Civic Engagement
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City Primer — Part 6: Why Civic Literacy Matters
Most people do not spend much time thinking about municipal government. They think about finding housing, getting to work, walking their children to...
By Erick Villagomez -
City Primer — Part 5: Why Municipal Politics Feels So Broken
A public hearing runs late into the evening. Dozens of residents take turns speaking. Some support the proposal. Others oppose it. City staff present...
By Erick Villagomez -
City Primer — Part 4: Why Cities Are Always Short of Money
Many residents assume cities operate financially in roughly the same way as provincial or federal governments. They don’t. Municipal governments are...
By Erick Villagomez -
City Primer — Part 3: Why Housing Dominates Municipal Politics
It’s possible to attend a Vancouver City Council meeting and come away with the impression that municipal government exists almost entirely to debate...
By Erick Villagomez -
City Primer — Part 1 – What Is Municipal Government?
EDITOR’S NOTE: Vancouver is in the midst of profound urban change. Housing costs, population growth, transportation investments, climate adaptation...
By Erick Villagomez -
UCS #103: Vancouver Villages Plan
See our Launch and Introduction about the launch of the © Urban Cartoon Syndicate and the announcement by CityHallWatch. *** Related Readings: Villages...
By Urban Cartoon Syndicate -
Vancouver’s Villages Debate in Plain English
If you’ve heard people talking about Vancouver’s proposed Villages Plan and wondered what all the fuss is about, you’re not alone. The...
By Erick Villagomez -
a red rectangle of our urban density hinge-mounted like a stamp
nights, bearings, routes
By Derek DeLand -
The Big Brutal Breakfast
Architecture and Design Film Festival 2025 hits Toronto, Nov. 12-15, Mumbai, Jan. 8-11, Chicago, Feb. 18-21. It features The Big Brutal Quiz, a...
By Derek DeLand -
The Singapore Chronicles: Divergent Models
The city, we’re often told, is a model—something to be learned from, exported, improved. But what happens when models conflict? What if the city itself...
By Erick Villagomez -
The Singapore Chronicles: Designing for Urban Health
In the closing days of our field school, we sat around a modest table in a conference room overlooking the city skyline. It was our final debrief, and the...
By Erick Villagomez -
The Governance Gap
In 2024, Ontario Premier Doug Ford ordered the removal of bike lanes from some of Toronto’s busiest corridors—Bloor, University, and Yonge—claiming they...
By Erick Villagomez