[wormwood]

Asked chatgpt about the best cities in Canada for purchasing power:

City	Purchasing Power Index	Why It Stands Out
Edmonton	126.18	High income vs living cost—best overall value
Calgary	122.4	Strong earnings, manageable housing costs
Ottawa	122.11	Reliable incomes + reasonable cost of living
Quebec City	118.84	Cultural appeal with affordability
Vancouver	108.90	High income, but offset by expensive housing market
Smaller Atlantic cities	—	Great for affordability, especially rentals
Halifax	—	Balanced, but a bit behind the Alberta/Ontario leaders

 

[IanO]

I might argue that Edmonton is 'too affordable' or perhaps is 'cheap' and that it is actually symbolic of a much larger issue...

 

[policyenthusiast]

I might argue that Edmonton is 'too affordable' or perhaps is 'cheap' and that it is actually symbolic of a much larger issue...

The larger issue is that it's cold here.

 

[IanO]

Sure, that plays a part, but high incomes and low housing costs generally highlights a broader issue around desirability

 

[constance_chlore]

Higher housing costs combined with high unemployment and a poor social safety net sounds like a recipe for greater poverty, greater homelessness, and more disorder. In this sense, it doesn't really matter how the average person is doing if there's a significant underclass of people who have no clear way of pulling themselves out, and end up adopting behaviors that leave themselves immiserated.

 

[Greenspace]

Sure, that plays a part, but high incomes and low housing costs generally highlights a broader issue around desirability

Or it is desirable but there are absolutely no growth boundaries.

 

[ChazYEG]

The larger issue is that it's cold here.

The even larger issue is that the perception of the city is horrible, both in terms of weather and crime. The amount of people who have never been to Edmonton and yet think it is a crime ridden, -30 degree freezer non-stop for 8 months a year is astounding. especially east of Saskatchewan. Edmonton's biggest issue is PR.

 

[northlands]

The even larger issue is that the perception of the city is horrible, both in terms of weather and crime. The amount of people who have never been to Edmonton and yet think it is a crime ridden, -30 degree freezer non-stop for 8 months a year is astounding. especially east of Saskatchewan. Edmonton's biggest issue is PR.

Friend of mine was in Vancouver last weekend. His buddy goes up to talk to some girls at a bar, they ask where he's from, he says Edmonton. They laugh and say "Edmonton? Eww that place is cold and gross". Guess where they were from.

Spoiler

Saskatoon.

 

[Kosy123]

I mean there's barely any pushback about Edmonton's PR in social media at all.

From lower mainlanders thinking this place is the Arctic, people from Toronto thinking this place is a backwater filled with rowdy oil rig workers, Calgarians constantly shitting on us and rural conservatives thinking this is liberal hellhole #23, I'm not surprised people think badly on this place.

It's why those urbanist videos are a breath of fresh air. Something about the city that isn't about the Oilers on Youtube for once.

 

[ChazYEG]

The most interesting phenomenon for me is that, despite these bad perceptions, a substantial amount of people who move to Edmonton stay in Edmonton and end up falling in love with the city. It wasn't too long ago, someone here posted the migrant retention rates for most major cities in Canada (interprovincial and international) and Edmonton had the highest for both the 5 and 10 year marks.

 

[IanO]

 

[policyenthusiast]

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The omission of Downtown from this map is baffling, but still very interesting data.

 

[Stevey_G]

All pretty arbitrary picks, no science to it. They also spelled Vancouver wrong.

If Calgarians could read they'd be deeply offended by this comment.

 

[MacLac]

Sadly, but inevitably and yes, a huge redevelopment site.

 

[thommyjo]

View attachment 679816

Ellerslie road needs BRT/dedicated lanes/high frequency service