housing policy.

[Rob Shaw @RobShaw_BC]

NDP leadership candidate @Dave_Eby has dropped his housing platform.
It’s huge, and represents one of the most sweeping shifts in BC housing policy I’ve seen.
Among the highlights...

[HousingNowTO @HousingNowTO]

"The entire political system, including the office of mayor, incentivizes preserving the status quo, not embracing change..." - @mattgurney on the political allure of #NIMBY-ism in #TOPoli

https://t.co/QqiguSTgnw

[UW prof with a moderate following @watpoli]

@DorothyMcCabe @TricksyRaccoon @Weber4Waterloo That's the challenge with this policy.

If you're in a race to prevent avoidable heat deaths you need something faster and cheaper than geothermal/heat pumps.

A voucher scheme for in-room AC units is likely something a municipality could do.

[UW prof with a moderate following @watpoli]

Mandated maximum temperatures in rental units are coming, whether landlords will like it or not.

Where are our local mayoral candidates on this?

@DorothyMcCabe @Weber4Waterloo

[Gil Penalosa @Penalosa_G]

For too long City Hall has left half a million renters without air conditioning to roast inside their apartments. Climate change is here: we MUST protect tenants from the impacts of heat inside their homes! Read my statement: https://t.co/r13tbm8gbZ #Gil4Mayor #Toronto4Everyone

[UW prof with a moderate following @watpoli]

This is a damn impressive effort to get the Region on board with a community-led development process.

These things usually fail because governments don't want to give up control, but this puts pressure on them to compromise.

[UW prof with a moderate following @watpoli]

Waterloo's decision to go to 30km/h on all local roads looking better by the day

[Luke’s making the migration @_LukeBradley]

In Toronto, a reduction in the posted speed limit from 40km/hr to 30km/hr on select residential streets resulted in a 27% decrease in pedestrian collisions, and 67% decrease in pedestrian fatalities/serious injuries.

https://t.co/8fBBrH5TRw

[UW prof with a moderate following @watpoli]

So while it seems like lots of uses are being considered for the site, the reality is likely 'what will the market support?'

Unless there's a surprise like Kitchener buying out the Region (!) my guess is this ends in disappointment for many.

[UW prof with a moderate following @watpoli]

Another day, another bad engagement process.

The region says right on Engage WR it wants to sell to a developer.

Sure, they can heavily condition the terms of sale but this doesn't seem to be heading down the community path local progressives want.

[CBC KW @CBCKW891]

Region of Waterloo staff say the former Charles Street transit terminal in Kitchener will be redeveloped for multiple uses and that includes to bring more affordable housing to the downtown core.

https://t.co/qRiGZvT12b

[UW prof with a moderate following @watpoli]

Land in DTK was approaching $20M/acre last year. This is 3 acres!

How much sale revenue is the Region will to give up if it prescribes community usage of the site?

Inflation is going to cause all manner of budgetary headaches, so my guess is: not much.

[Michael Druker 💙💛 @m_druker]

I have to say I’ve been surprised by the effectiveness of these. Not every driver stops, but by this point it seems most do, at least in my experience

[Mike Boos (he/him) @mikeboos]

And the office he's running for is...?

[Steve Lafleur @Steve_Lafleur]

Like I said in my column yesterday: we have tough decisions to make. We're not going to build 3.5 million houses in 9 years without some inconveniences (and, frankly, a giant all hands on deck push). We can't privilege people's gardens over homes any longer.

[UW prof with a moderate following @watpoli]

This paragraph is terrifying.

There's going to be a hell of a political price to pay for freezing people out of the housing market permanently.

Pierre Polievre is just the tip of the iceberg.

[UW prof with a moderate following @watpoli]

There's real cross-ideological alignment on taking planning authority away from local governments in Ontario.

Toronto is a brutal example, but resistance to building is similar across the province.

I don't see municipal leaders saving it before the hammer eventually comes down.

[The Hub @TheHubCanada]

.@Steve_Lafleur: Ontario needs more housing—but where?

https://t.co/D7O3lrmkg8