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Waterloo Region Yes In My Backyard @wryimby.bsky.social · 26/05/2026

@ericlombardi.ca, founder More Neighbours Toronto and current candidate for Ontario Party leadership is joining us as a special guest at our 7pm meeting this Thursday!– dm us or rsvp below for the online link. www.meetup.com/waterloo-reg...

meetup.com

Special Guest Eric Lombardi , Thu, May 28, 2026, 7:00 PM | Meetup

Our May 28th Waterloo Region Yes in My Backyard meeting will have a special guest: Eric Lombardi. Eric founded More Neighbours Toronto and is running for Ontario Liberal Le

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Eric Lombardi (EricForOLP.ca) @ericlombardi.ca · 25/05/2026

This week! I'll be at Toronto Tech Week, speaking on Education in the Age of AI, at the Digital Asset Summit, and on housing with @wryimby.bsky.social. Or, you can catch me in Oakville and Georgetown. Looking forward to seeing everyone! Details and RSVP: luma.com/ericforolp

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Michael Druker 🇨🇦 @mdruker.app · 25/04/2026

Jane’s Walks are next weekend! @philmarfisi.bsky.social and I are gonna reprise my Northdale walk from last year. Come with us to look at what some* are calling the most interesting urban transformation in the country. janeswalkwr.com *me

From Bungalows to Urban Mid-rise in Northdale. Sunday May 3, 2 to 3:30pm, meeting at Veterans Green in Waterloo.

Photo shows old low rise houses with nearby new mid-rise residential.

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M. Nolan Gray 🥑 @mnolangray.bsky.social · 18/03/2026

New research from Pew quantifies the extent of the success of YIMBYism in Austin: after a huge run up in prices over the 2010s, the city dramatically liberalized and kicked off a building boom. Now rents are falling. www.pew.org/en/research-...

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Phil @philmarfisi.bsky.social · 08/02/2026

Thank you @mikeschreiner.bsky.social and the GPO for coming and hanging out with @wryimby.bsky.social to talk missing middle housing. The GPO has consistently been the leading progressive voice in Ontario for legalizing and building more affordable housing and we're thankful for their advocacy!

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Nathan Lauster @lausterna.bsky.social · 03/02/2026

Are "pre-rebuttals" a thing, like "pre-zonings"? If so, here's a pre-rebuttal from @jensvb.bsky.social and I to the latest argument that supply doesn't matter (from CCPA, sigh). The Key: Doubling up is the demographic indicator demonstrating our shortage. homefreesociology.com/2025/07/06/h...

homefreesociology.com

Housing is a Housing Problem

Co-authored by Jens von Bergmann and cross-posted at MountainMath. The main housing problem in Canada is that there is not enough of it. We can see this by looking at prices and rents, but also by …

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Waterloo Region Yes In My Backyard @wryimby.bsky.social · 06/02/2026

Congrats to Cambridge (South Galt) resident Ibrahim Tahir on his first delegation! He made a thoughtful (and nuanced) case for more housing that will hopefully be enabled by Cambridge passing the form-based zoning bylaw. youtu.be/Cjh0JLVD1Yg?... 1/5

youtu.be

Council Meeting - February 3, 2026

YouTube video by City of Cambridge

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Jacob Loo Dawang @jacobdawang.com · 14/01/2026

Thanks to @theglobeandmail.com for featuring Edmonton and my data! The magic of density is amazing in just how many homes can be built with few properties. #yeg #yegcc www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/edit...

On the first point, Edmonton shows that a lot of housing can be added without directly affecting very many properties. Here we are indebted to housing advocate Jacob Dawang, whose data crunching revealed how few Edmonton properties needed to become multiplexes to create many homes.

Mr. Dawang shows that of approximately 80,000 residential properties in Edmonton's established neighbourhoods, 310 were issued multiplex permits. These developments would total about 2,300 homes. The City of Edmonton confirmed these figures.

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Phil @philmarfisi.bsky.social · 09/01/2026

Kitchener's heritage committee has decided to investigate preservation protections for a parking garage. What are some of its highlights outside of its "advanced concrete engineering", you ask? "A report on the garage also notes... it was used in the filming of an Audi car commercial in 2008."

therecord.com

Kitchener’s spiral garage: Heritage gem or Brutalist eyesore?

Is a distinctive Kitchener parking garage with a spiralling ramp a heritage gem or a Brutalist eyesore?

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Melissa Bowman @dtkmelissa.bsky.social · 29/12/2025

"Under the proposed bylaw, more housing would be permitted as of right, meaning fewer developments would require zoning amendments, public meetings or council votes." Yes to this! #CambCouncil

Text: “Our current system is complex, restrictive and a barrier to housing,” Cooper said, explaining that most residential properties currently only allow single detached homes unless the owner can afford costly planning applications.

A new approach would help small property owners and non-profits, not just large developers, Cooper noted.

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Melissa Bowman @dtkmelissa.bsky.social · 08/12/2025

"Heritage Conservation Districts are powerful planning tools that must be applied selectively. When used across a large and evolving urban area, they can unintentionally discourage reinvestment, add regulatory burden, and limit the kind of redevelopment a downtown needs to remain vibrant."

mailchi.mp

Serious Concerns Regarding Proposed Galt Core Heritage Conservation District

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Waterloo Region Yes In My Backyard @wryimby.bsky.social · 06/12/2025

We support this petition for the Region of Waterloo to adopt a Public Camping Bylaw that would allow for multiple encampment sites for unsheltered people. For more legitimacy: Expand the signature box to include a postal code. Click on it. Add a valid postal code 1/4 www.change.org/p/demand-wat...

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Stan Oklobdzija @stano.bsky.social · 28/11/2025

New housing lowers rents.

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Melissa Bowman @dtkmelissa.bsky.social · 27/11/2025

Why? Why do we do this to ourselves? This just feels like a waste of everybody's time. Why on earth do we think we need neighbours to weigh in on this?! Just build it already. www.therecord.com/news/waterlo...

Text: Residents had their first chance to weigh in on a proposal to replace a fire-damaged Kitchener duplex with a new four-unit building.

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Waterloo Region Yes In My Backyard @wryimby.bsky.social · 25/11/2025

Very much looking forward to this talk in DTK tonight at 6 with some excellent co-panelists. We'll be talking about Social Development Goals (no poverty or hunger). I'll talk about how addressing our high housing costs is necessary to end poverty.-- Martin events.sdgideafactory.ca/default/Deta...

events.sdgideafactory.ca

SDG Talks: No Poverty & Zero Hunger

Tuesday, November 25, 2025 5:30 pm - 7:30 pm How can we build a future where no one is left behind? Join us for a powerful evening exploring the goals of SDG 1 (No Poverty) and SDG 2 (Zero Hunger). ...

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Jens von Bergmann @jensvb.bsky.social · 22/11/2025

Idle thought, we all understand that dense urban infill improves the net lifecycle balance of infrastructure costs. So why do we charge high development fees on this kind of infill?

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Navneet Alang @navneetalang.com · 21/11/2025

For the Star, I make the case for the condo/apartment as aspirational -- that the Canadian dream can also be an apartment in a dense neighbourhood and not, as is so often the case in this country, be taken to only ever mean a detached house. www.thestar.com/opinion/star...

thestar.com

Navneet Alang: Condos get a bad rap. Here’s why they should be part of the Canadian dream

My parents bought their first home for 11,000 pounds (approximately $20,000) in 1974. It was an ordinary small row house on a dour street in East London. Now, more than

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Phil @philmarfisi.bsky.social · 22/11/2025

Fantastic piece that avoids naivete while offering a needed defense of condo living in the national discourse. The preening condescencion from comfortably housed progressives in Canada about "shoebox" living is often insuffocating, and presumptuous about the choices they think people should make.

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Michael Druker 🇨🇦 @mdruker.app · 15/11/2025

Despite planning dogma, “stable residential neighbourhoods” aren’t

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Andrew @andrewjd.bsky.social · 14/11/2025

Yesterday I sat for a lecture by 3 folks from ReHousing. Hosted by UofT's school of Arch, they detailed the history of change in Toronto, how post-war suburbs rubber-stamped neighbourhoods as repetitive as a 100 floor condo does today, horizontally, & how for half a century we've seen near no change

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Waterloo Region Yes In My Backyard @wryimby.bsky.social · 14/11/2025

Kitchener's Draft Official Plan is up for you to comment on! www.engagewr.ca/kitchener2051 For background, we made some preliminary comments on what we would like to see in an Official Plan- back in February last year- static1.squarespace.com/static/5f6b5...

engagewr.ca

Kitchener 2051

Help write Kitchener's new Official Plan. Share your voice. Shape our city.

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Melissa Bowman @dtkmelissa.bsky.social · 11/11/2025

"The convenience and choices cars provide can’t be denied, but cars also take priority over people all the time. We’ve structured our entire approach to housing around the needs of cars. In many cases, if a development can’t accommodate enough parking spaces, it can’t be built at all." -Philip Mills

therecord.com

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Waterloo Region Yes In My Backyard @wryimby.bsky.social · 11/11/2025

Anyone concerned with encampment evictions in Cambridge and the lack of shelter space (despite denials) should follow @reganbrusse.bsky.social's work here: www.mymothernamedmesunshine.ca?fbclid=IwY2x...

mymothernamedmesunshine.ca

Welcome!

Where our Federal and Provincial aids hold gaps, we must persist. Where our local government needs time to change, we must loudly be patient. Loudly, so they feel our support for change. Loudly so th...

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Phil @philmarfisi.bsky.social · 08/11/2025

For real though, the stage 3 Waterloo route would connect the 4 largest growth areas outside Uptown. The only thing is it would be ludicrous to not rezone the Boardwalk for mixed use, because it's actually the perfect candidate for retrofitting sprawl* *it's ludicrous we haven't done it yet period

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Waterloo Region Yes In My Backyard @wryimby.bsky.social · 02/11/2025

We'll be discussing @cwhitzman.bsky.social's book Home Truths on November 23rd, 2pm, downtown Kitchener. DM us for the address if you'd like to join this book club!

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Waterloo Region Yes In My Backyard @wryimby.bsky.social · 02/11/2025

With the federal budget introduced on November 4, it’s worth highlighting the opportunity Canada has to significantly increase its social housing stock through Build Canada Homes. This can help us end homelessness. 1/5

static1.squarespace.com

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Open New York @opennewyork.org · 30/10/2025

New housing stops landlords from raising rents—take it from the CEO of AvalonBay, one of NYC's largest landlords: "We're well-positioned… we face significantly less new supply. Land entitled for multifamily is hard to come by, the amount of time it takes to get those entitlements… sets us up well.”

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Melissa Bowman @dtkmelissa.bsky.social · 30/10/2025

PSA: Stacked townhomes, rowhouses, apartments, and yes, even 'towers' are RESIDENTIAL. #HousingForAll

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Waterloo Region Yes In My Backyard @wryimby.bsky.social · 27/10/2025

We've seen opposition to immigration due to housing affordability, and it's important to push back as housing advocates ourselves- immigration is an important source of broader opportunity in an unequal world. We can't be for removing barriers to housing while pushing for + barriers to citizenship

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Waterloo Region Yes In My Backyard @wryimby.bsky.social · 27/10/2025

WR YIMBY is very concerned with the federal government’s Bill C-2 and the replacement Bill C-12, because each bill includes troubling measures that would limit migrant rights, including their right to claim asylum. We urge the federal government to rescind these bills @mark-carney.bsky.social 1/6

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And, boo! 👻 @g026r.leftblank.org · 15/10/2025

The thing about "gentle density" is that it's never gentle enough.

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Melissa Bowman @dtkmelissa.bsky.social · 11/10/2025

I actually think there is value in considering which properties/areas should be 'protected' in some way, however, this article fails to mention some of the trade-offs that might come with the mass heritage protections that are proposed. www.therecord.com/news/waterlo...

https://www.therecord.com/news/waterloo-region/329-hespeler-properties-in-line-for-special-heritage-status/article_bbaa20f7-0337-53d8-b3e6-f7fd1a1d48ab.html

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Phil @philmarfisi.bsky.social · 11/10/2025

"Whatever was meant, the othering of future neighbours was not persuasive to Council then, and it shouldn’t be now." Beyond the policy aspects, Don Iveson really hits at the most key ingredient for housing change: city councils with the moral imagination to brave opposition for a better city.

open.substack.com

The big picture on housing, density and affordability

How Edmonton's approach fights for affordability and fiscal efficiency

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Tri-Cities Transport Action Group @tritag.ca · 28/09/2025

On brand for us: all four of our volunteers came by bike (one of them even did a multi-modal bike-bus-bike trip!)

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Waterloo Region Yes In My Backyard @wryimby.bsky.social · 28/09/2025

Happening in half an hour- until 6pm!- Waterloo Region Climate Fest at Gaukel Block! Perfect timing to reshare this: “Households in denser neighborhoods close to city centers tend to be responsible for fewer planet-warming greenhouse gases, on average” 1/2 www.nytimes.com/interactive/...

nytimes.com

The Climate Impact of Your Neighborhood, Mapped (Published 2022)

Where and how you live shapes your household’s contribution to climate change. Explore differences across the nation.

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Ned Resnikoff @resnikoff.bsky.social · 26/09/2025

Whenever people talk about "luxury housing," I remember there are literal mansions in Hartford, CT that are now selling for less than it costs to buy a starter home in Silicon Valley. If we judge luxury by market value, there is no housing that is intrinsically, permanently "luxury housing."

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Waterloo Region Yes In My Backyard @wryimby.bsky.social · 27/09/2025

Interested in learning more about ending exclusionary zoning and scaling up non-market housing? Worth registering for the recording later even if you can't make it noon PT, 3 EST on October 1:

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Mike Doherty 🇨🇦 🏳️‍🌈 @mikedoherty.ca · 27/09/2025

"Growth should pay for growth" is a political choice to socialize the benefits of immigration while privatizing its infrastructure costs onto younger cohorts, insulating established homeowners and corporations from financial responsibility open.substack.com/pub/missingm...

open.substack.com

The Policy Sleight of Hand Behind “Growth Should Pay for Growth”

Houses don't use libraries, people do

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Waterloo Region Yes In My Backyard @wryimby.bsky.social · 27/09/2025

@jensvb.bsky.social; @tomdavidoff.bsky.social; @lausterna.bsky.social and Tsur Somerville find that expediting permitting processes and reduced parking mandates were crucial components determining the success of BC upzonings:

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Oh The Urbanity! @ohtheurbanity.bsky.social · 25/09/2025

Limiting housing supply below demand makes a neighbourhood/city more exclusive. Who gets excluded? It’s not the people on top of the income spectrum. They can live where they want.

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Melissa Bowman @dtkmelissa.bsky.social · 24/09/2025

Exactly this. "It doesn’t matter if there’s room for people to live; if there’s no space for cars, people don’t get to move in. We don’t ask, “Is this a good place for someone to live?” We ask, “Where will the cars go?” -Philip Mills www.therecord.com/opinion/cont...

therecord.com

Who are homes for?

Waterloo Region faces a housing crisis as prices have far surpassed incomes, making homeownership unattainable for many despite hard work and saving. Philip Mills says the old idea that hard work alon...

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Melissa Bowman @dtkmelissa.bsky.social · 24/09/2025

Residents complaining that nobody wants to live in characterless glass boxes in the sky while also actively working to make those homes less livable is really something. www.therecord.com/news/waterlo...

Text: An offer from the applicant to prohibit balconies on the back of the building (facing the residential neighbourhood) and to limit windows to 15 per cent of the total rear façade as a means of addressing some of the privacy concerns was accepted by the tribunal and included in the new zoning bylaw amendment.

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Office of the Federal Housing Advocate @housinglogement.bsky.social · 23/09/2025

I understand that today's @cambridge.ca council meeting will be debating a motion to study the impact of evictions of encampments during extreme weather events. This is the type of study that will help council make informed decisions to protect people and uphold their fundamental #HumanRights. –MJH

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Office of the Federal Housing Advocate @housinglogement.bsky.social · 23/09/2025

Yesterday, I visited #Cambridge and #Kitchener, Ontario. I heard about the challenges experienced by people living in #encampments and organizations that support them.

The Federal Housing Advocate meeting with advocates, service providers, and encampment residents

A community whiteboard with a drawing that says "Housing is a human right!"

Photo of the 100 Victoria Street encampment in Kitchener

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Carolyn Whitzman @cwhitzman.bsky.social · 15/09/2025

The approach - govt land for nonmarket hsg, definition of affordability, designated funds to address homelessness thru supportive hsg, including acquisition of apts, supporting construction innovation - is right. Now we need targets, timelines, action. www.theglobeandmail.com/politics/art...

theglobeandmail.com

Carney allots $13-billion to build affordable housing under Build Canada Homes

Ana Bailão, a former Toronto city councillor and mayoral candidate, will lead Build Canada Homes

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Brian M 🇺🇦 @bravado1.bsky.social · 19/09/2025

There’s something so deeply cynical about the neighbourhoods with “all are welcome here” and “#lovemyhood” signs being the most opposed to giving that gift of their neighbourhood to anyone else. (As was given to them by previous generations)

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Waterloo Region Yes In My Backyard @wryimby.bsky.social · 19/09/2025

One reason that public housing advocates should oppose NIMBYism in principle - NIMBYism is particularly harsh (see below) for public housing and shelters + it's part of the same trend for market housing (Hat tip to @russilwvong.bsky.social for sharing the graph below in his excellent newsletter) 1/3

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Waterloo Region Yes In My Backyard @wryimby.bsky.social · 19/09/2025

NIMBYism in a nutshell: people support housing (and shelters) but not in THEIR neighbourhood (pg. 8 below): web.uri.edu/harrington/w... 1/2

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