Windsor the subject of Globe & Mail’s 2023 pop-up bureau – with C4C’s Rino Bortolin

(15 December 2023)

Windsor made front page news in the Globe and Mail last weekend in a sweeping headline profile of the City’s economic past and future– including interview coverage with Centre for Cities strategic advisor and project manager, Rino Bortolin. 

The Globe and Mail has chosen Windsor as the site of its 2023 pop-up bureau, a Globe & Mail journalism tradition in which an underreported locality is selected for in-depth year-long special reporting. Windsor was selected for its promising turnaround post-recession and strong economic projections in the coming years, being described as a “front line of economic regeneration.” This comes as billions in public and private dollars are being invested into the city, including $5.7 billion in the Gordie Howe International Bridge, $5 billion in the NextStar electric battery plant, $1.89 billion in the Stellantis assembly plant, and $2 billion in the Windsor-Essex Acute Care Hospital. An influx of new businesses, housing development initiatives, and investments provide potential for Windsor as a rising competitor among Canada’s urban powerhouses. 

The Globe’s interview with C4C’s Rino Bortolin focused on the changing tides in Windsor’s housing market. Drawing on his experience as a former city councilor and as a lead on the recently-launched C4C Housing Systems Innovation Lab, Rino spoke to the rapid evolution of the Windsor housing scene. Once plagued by high vacancy and abandonment rates, Windsor has exploded into a city marked by housing shortages and rising unaffordability– not unlike the trends we see across much of Canada’s housing landscape. 

As Rino points out, the Windsor boom must be accompanied by strong scaffolding through strategy, vision, and policy in order to support long-term economic and social prosperity in the city – and that’s part of our mission at C4C. Stay in touch with us to learn more about how the Centre for Cities is helping support cities’ housing, urban development, and sustainability strategies through community-engaged research and teaching.

Read the article here.

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