Jens von Bergmann
@jensvb.bsky.social
Data, analysis, visualization, #CensusMapper, transportation cyclist.
📍Vancouver, BC
📍Vancouver, BC
Reposted by Jens von Bergmann
Worth noting that because Sim brought forward his proposal for a property tax freeze requiring millions in cuts with just weeks left in the budget process, this is not up for public debate and is not outlined in the documents available to councillors when they vote on this
SCOOP: Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim is planning to eliminate the city's sustainability and climate department under the guise of a push to prevent increases to property taxes in his proposed 2026 budget.
Great source work by Marc Fawcett-Atkinson to uncover this
www.nationalobserver.com/2025/11/11/n...
Great source work by Marc Fawcett-Atkinson to uncover this
www.nationalobserver.com/2025/11/11/n...
Vancouver mayor plans to eliminate city's climate and sustainability department
Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim is planning to eliminate the city's sustainability and climate department under the guise of a push to prevent increases to property taxes. Canada's National Observer learned a...
www.nationalobserver.com
November 11, 2025 at 3:26 AM
Worth noting that because Sim brought forward his proposal for a property tax freeze requiring millions in cuts with just weeks left in the budget process, this is not up for public debate and is not outlined in the documents available to councillors when they vote on this
Still thinking about this part of the conversation, showing a poster by @tomflood.bsky.social next to two by Klaus Staeck that I remember from my childhood.
Lots of parallels between discussions in Germany (and other places in Europe) back then and Canada (and the US) 30 to 40 years later.
Lots of parallels between discussions in Germany (and other places in Europe) back then and Canada (and the US) 30 to 40 years later.
November 11, 2025 at 2:22 AM
Still thinking about this part of the conversation, showing a poster by @tomflood.bsky.social next to two by Klaus Staeck that I remember from my childhood.
Lots of parallels between discussions in Germany (and other places in Europe) back then and Canada (and the US) 30 to 40 years later.
Lots of parallels between discussions in Germany (and other places in Europe) back then and Canada (and the US) 30 to 40 years later.
Late Halloween news, StatCan continues to report long-term declines in paranormal activity in homes across Canada. *
* except in Nunavut
** use with extreme caution, StatCan's paranormal activity detector might have gotten itself caught in an infinite paranormal feedback loop
* except in Nunavut
** use with extreme caution, StatCan's paranormal activity detector might have gotten itself caught in an infinite paranormal feedback loop
November 9, 2025 at 11:30 PM
Late Halloween news, StatCan continues to report long-term declines in paranormal activity in homes across Canada. *
* except in Nunavut
** use with extreme caution, StatCan's paranormal activity detector might have gotten itself caught in an infinite paranormal feedback loop
* except in Nunavut
** use with extreme caution, StatCan's paranormal activity detector might have gotten itself caught in an infinite paranormal feedback loop
Discretionary zoning is a fertility drug for NIMBYs, AI powered automated objection letters just takes this to the logical conclusion.
AI-powered nimbyism could grind UK planning system to a halt, experts warn
Tools that help people scan applications and find grounds for objection have potential to hit government’s housebuilding plans
www.theguardian.com
November 9, 2025 at 5:28 PM
Discretionary zoning is a fertility drug for NIMBYs, AI powered automated objection letters just takes this to the logical conclusion.
Great event put on by @visionzerovancouver.ca
November 9, 2025 at 4:30 AM
Great event put on by @visionzerovancouver.ca
Reposted by Jens von Bergmann
Happy to tour visiting authors & @thewaroncars.bsky.social podcasters @sgoodyear.bsky.social and @brooklynspoke.bsky.social around some key central Vancouver city-building this morning, before their book event with @visionzerovancouver.ca tonight! (some tickets left, apparently)
Great conversation!
Great conversation!
November 8, 2025 at 8:08 PM
Happy to tour visiting authors & @thewaroncars.bsky.social podcasters @sgoodyear.bsky.social and @brooklynspoke.bsky.social around some key central Vancouver city-building this morning, before their book event with @visionzerovancouver.ca tonight! (some tickets left, apparently)
Great conversation!
Great conversation!
Reposted by Jens von Bergmann
Canada's provincial economic accounts came out this week—in 2024, all provinces & Nunavut grew!
Fastest: Nunavut (6.9%), PEI (3.8%), Nova Scotia (3.1%), Alberta (3%), Saskatchewan (3%)
Slowest: Yukon (-2.5%), NW Territories (-0.8%), British Columbia (1.1%), Ontario (1.6%), Manitoba (1.7%)
Fastest: Nunavut (6.9%), PEI (3.8%), Nova Scotia (3.1%), Alberta (3%), Saskatchewan (3%)
Slowest: Yukon (-2.5%), NW Territories (-0.8%), British Columbia (1.1%), Ontario (1.6%), Manitoba (1.7%)
November 8, 2025 at 5:14 PM
Canada's provincial economic accounts came out this week—in 2024, all provinces & Nunavut grew!
Fastest: Nunavut (6.9%), PEI (3.8%), Nova Scotia (3.1%), Alberta (3%), Saskatchewan (3%)
Slowest: Yukon (-2.5%), NW Territories (-0.8%), British Columbia (1.1%), Ontario (1.6%), Manitoba (1.7%)
Fastest: Nunavut (6.9%), PEI (3.8%), Nova Scotia (3.1%), Alberta (3%), Saskatchewan (3%)
Slowest: Yukon (-2.5%), NW Territories (-0.8%), British Columbia (1.1%), Ontario (1.6%), Manitoba (1.7%)
Fun night out at the Jade Music Fest. Still more shows coming up tomorrow.
November 8, 2025 at 7:04 AM
Fun night out at the Jade Music Fest. Still more shows coming up tomorrow.
Reposted by Jens von Bergmann
Thanks to this bussin new #rstats 📦 by @hadley.nz,
you can now yeet rows and vibe_check columns in your data frames, no cap
hadley.github.io/genzplyr/
you can now yeet rows and vibe_check columns in your data frames, no cap
hadley.github.io/genzplyr/
dplyr but make it bussin fr fr no cap
`genzplyr` is an alternative syntax for `dplyr` that replaces boring old function names with GenZ slang. Your data wrangling is about to hit different.
hadley.github.io
November 7, 2025 at 12:20 AM
Thanks to this bussin new #rstats 📦 by @hadley.nz,
you can now yeet rows and vibe_check columns in your data frames, no cap
hadley.github.io/genzplyr/
you can now yeet rows and vibe_check columns in your data frames, no cap
hadley.github.io/genzplyr/
{cancensus} v0.5.10 is now on CRAN. This is a maintenance update focused on some small tweaks and improvements in the documentation.
Access, retrieve, and work with Canadian Census data and geography.
Integrated, convenient, and uniform access to Canadian Census data and geography retrieved using the CensusMapper API. This package produces analysis-ready tidy data frames and spatial data in multipl...
mountainmath.github.io
November 7, 2025 at 3:21 AM
{cancensus} v0.5.10 is now on CRAN. This is a maintenance update focused on some small tweaks and improvements in the documentation.
Reposted by Jens von Bergmann
We are living in a captured economy.
Another great must-watch video by @justineunderhill.bsky.social
10/10
youtu.be/_MPE3gIg-nU?...
Another great must-watch video by @justineunderhill.bsky.social
10/10
youtu.be/_MPE3gIg-nU?...
Why Everything Is So Freaking Expensive
YouTube video by Justine Underhill
youtu.be
November 6, 2025 at 4:32 AM
We are living in a captured economy.
Another great must-watch video by @justineunderhill.bsky.social
10/10
youtu.be/_MPE3gIg-nU?...
Another great must-watch video by @justineunderhill.bsky.social
10/10
youtu.be/_MPE3gIg-nU?...
Reposted by Jens von Bergmann
Sidewalks shouldn’t stop for side streets, pass it on
November 5, 2025 at 7:33 PM
Sidewalks shouldn’t stop for side streets, pass it on
Reposted by Jens von Bergmann
In Jane Jacobs’s old neighborhood, more heritage rules will mean more exclusion and gentrification.
We know how the story ends. It shouldn’t be allowed to happen again.
www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/artic...
We know how the story ends. It shouldn’t be allowed to happen again.
www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/artic...
Will heritage stop housing development in the Annex?
If a new heritage district is created, it should acknowledge the tradeoffs and explicitly define how the area will change
www.theglobeandmail.com
November 3, 2025 at 3:54 AM
In Jane Jacobs’s old neighborhood, more heritage rules will mean more exclusion and gentrification.
We know how the story ends. It shouldn’t be allowed to happen again.
www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/artic...
We know how the story ends. It shouldn’t be allowed to happen again.
www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/artic...
Reposted by Jens von Bergmann
New post on inclusionary zoning, for my housing literature review.
IZ requires developers to provide subsidized homes in their new apartment buildings. Without providing compensation to developers, this unfunded IZ is just a tax on new housing.
1/
IZ requires developers to provide subsidized homes in their new apartment buildings. Without providing compensation to developers, this unfunded IZ is just a tax on new housing.
1/
November 3, 2025 at 8:03 PM
New post on inclusionary zoning, for my housing literature review.
IZ requires developers to provide subsidized homes in their new apartment buildings. Without providing compensation to developers, this unfunded IZ is just a tax on new housing.
1/
IZ requires developers to provide subsidized homes in their new apartment buildings. Without providing compensation to developers, this unfunded IZ is just a tax on new housing.
1/
Reposted by Jens von Bergmann
Shari Eli, Nicholas Li & Janki Shah use new complete count data to assess what can & cannot be learned about socio-economic status from the Canadian census 1871-1901. They analyze the non-reporting of earnings despite having an occupation & the characteristics of people at different earning levels.
November 2, 2025 at 4:23 PM
Shari Eli, Nicholas Li & Janki Shah use new complete count data to assess what can & cannot be learned about socio-economic status from the Canadian census 1871-1901. They analyze the non-reporting of earnings despite having an occupation & the characteristics of people at different earning levels.
Great article on the bottlenecks to building better apartments in Canada. If you ask a random Canadian on the street they will tell you they want shorter high-rises, taller low-rises, and more livable apartments with cross-ventilation. Yet politicians and policymakers force the opposite.
“The era of shoebox condos is over” in the Globe and Mail today - a feature on single stair: ”Yet with features such as sprinklers, smoke-sealed doors and more reliable fire alarm systems, mid-size apartment buildings can be just as safe...”
www.theglobeandmail.com/investing/pe...
www.theglobeandmail.com/investing/pe...
The era of the shoebox condo is over. Here’s how Canada can build livable apartments
Canada needs livable apartments to help fix the housing crisis. To do that, it must change the rulebook for both condos and rentals
www.theglobeandmail.com
November 1, 2025 at 9:07 PM
Great article on the bottlenecks to building better apartments in Canada. If you ask a random Canadian on the street they will tell you they want shorter high-rises, taller low-rises, and more livable apartments with cross-ventilation. Yet politicians and policymakers force the opposite.
Reposted by Jens von Bergmann
Quebec has significantly better housing outcomes than the rest of Canada. Language barriers might have helped Quebec not to “learn” from anglophone Canada 👍, but also prevent the rest of Canada from learning from Quebec 👎.
Nice to see an English language take on housing from the Quebec perspective!
Nice to see an English language take on housing from the Quebec perspective!
I wish there was a way to convey how much of a big deal this is to me, I wish you could feel it.
Our work on housing policy, condensed in a single report, has finally been translated to English. You can download it here:
carrefour.vivreenville.org/publication/...
(Click "Télécharger le PDF")
Our work on housing policy, condensed in a single report, has finally been translated to English. You can download it here:
carrefour.vivreenville.org/publication/...
(Click "Télécharger le PDF")
Opening Doors | Publications | Carrefour Vivre en Ville
Consultez notre publication « Opening Doors ». Carrefour Vivre en Ville
carrefour.vivreenville.org
October 30, 2025 at 1:41 AM
Quebec has significantly better housing outcomes than the rest of Canada. Language barriers might have helped Quebec not to “learn” from anglophone Canada 👍, but also prevent the rest of Canada from learning from Quebec 👎.
Nice to see an English language take on housing from the Quebec perspective!
Nice to see an English language take on housing from the Quebec perspective!
Good writeup of how the Trump administration has used housing as one of the justifications for their deportations, and how that fits into a history of US anti-immigrant housing policy.
Someone should write a paper on Housing Nationalism…
Someone should write a paper on Housing Nationalism…
Deportations can reduce the housing construction workforce, leading to fewer units built and higher costs - contrary to claims that they lower prices, according to a sociologist who studies housing. #immigration buff.ly/Dfakz6o
The Trump administration’s anti-immigrant housing policy reflects a long history of xenophobia in public housing
Anti-immigrant housing policies have been cast as a way for citizens to access more housing, but they fail to prevent the shortages driving the crises.
theconversation.com
October 30, 2025 at 1:15 AM
Good writeup of how the Trump administration has used housing as one of the justifications for their deportations, and how that fits into a history of US anti-immigrant housing policy.
Someone should write a paper on Housing Nationalism…
Someone should write a paper on Housing Nationalism…
Reposted by Jens von Bergmann
@dannyoleksiuk.bsky.social writes for @sightline.org about the potential to bring back small lot apartment buildings.
#singlestair code changes can unlock this option for the first time in a century. Let’s go!
www.sightline.org/2025/10/28/t...
#singlestair code changes can unlock this option for the first time in a century. Let’s go!
www.sightline.org/2025/10/28/t...
To Build Fast, Think Small | Sightline Institute
How re-legalizing small apartment buildings would spur the homes city dwellers need now.
www.sightline.org
October 28, 2025 at 4:31 PM
@dannyoleksiuk.bsky.social writes for @sightline.org about the potential to bring back small lot apartment buildings.
#singlestair code changes can unlock this option for the first time in a century. Let’s go!
www.sightline.org/2025/10/28/t...
#singlestair code changes can unlock this option for the first time in a century. Let’s go!
www.sightline.org/2025/10/28/t...
Reposted by Jens von Bergmann
After a short hiatus, Social Policy Trends is back! This month we describe how the housing crisis impacts the victims of domestic violence and the organizations that provide them with temporary shelter. 1/4
www.policyschool.ca/wp-content/u...
www.policyschool.ca/wp-content/u...
www.policyschool.ca
October 28, 2025 at 5:23 PM
After a short hiatus, Social Policy Trends is back! This month we describe how the housing crisis impacts the victims of domestic violence and the organizations that provide them with temporary shelter. 1/4
www.policyschool.ca/wp-content/u...
www.policyschool.ca/wp-content/u...
Legalize it!
Imagine a city of great apartments where everyone knows their neighbours. The Neptis Foundation has a vision: www.theglobeandmail.com/culture/art-...
A dense, urban Canada? It’s possible
A specific, provocative proposal for how Toronto might evolve offers good ideas
www.theglobeandmail.com
October 28, 2025 at 5:53 PM
Legalize it!
Reposted by Jens von Bergmann
Is late Monday morning a good time to play around with new housing metrics?
Trick question! It's always a good time to play around with new housing metrics. @jensvb.bsky.social and I have a look at Shelter Cost per Room (as opposed to sqft) in relation to age.
homefreesociology.com/2025/10/25/a...
Trick question! It's always a good time to play around with new housing metrics. @jensvb.bsky.social and I have a look at Shelter Cost per Room (as opposed to sqft) in relation to age.
homefreesociology.com/2025/10/25/a...
Age Disparity in Shelter Cost per Room
Co-authored by Jens von Bergmann and cross-posted at MountainMath Residential floor space offers a common denominator for trying to standardize across a range of housing metrics (e.g. price pe…
homefreesociology.com
October 27, 2025 at 5:36 PM
Is late Monday morning a good time to play around with new housing metrics?
Trick question! It's always a good time to play around with new housing metrics. @jensvb.bsky.social and I have a look at Shelter Cost per Room (as opposed to sqft) in relation to age.
homefreesociology.com/2025/10/25/a...
Trick question! It's always a good time to play around with new housing metrics. @jensvb.bsky.social and I have a look at Shelter Cost per Room (as opposed to sqft) in relation to age.
homefreesociology.com/2025/10/25/a...
Check-in on the latest NRCAN LIDAR-derived 3D building data. Their automatic detection is still quite coarse, some buildings are missing, some get footprint very wrong, other mess up on height. And failure to deal with buildings with sections of different heights.
Looking forward to next iteration.
Looking forward to next iteration.
October 27, 2025 at 6:16 PM
Check-in on the latest NRCAN LIDAR-derived 3D building data. Their automatic detection is still quite coarse, some buildings are missing, some get footprint very wrong, other mess up on height. And failure to deal with buildings with sections of different heights.
Looking forward to next iteration.
Looking forward to next iteration.