Brandon DonnellyCanada must become a global superpower
The silver lining to the US starting a trade war with Canada and regularly threatening annexation is that it has forced this country out of complacency. Indeed, I'm hard pressed to remember a time, at least in my lifetime, when patriotism and nationalism has united so much of Canada. According to a recent survey by Angus Reid, the percentage of Canadians expressing a "deep emotional attachment" to the country jumped from 49% in December 2024 to 59% in February 2025. And as further evidence of...
Brandon DonnellyThe bank robbery capital of the world
Between 1985 and 1995, Los Angeles' retail bank branches were robbed some 17,106 times. In 1992, which was the the city's worst year for robberies, the number was 2,641. This roughly translated into about one bank robbery every 45 minutes of each banking day. All of this, according to this CrimeReads piece by Peter Houlahan, gave Los Angeles the dubious title of "The Bank Robbery Capital of the World" during this time period. So what caused this? Well according to Peter it was facil...
Brandon DonnellyThe story behind those pixelated video game mosaics in Paris
If you've ever been to Paris, you've probably noticed the small pixelated art pieces that are scattered all around the city on buildings and various other hard surfaces. Or maybe you haven't seen or noticed them in Paris, but you've seen similarly pixelated mosaics in one of the other 79 cities around the world where they can be found. Or maybe you have no idea what I'm talking about right now. Huh? Here's an example from Bolivia (click here if you can't see...
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Brandon DonnellyCanada must become a global superpower
The silver lining to the US starting a trade war with Canada and regularly threatening annexation is that it has forced this country out of complacency. Indeed, I'm hard pressed to remember a time, at least in my lifetime, when patriotism and nationalism has united so much of Canada. According to a recent survey by Angus Reid, the percentage of Canadians expressing a "deep emotional attachment" to the country jumped from 49% in December 2024 to 59% in February 2025. And as further evidence of...
Brandon DonnellyThe bank robbery capital of the world
Between 1985 and 1995, Los Angeles' retail bank branches were robbed some 17,106 times. In 1992, which was the the city's worst year for robberies, the number was 2,641. This roughly translated into about one bank robbery every 45 minutes of each banking day. All of this, according to this CrimeReads piece by Peter Houlahan, gave Los Angeles the dubious title of "The Bank Robbery Capital of the World" during this time period. So what caused this? Well according to Peter it was facil...
Brandon DonnellyThe story behind those pixelated video game mosaics in Paris
If you've ever been to Paris, you've probably noticed the small pixelated art pieces that are scattered all around the city on buildings and various other hard surfaces. Or maybe you haven't seen or noticed them in Paris, but you've seen similarly pixelated mosaics in one of the other 79 cities around the world where they can be found. Or maybe you have no idea what I'm talking about right now. Huh? Here's an example from Bolivia (click here if you can't see...
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Brandon DonnellyFollowing up on the downtown eastside
Support Brandon Donnelly
Brandon DonnellyFollowing up on the downtown eastside
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Cross-posted on Dirt
Last month I wrote a post on why I was bullish on Toronto’s downtown eastside. I outlined 3 reasons: amount of change; connectivity; and the fact that I believe the Distillery District has better long term potential than Liberty Village.
Since then, I’ve spent quite a bit of time in the area. I recently did a biking tour of the under construction River City condos, Underpass Park, Corktown Common Park (which is only open until September since construction isn’t finished yet), and the Canary District condos.
Every time I visit this area of the city I become more excited about its prospects. There’s still a long way to go, but we seem to be on the right track towards building the West Don Lands into a successful downtown neighbourhood. Pretty soon, the Distillery District won’t feel like such an island.
However, the real challenge is going to be the Front Street Promenade, which is intended to be the main drag of the neighbourhood. Getting the right retail mix and creating real urbanity isn’t always easy. But if do get it right, it could be a tremendous anchor for the eastside, which we all know can be a bit sleepy compared to King and Queen West.
I would encourage you to check out the area when you have a moment. Corktown Common offers great views of the city and the emerging area.
Cross-posted on Dirt
Last month I wrote a post on why I was bullish on Toronto’s downtown eastside. I outlined 3 reasons: amount of change; connectivity; and the fact that I believe the Distillery District has better long term potential than Liberty Village.
Since then, I’ve spent quite a bit of time in the area. I recently did a biking tour of the under construction River City condos, Underpass Park, Corktown Common Park (which is only open until September since construction isn’t finished yet), and the Canary District condos.
Every time I visit this area of the city I become more excited about its prospects. There’s still a long way to go, but we seem to be on the right track towards building the West Don Lands into a successful downtown neighbourhood. Pretty soon, the Distillery District won’t feel like such an island.
However, the real challenge is going to be the Front Street Promenade, which is intended to be the main drag of the neighbourhood. Getting the right retail mix and creating real urbanity isn’t always easy. But if do get it right, it could be a tremendous anchor for the eastside, which we all know can be a bit sleepy compared to King and Queen West.
I would encourage you to check out the area when you have a moment. Corktown Common offers great views of the city and the emerging area.
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