Monday Seven No. 013
Cities: Building New Cities, Charters, and Roatán Próspera.
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Toronto is the last city I thought I’d live in.
I consider myself from Montréal. Though I only lived there briefly from ‘92 to ‘94, they were formative years. It was the first Canadian city I called home. It’s where I learned to speak French before a word of English. It was also the last great championship year for the famed Montréal Canadiens hockey club. I only ever knew Toronto as the rival city and shuddered at the idea of calling it home.
Three years ago when I decided to move away from Vancouver, I suddenly found myself in Toronto. I was looking to move closer to our customers, and it was more practical to keep the company in Canada (the other two cities were NY and LA).
For the first 6-months in Toronto, I lived in a meeting room that I converted into a bedroom at our office on King and Spadina. I came here to grow my company and planned to take full advantage of the opportunity to immerse myself in the work.
Living in the office was the perfect hack. We didn’t have a shower, but there was a gym downstairs and I had to work out every day just to take a shower. I was at the gym every single day during those months. I also eliminated decisions about what to eat. We had a kitchenette in the office; a microwave, a sink, and three mini-fridges. I ate rotisseries chicken from the grocery store and microwave steamed cauliflower and broccoli every single day for lunch and dinner. I put on blinders to the city, never getting to know more than a few blocks on King and Queen St.
After those first few months, my girlfriend joined me in Toronto and I moved into a downtown apartment with her. We got to know the city but it never felt like home.
In her book The Death and Life of Great American Cities, Jane Jacobs writes, “By its nature, the metropolis provides what otherwise could be given only by traveling; namely, the strange.”
It’s now my third summer in Toronto and I finally get the appeal. Toronto is full of strange and every neighborhood is completely different than the next. You can have dozens of completely different experiences living in Toronto. You can travel right here.
Inspired by my new found love for the city, this week’s post is an ode to cities.
Last week’s email had a 70% open rate. The top links were Hermès Men's SS21 live performance (y’all love fashion?!) and Paul Graham on writing.
No. 013
1️⃣ ♥ TORONTO — Three places where I like to spend a lot of time.
West Toronto Railpath — 2.1km multi-modal trail running north to south through the Junction Triangle. Built on an abandoned rail line, it’s our very own High Line that feels more like the Chicago 606.
Humber Bay Park East — Incredible views and filled with birds at dusk.
Baldwin Steps — Picnic at the top of the stairs in the shadows of Casa Loma.
2️⃣ MANHATTAN — I’ve Seen a Future Without Cars, and It’s Amazing by Farhad Manjoo (@fmanjoo). The pandemic has created an opportunity for cities to re-examine their relationship with cars. Manjoo takes an in-depth look at a proposal to remove privately owned cars from Manhattan.
Cities are beginning to cautiously open back up again, and people are wondering how they’re going to get in to work. Many are worried about the spread of the virus on public transit. Are cars our only option? How will we find space for all of them?
Rather than stumble back into car dependency, cities can begin to undo their worst mistake: giving up so much of their land to the automobile.
3️⃣ CHARTER CITIES — Two excellent videos explaining the idea of Charter Cities. For those not familiar, a charter city in one in which the governing system is defined by the city's own charter document rather than by general law. The first video is a Ted Talk by Paul Romer (2009) introducing the idea of charter cities. The more recent video by economist Tyler Cowen (2018) describes Three Types of Charter Cities.
4️⃣ ROATÁN PRÓSPERA — A charter city finally launched in Honduras. The news broke a couple of months ago but I somehow completely missed it. World-renowned Zaha Hadid Architects is designing the first residential units in Roatán Próspera.
Prospera, Honduras just launched on the island of Roatan. It is a ZEDE (Zona de Empleo y Desarollo Economico), the legacy of Paul Romer’s time in Honduras promoting charter cities. It has substantial autonomy, different taxes, different courts, different labor law, and more. It is one of the most innovative jurisdictions in the world.
Residency costs $1300 annually, unless you’re Honduran, in which case it costs $260. Becoming a resident also requires signing an “Agreement of Coexistence,” a legally binding contract between Prospera and the resident. Prospera, therefore, cannot change the terms without exposing itself to legal liability. Most governments have sovereign immunity, this goes a step beyond removing that, with a contract that clearly defines the rights and obligations on both sides.
5️⃣ HOW TO START A NEW CITY — According to @balajis. I’m not sure I agree with all of it. Though it makes a lot of sense to start by building community first or better yet start by creating new cities for existing online communities.
6️⃣ MUSIC — Camp Alborz Live at Burning Man 2019 is keeping me energized this week. It was recorded live at Black Rock City, a temporary self-organized city built each year for Burning Man with over 70,000 people.
7️⃣ QUOTE —
Cities have the capability of providing something for everybody, only because, and only when, they are created by everybody.” — Jane Jacobs
If you’re thinking of starting a new city, I’d love to hear from you.
Last Words
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Until next week,
Yashar