In Vancouver, Squamish Nation builds what many cities struggle to: lots of housing

NPR | By Alex Mayyasi

Published April 9, 2026 at 4:46 AM EDT

In Vancouver, the Squamish Nation had a chance to do what many housing advocates dream of, developing a plot of prime urban real estate without zoning constraints. So what did they build? Housing.

Alex Mayyasi

Alex Mayyasi is a longtime contributor to Planet Money and the author of Planet Money: A Guide to the Economic Forces That Shape Your Life (April 2026). Previously he was the founding editor of Gastro Obscura, which earned two James Beard Awards and published a bestselling travel book, and a writer and editor at Priceonomics.

Federal funding is gone.

Congress has eliminated all funding for public media.

That means $2.1 million per year that Connecticut Public relied on to deliver you news, information, and entertainment programs you enjoyed is gone.

The future of public media is in your hands.

All donations are appreciated, but we ask in this moment you consider starting a monthly gift as a Sustainer to help replace what’s been lost.

Donate

SOMOS CONNECTICUT is an initiative from Connecticut Public, the state’s local NPR and PBS station, to elevate Latino stories and expand programming that uplifts and informs our Latino communities. Visit CTPublic.org/latino for more stories and resources. For updates, sign up for the SOMOS CONNECTICUT newsletter at ctpublic.org/newsletters.

SOMOS CONNECTICUT es una iniciativa de Connecticut Public, la emisora local de NPR y PBS del estado, que busca elevar nuestras historias latinas y expandir programación que alza y informa nuestras comunidades latinas locales. Visita CTPublic.org/latino para más reportajes y recursos. Para noticias, suscríbase a nuestro boletín informativo en ctpublic.org/newsletters.

Federal funding is gone.

Donate