Nick P

Nick P

@npilon.bsky.social

Dartmouth, NS dad; software engineer; fan of giant robots in many contexts, board games, RPGs. Queer rights are not negotiable. (He/Him)

1.6K followers521 following19.8K posts

Nick P reposted

Replying to @jentaplin.bsky.social

My comment that it is better than nothing was in reference to the University plan, not to the idea that any bike infrastructure is better than nothing. Better for University is a bi-directional cycleway on the north side which would preserve median trees and cost $2 million less.

Nick P reposted

“We’re insulted that they listed all the stakeholder groups that they consulted with on the University (Avenue) design, and there wasn’t a single group . . . actually representing people who cycle who would use the facility." www.saltwire.com/nova-scotia/...

saltwire.comHalifax was going to vote on downgraded, cheaper bikeway without consulting cyclists' groups firstDowntown bikeway ready to proceed but it will now go to committees with the opportunity for the public to have their say

www.cbc.ca/news/canada/... - “[PSPP] wrote that he plans to travel to France for a meeting with Macron in the coming weeks” Dear France, We understand you may be in possession of a cask of amontillado. Did you know this man is a noted enjoyer of it? Please offer him an invitation.

cbc.caPQ accuses Ottawa of muzzling Quebec during upcoming Canada-EU summit | CBC NewsQuebec Premier Paul St-Pierre Plamondon is denouncing the federal government's refusal to allow him to speak at the Canada-EU summit which will begin in Montreal on Oct. 29.

Why a *separatist* thinks he should have a starring role at a *Canada*/EU summit is beyond me. PSPP wants to Quexit, he can own the consequences of that or he can join the party. (The consequences of that are being on the menu.)

Canadian authorities: don’t expect too much EU authorities: you know, maybe we’ve got this backwards, where’s the form to sign up as new provinces?

Nick P reposted

People gather in Council Chambers in their bike helmets to draw attention to how our safety and that of all residents, particularly seniors and kids, is threatened by the staff report under consideration today. #bikehfx

Nick P reposted

Replying to @landofsticks.bsky.social

Suburban residents are at a huge increased risk of death by house fire because there is not enough of a tax based to pay for the fire fighters needed to cover the suburbs and also we prioritize automobility and driver thruput so we build a shit tonne of speed humps which slow response times.

Take it from the RCMP.

Matt Stickland@landofsticks.bsky.social

Fire is asking for more people/money for right now. Not for future planning, but because we don't have enough people for right now. This lack of service, if I am remembering last year's budget presentations correctly, is worst in Lower Sackville/D15.

I really appreciate Max’s forthrightness in calling out how unnecessary and even inappropriate the approach journalists have taken to covering the referendum is. News media had a story they wanted to tell and they kept looking for a way to make it real.

Max Fawcett@maxfawcett.bsky.social

The separatists in Alberta lost. Badly. Why we don't have to go around pretending otherwise -- and why those who keep trying to platform their voices and reason with their unreasonable grievances are doing more harm than good. #cdnpoli #abpoli www.nationalobserver.com/2026/10/26/o...

Nick P reposted

Given that Toronto‘s social media-savvy socialist mayor just won re-election by a larger margin than Zohran Mamdani won his mayoralty I’m sure any day now we will be getting a wave of articles about what we can and should all learn from Olivia Chow

Nick P reposted

Almost everyone in Canada lives in "market housing" and it's always been that way, for better and for worse. Non-market housing was 6% at the high point in the 20c and it's now around 4%. Farha's history simply does not add up. www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/arti...

theglobeandmail.comOpinion: Let’s call Canada’s housing crisis what it is: a purposeful, profit-driven industry where people get left behindHousing Inc. treats a home as someone else’s investment, but it’s not too late to change that thinking

Nick P reposted

Replying to @andrewctenor.bsky.social

I think everyone who worked on that staff report should have to ride a non-electric bike uphill on Nora Bernard street and see how slick an “alternative” that is

Nick P reposted

I used the term "pretextual planning" with a partner a week ago and I saw their eyes light up the way they do when you find a word you've been looking for all your life. lewis.ucla.edu/research/mot...

lewis.ucla.eduMotivations for Growth Revolts: Discretion and Pretext as Sources of Development ConflictBallot box growth revolts, where residents force a referendum to restrict new development, can have longlasting repercussions for communities. Such revolts are rare, but they shed light on long-standi...
Jens von Bergmann@jensvb.bsky.social

Pretty sure we already trademarked the name for this planning practice and it’s called “Vancouverism”.

Nick P reposted

The new National Heat Pump Rebate will help eligible households switch to efficient electric heating. 👉 Sign up to receive updates on launch dates, eligibility, rebate amounts and how to apply. 🔗 Learn more and sign up: bit.ly/4zQV84M

I don’t expect Councillor Purdy to vote to preserve bike infrastructure funding but I figured it was worth trying to ask her to support pulling it off the consent agenda and send it to ATAC for public comment, given her past remarks about how she wants to see more public comment.

This post is unavailable.

Nick P reposted

If you're part of that (possibilty small?) community that loves real life ghost stories, Canadian historical architecture, and high quality black and white photography, you will understand why I am reposting all of Peter Coffman's skeets these days

Peter Coffinman@petercoffman.bsky.social

The figure walks silently along the path between the residence and Military Road. He never speaks, and when spoken to, he simply disappears. But you're not surprised, because you know that Government House, in St. John's NL, #OughtToBeHaunted.

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Thompson correctly (IMO) identifies that Nova Scotia’s anti-come from away sentiment is manipulated by local big fish/small pond types who want to ward off competition. But he doesn’t distinguish between successful entrepreneurs and would be BFSPs.

Nova Scotia’s Lost Century is a solid survey, and has some great details about the Dexter and McNeil governments. But Thompson has no clear thesis, and too many contradictions.

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Overall I’d say it was fine but high on rhetoric and short on analysis and insight. A good survey with some okay ideas and some terrible ideas, and no real identification of how they’re in tension. I agree with the analysis that NS’ struggles are b/c we misidentified our resources.

I even agree with Thompson that our current resources are the ocean, our people, and that this is a fucking fantastic place to live. And that we need to draw *investment*, not branch plants. But I can’t square that with his resource project advocacy.

Nick P reposted

Replying to @josephpolitano.bsky.social

America's trade war with Canada has obviously backfired, both economically and politically. But Trump is likely to double down on it after the midterms. When he does, Canadians will be thankful they aren’t quite as dependent on America as they used to be.

Nick P reposted

NEW BRIGHT SPOTS: Even on 100% gas power, heat pumps cut emissions by ~48% and EVs by about half. The authors of an “electrification doesn’t cut emissions” paper made a series of compounding mistakes and used misleading assumptions. Here's why. janrosenow.substack.com/p/heat-pumps...

janrosenow.substack.comHeat pumps and EVs cut emissions, even on a gas-only gridA widely reported paper claimed heat pumps and EVs deliver no carbon savings until the grid is clean. Here's why it's wrong.

Nick P reposted

Replying to @sharonk.bsky.social

"Berlin has sent millions to this office." At some point in time I really hope people start to figure out how much money a million is in the context of a 30 trillion dollar economy.

Nick P reposted

Here is a summary table from our letter documenting the degradations of the alternative bike facilities being proposed.

David Trueman@davidwtrueman.bsky.social

HCC has sent a letter to Council raising strenuous objections to the staff report calling for cost-saving alternatives to 7 bike facility projects while in most cases degrading safety and directness. Read it here: cyclehalifax.ca/advocacy/let... #bikehfx

The trick to fighting NIMBYism is time travel. Build anything sixty years ago and it will mysteriously be better than the same thing built tomorrow.

Oh The Urbanity!@ohtheurbanity.bsky.social

This is a 17-storey apartment in the heart of the Plateau in Montreal. I’ve never heard anyone complain about it or say it ruins the neighbourhood. Why? It was built in 1965. People just got used to it. Many I think don’t even notice it (“there are no towers on the Plateau”).

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The Macdonald government immediately enacting a harsh system of tariffs also came up in Palm and Pine. Both agree that the tariffs badly injured Canada’s relations to the empire, particularly the trade-focused Maritimes.

Despite Halifax suffering massive out-migration after the end of the Second World War, we then managed to manufacture a housing crisis not 15 years later though ill conceived slum clearance policies! Brilliant!

Nick P reposted

The other urbanist channels care about things viewership numbers and audience engagement, so they don't put things like model diagnostics in their videos. But I don't care about my audience. I care about making cool graphs.

Nick P reposted

Replying to @robcyran.bsky.social

Huh, this deflation caused Dems to take House and Rutherford Hayes to only win Electoral College by one vote - result was end of Reconstruction. If voters hate inflation well they really detested deflation. (Can see why this book won Pulitzer so have to be more selective in future skeets)

First chapter is a bit of a feel good story about our rowing clubs. Second is a rapid survey of how Confederation dampened NS’ prospects, though its picture is slightly at odds with that of Equal as Citizens. If pressed I’d say Lost Century is more accurately describing Halifax and Equal the rest.

Nick P reposted

I think more Americans need to understand that their built environment is regulated by the groupthink of unaccountable organizations whose members think the sky is a different color abroad.

Stephen Jacob Smith@stephenjacobsmith.com

Omfg!! 14:45: “…the cultural values are vastly different. In England…they don't have fire recall the way we do—they have fire brigades, and people in the building use buckets while waiting for the brigade. In the U.S., we design elevators to perform specifically so firefighters can use them safely.”

Nick P reposted

"Trick or Streets" proposal from the Mayor. No Cars 4 Kids would sound better, losing the onerous permission and organizational requirements