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Not sure why everyone is in a huff over blanket rezoning. If you live in a nice neighbourhood, and the median price is $750K, and your home is in nice condition, it is not financially viable to buy the home, tear it down, then build two infills or a townhome with four units. These newer infills and townhomes are very nice and have their own parking, either in back or underground. That is what people want. If there is a derelict home in your neighbourhood, then maybe that is a better choice. The problem is that these types of residential structures are expensive and do not solve the housing problem for those who cannot afford to buy a home. The City of Calgary should look at what Fredericton, N.B. has done. They created 12 Neighbours Tiny Home Community run by a non-profit to help with the homelessness. They actually came up with a viable solution. I believe they built 91 units and all filled with residents. In addition to helping with homelessness, if they built communities where tiny homes were for sale, the median price would be perhaps a third. Sell out in no time. You have a tiny home, on a foundation with utilities, a small backyard, a little fence, a place to park, good neighbours, and it is yours and has equity. How is this not a way to go? I researched and while tiny homes are available in many styles, there is just nowhere here in Alberta where you could put one on a foundation and call it home. Seems we only want it for cottage country. And if you can afford a cottage, you don’t have a housing problem. So do the blanket zoning, take the federal money, build some tiny home communities.
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DOUGLAS BOUTILIER
(Time to think outside the box?)
Look to the future
We don’t give Justin Trudeau et al enough credit for seeing the future and adjusting to it. The problem being that innovation comes with glitches along the way. Since 2015, look at the hundreds of billions of dollars the Liberals have spent in trying to implement their view of Canada. They must know better than the rest of us given they are the progressive master race and natural leading party. And they do personify that trait to the letter. Hence they have fully morphed into what they so hastily and desperately promoted. They are one! Artificial intelligence personified.
BILL JAMIESON
(It would be comforting if Trudeau’s time as PM could be considered a glitch. But we are paying too high taxes and a skyrocketing debt so it’s really a living nightmare)
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