A few weeks ago Surface Magazine interviewed Ian Schrager. If you don’t know who Ian Schrager is, you should look him up. He started Studio 54 in New York (along with Steve Rubell) and is largely credited with inventing the boutique hotel genre. His latest project is Edition Hotels, which launched in London in 2013 and in Miami in 2014.
What I found particularly interesting about the interview are the “serious snafus” that Edition experienced at the outset. There was a project in Waikiki and a project in Istanbul. Both failed. Here’s a guy who invented the genre and had partnered up with Marriott to pioneer a new brand. And it wasn’t until Edition London that they were able hit their stride.
I say all of this not to poke fun at their failures. Nobody should do that. Poke fun at not trying instead. My point is the exact opposite. To create something new and amazing, such as Edition, you often have to subject yourself to a few scrapes and bruises along the way.
The Wall Street Journal recently asked: Venice Beach Is a Hot Place to Live, So Why Is Its Housing Supply Shrinking?
According to Issi Romem, chief economist at BuildZoom, it’s because Venice Beach is the toughest place in America to build housing.
Here are some numbers from the WSJ:
“The Venice Beach population is shrinking even as the local economy has boomed. The neighborhood had about 27,000 residents in 2015, about 3,800 fewer than in 2000, according to U.S. Census data. At the same time, the ZIP Code has added 4,000 new jobs, according to Jed Kolko, chief economist at employment website Indeed.”
And here is a chart that speaks to the relationship between housing prices and housing supply:
Housing supply, alone, isn’t going to solve all of our problems. But it certainly matters. Also, what’s up with Chicago?
I’m a few months behind on this one, but back in April the CBC published a documentary called: Where’d the night go?
It’s about Toronto’s grassroots music community and “DIY venues”, all of which are under pressure as a result of rising real estate values and an overall crackdown on illegal venues. This is a perfect example of what Jane Jacobs was getting at when she said that new ideas require old buildings.
If you can’t see the video below, click here. When I watched it, I got stuck watching 3 pre-roll ads. Sorry if that happens to you as well.