Everything Urban

My unedited conclusion to this podcast. 

Unedited. So long as I get credit you may have this idea. Hire me as well.

Unedited. Cities need to make homes for people of all career backgrounds.

Unedited. What happens when several generations in a row don't learn basic economics in school? Regulations in opposition to Airbnb.

Unedited. Railyards in cities? C'mon already, get a divorce lawyer.

Unedited. Kids raised in cities are more resilient, independent, happier, and more empowered then kids raised elsewhere, at least according to me.

Unedited. I cannot even think of a defense of suburbs. They are just across the board bad.

Unedited. Can we please stop dictating minimum housing standards that the poor cannot afford?

Unedited. Amenities in apartment buildings are awesome on many levels.

Unedited. Having been on all sides of this fight, I have come down strongly in favor of renting.

Unedited. Sorry supply and demand skeptics but empty apartments are the friend of renters that we should aim towards not punish.

Unedited. Historic districts are stupid, period, end of story. 

Unedited. Free enterprise is what allows such an awesome diversity of experience in cities including food choices. We should embrace capitalism not run from it.

Unedited. America is going broke from trying to sustain suburbs. Let's stop. If they can't stand on their own without subsidies then they should not exist. 

Unedited. Getting from point A to Point B is important but the hegomony of the car fulfilling that task is what makes America broke, unhealthy, and unhappy. So let's stop bending at the knee to automobiles. 

Unedited. Camping does not have to look the way it does in America with large SUVs, boxes of camping gear and poor sleep. Here is a better model with a free of charge rant about tent camping. 

Unedited. Big houses are compensating for small imaginations. They are lazy and depressing. 

Unedited. Sunlight is nice but not a right guaranteed in the Constitution. 

Unedited. The unpleasent sounds of cities come from suburbs, lets regulate that. Cities should be for city lovers not car lovers.

Unedited. Tenant Right Groups tend to represent asthetic justice, making people feel good about change but lack any evidence of actually helping renters more broadly, and more often then not harm renters.

Unedited. Love them, hate them, but skyscrapers are a solution to several problems and the problems don't go away if you limit height of construction.

Unedited. Some see out of state investors as undesirable, I see it as doing something right.

Voting is democratic, markets are democratic, public participation is autocracy of the priveledged. Here is my unedited take down of public participation in real estate markets.

This unedited short episode makes the case for thinking of housing more as a commodity and less like a craft good sold at boutique prices.

I am bringing a conclusion to this podcast. This unedited recording is my reason why and also represents the beginning of my final series. 

Movements and organizations are as much the defining principle as the people within the respective movements. To that end both YIMBY and NIMBY may be bankrupt ideas. But maybe not. Listen to hear our take on the debate.

Although not in the Bill of Rights many people argue that housing should be a human right. Should it and what would that look like? Should every minimum wage earning 18 year old be entitled to a private apartment? Join Roger Valdez and I as we explore the question.

Guests on this episode include Andrea Suarez and Kevin Dahlgren from We Heart Seattle. As a few select cities, like Portland and Seattle take the official approach to homelessness of disruption and discomfort as being cruel, a small movement is growing out of We Heart Seattle that believes in a more active and engaged approach. Their work is more in-line with the rest of the Western world and is without a doubt more compassionate to homeless. Here how they do it, the challenges they face, and why it is so important. Visit their website here Rational In Portland episode

I think homeownership is a scam. You may disagree but subsidizing is definetly a scam played on taxpayers. Join Roger and I as we discuss this hot topic. Watch this Economist to see a further explaination as to why it is a bad idea.

Join my new co-host Roger Valdez and I as we discuss the topic that is gaining new traction thanks to a book by Nolan Gray titled Abritrary Lines: How Zoning Broke the American City and How to Fix It. Whatever the origins of zoning are and no matter how outdates those ideas are, zoning persists, and Cities are all the worst for it.

*Audio issues plauged me this episode, sorry to listeners and my guests. Join Destiny Collins and Ernest Brown to discuss some of the challanges housing advocates face in Atlanta while learning a little about the City. Discover the same wall blocking progress that face other cities when you leanr about neighborhood groups. Learn more at Abundant Housing Atlanta, Yimby Action Atlanta

This episode is a brief discussion with guest Wesley Tam about the many advantages the urban form has over other built environments in being sustainable.  Email Wesley at wesley.tam@berkeley.edu Email Urban Environmentalism at info@urbanenvironmentalists.org Check out their website here Paul Krugman Opinion piece is here

I am doing something different in this episode. Inspired by my friends podcast, I wanted to take you on a hike through Lakeview in Chicago. To join me virtually start here.   

Part 1 of a three part interview with Philippe Belanger. This sprawling conversation touches on some of the crazy in how we think about finance, land use, and real estate.

American cities still have highly polluting industry located in highly valuable land better used for other purposes. Modern land use patterns left to true market forces would leave dense cities some of the cleanest in terms of air pollution. Yet they are not. Join guest Greg Bourget and I as we discuss air pollution in Portland, a city that mirrors most US cities. http://portlandcleanair.org greg@portlandcleanair.org Disclosure: I am currently a board member for Portland Clean Air and Greg worked on my campaign for City Council as Campaign Director.

Join Nicoai Kruger and I as we vent about stupid regulations seeking to improve subjective ideas of design. In other words, complain about people who want their unneeded opinion on appearance heard. Original 5 MLK designs Final 5 MLK design Safeway's endless process Nicolai's Studio

How many articles need to be written and policies changed for the problem of evictions when they often represent less than 1% of renters? Join my guest Margot Black and I as we debate different sides of this topic. Data on evictions. Japan's housing solution. Germany's housing solution. Reach out to Margot at margot@mbradicalstrategies.com

Join guest Leon Porter and me as we explore the insanity that is housing occupancy laws.  Michael Anderson article Spare bedroom data Group Living proposal

Join Housing advocate Roger Valdez and I as we discuss the inconvenient truth of housing and real estate markets. No matter what side of the political spectrum there will be something here for you to hate but the truth isn's always nice. Roger's Organization Rogers Blog 

In this episode Tim will briefly introduce listeners to the purpose of this show, himself, and what to expect moving forward. 

Public policy has everything wrong regarding building setbacks. My guest Lucy Wallwork and I discuss why. Lucy's blog: https://exclusive.multibriefs.com/author/lucy-wallwork Andrew Price article: https://www.strongtowns.org/journal/2017/10/23/the-problem-with-setbacks