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A comment on Toronto swaps Google-backed, not-so-smart city plans for people-centred vision. Parent comment

Re:Toronto swaps Google-backed, not-so-smart city plans for ... by dsomers on Saturday March 13, 2021 @02:58PM (#26449450)
Condos built in Toronto are mostly terrible for anyone that’s not single. They’re basically Airbnb speculation boxes in the sky. The city suffers badly from “the missing middle“ problem because of bad zoning. It’s a big part of why I moved away after living there 8 years.
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Re:Toronto swaps Google-backed, not-so-smart city plans for ... by astrange on Saturday March 13, 2021 @04:46PM (#26450297)
Speculation up in the sky isn't really a problem since a) it's a tax base b) it's not hurting you since it doesn't take up land c) a condo is strictly cheaper than a house on the same land.

If housing is expensive it's because there aren't enough houses or the land is too expensive, and it's true that much of this is due to zoning and similar restrictions like parking minimums.

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Re:Toronto swaps Google-backed, not-so-smart city plans for ... by dsomers on Saturday March 13, 2021 @05:01PM (#26450442)
It is hurting families because mostly only small 1 bedroom apartments get built which are more attractive to Airbnb investors. However zoning is probably the biggest problem, yes. Far too much of the city is zoned for single family housing.
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