Good for Cities

How can cities better support the growing number of people living alone?
In this episode of Good for Cities, Matti Siemiatycki speaks with journalist and author Renee Sylvestre-Williams about The Singles Tax and the intersection of housing, urban planning, and social connection.
They explore how rising housing costs, outdated policies, and the design of our communities create unique challenges for single people, while examining the role of zoning, housing choice, public spaces, and transit in shaping everyday life.
The conversation also looks at innovative housing models, the importance of third places, and why building cities that better support people living alone can create healthier, more connected communities for everyone.

How can cities use transit corridors and infrastructure spaces not just to move people, but to bring them together?
In this episode of Good for Cities, Matti Siemiatycki speaks with Ilana Altman from The Bentway about adaptive reuse, transit-oriented development, and the role of cultural programming in shaping public space.
They explore how cities like Toronto and New York are transforming underused infrastructure into civic destinations, and how The Bentwayhas become a platform for experimentation, connection, and public life. Ilana discusses how programming, from large-scale installations like Project Domino to thematic climate-focused events, helps turn infrastructure into a space for shared meaning-making.
The conversation also examines the balance between physical design and cultural activation, the importance of accessibility and everyday use, and the role of “fun” in city building. Finally, they consider the challenges of scaling these models, including governance, funding, and the need for new policy frameworks to support hybrid, multi-solving infrastructure.

Urban planning is everywhere. From videos about walkable cities and public transit to debates about housing affordability, millions of people are learning about cities through YouTube and social media. But as urban planning content reaches wider audiences, a new question emerges: who do we trust to explain how cities work?
In this episode of Good for Cities, Matti Siemiatycki speaks with Uytae Lee, urban planner, journalist, filmmaker, and creator of the popular YouTube channel About Here. They explore the rise of urban planning content online, the challenge of balancing accessibility with accuracy, and how creators build trust with audiences while navigating sponsorships and partnerships.

Do Current Community Consultation Practices Work for Urban Planning and City Building?
Community consultation is a key part of public participation in urban planning, but is it working as intended? In this episode of Good for Cities, Matti Siemiatycki is joined by Crystal Legacy to explore the growing crisis of consultation in city building and infrastructure planning.
They discuss the limitations of formal engagement processes, including public meetings, stakeholder consultations, and advisory panels, and how these approaches can exclude informal participation and community knowledge. The conversation introduces the concept of structural gaslighting to examine how planning systems can marginalize certain voices while appearing inclusive.
This episode also looks at major challenges in public engagement today, including polarization, trust in government decision-making, and the tension between delivering projects quickly and ensuring meaningful community input. The discussion questions who gets to participate in planning processes - current residents, future residents, or both - and how cities can move beyond binary debates like YIMBY vs NIMBY.
Tune in to learn how to improve community consultation, strengthen public participation, and create more effective, equitable approaches to urban planning and development.

In this episode of the Good for Cities podcast, Matti Siemiatycki speaks with Nyasha Harper-Michon about community-led architecture, urban planning, and building more inclusive, sustainable cities.
They explore how architects can integrate community engagement into design, align development with local needs, and navigate challenges like affordable housing, climate change, and urban inequality. Nyasha shares lessons from working beyond traditional architecture practice and advancing equity in city-building.
This episode is ideal for architects, urban planners, and students interested in architecture careers, community-driven design, and the future of sustainable cities.

Financial landlords claim to contribute to the housing stock, but they also have higher rates of eviction and above guideline rent increases than other housing providers. Since the 1990’s, ownership of rental housing by financial firms has drastically increased, with more financial landlords, such as investment trusts and asset managers owning more apartment buildings than before. This has contributed to a shift that’s turned housing into an investment product for third-party investors, who have increasingly consolidated ownership of rental properties across the country.
In this episode, Martine August, affordable housing advocate and financial landlord researcher, explains how financial firms are changing the rental landscape, often at the expense of low-income communities. We unpack data on rent increases, eviction rates, and maintenance issues, and discuss why rent control and non-market housing are crucial tools for protecting tenants.