carastern.bsky.social
Journalist
Obsessed with housing and the ongoing disappearance of the middle class.
Co-host for the Missing Middle podcast with Mike Moffatt
Former producer for The Agenda with Steve Paikin on TVO
64 posts
3,751 followers
169 following
Regular Contributor
Active Commenter
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Thank you!
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The New Year's Mail Bag episode is up! Tune in to hear @MikePMoffatt, @carastern & I answer viewer questions that were collected throughout the year. Thank you to our *amazing* audience, you sent us some really thoughtful ones, it's been so much fun going through them all!
youtu.be/8GcwswauU3Q
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And the solution doesn't have to be US-style healthcare. It could be investing in more capacity, and getting enough hospital staff to match our population growth.
What a brutal, terrifying story.
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When I produced for @tvotoday.bsky.social, she was one of the guests I liked to book most on housing because she understood it firsthand as a middle-class millennial...but I also felt like she could be a proxy for my frustrations, so it feels so natural to have her fill in!
Can't wait to watch!
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We talk about the problems with the GST holiday and the proposed bribe cheques this week on the Missing Middle podcast. Please listen and subscribe!
youtu.be/ZdK7y-0ledE?...
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I read that as 72% of Canadians need to listen to @mikepmoffatt.bsky.social explaining how much those cheques will actually cost them!
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I don’t want a $250 cheque I just want to afford a 500 sqft one bedroom
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I guess a vibecession is where young ppl are struggling to live but seniors are still thriving
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It is a great question, but we've watched municipalities fail for so long on housing. Doug Ford is proving with Bill 212 that he doesn't care about what municipalities want if he thinks it's for the greater good. So he ought to do that here.
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I mean seeing the finance minister Chrystia Freeland say that feels like gaslighting and ignoring people's reality, not your work. :)
I'm not even talking about low-modest incomes. Even people making decent-high incomes but without assets are struggling right now for real, not as a perception.
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I know economic indicators show things are improving but I also know how terrible the job market is for people trying to improve their lives, and housing costs haven't come down. For those who don't already have, those economic indicators seem meaningless and the "vibes" comment seems gaslighty.
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Is it so much a perception that costs continue to rise, or that achieving the normal lifestyle one expects in Canada (being able to afford a home, have kids, etc) is out of reach?
I know there are people who are richer than they think but a lot of younger Canadians are struggling. It isn't vibes.
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I don't think people realize how terrible Ontario's policies are right now for people who don't already own high-value assets like houses, and how much is due to the provincial government specifically.
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Ah yes, "cyclists should just take the roads that run parallel to the main arteries"
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They're talking in this case about making all future workers use a defined contribution pension plan, while current workers have a defined benefits plan.
So admirable to see workers stand up against the change (among other issues) even though they're paying for it in lost income right now.
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Such a good find by those parents.
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That's basically every vote. He's always the one dissenting voice, no matter how popular the motion is.
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In summary, Ford's bike lane removals will, according to a new City Hall report:
- Cost $75 million in direct costs and sunk costs.
- Make traffic much, much worse for at least nine months during construction to remove lanes
- Have minimal long-term impact on car travel times.
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Report says removing bike lanes on Bloor would mean 4 months with only one open vehicle lane in each direction, 4 months with only one vehicle lane in one direction, and a month-long intersection closure at St. George.
Southbound University Ave would be one lane for 9 months.
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The report also says travel times would get WORSE for drivers during the construction work necessary to remove the bike lanes. Long-term, staff project "likely minimal improvements in travel time" for drivers once lanes are removed.
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I came up with so many Taylor Swift lyrics to incorporate and it took everything I had not to run with them. Probably should've though 😂