Does Vienna Have the World's Best Council Housing? Swimming Pools, Private TV Channels & More
Why Hacker News recommends it
HN points to it as proof that government-provided housing can be attractive, in housing and homelessness threads.
What it is
Channel 4's George Clarke visits a council estate in Vienna and is surprised by amenities such as swimming pools and private TV channels. It showcases Vienna's high-quality social housing.
Recommended by 2 HN commenters across 3 different months, 2021 to 2023.
What Hacker News said
Recommends malermeister · 2021-10 · on “Klimaticket: All public transport in Austria with a single ticket for 1095 EUR/y”
That's just not true. The problem is that government housing is so terrible that sleeping on the street is preferable to some. Public housing in Austria is high quality, cheap and plentiful, with two-thirds of Viennese residents living in it. Coincidentally, homelessness is a non-issue in Austria compared to the US (based on my experience living in the Bay for 10 and in Austria for 20 years). See this video for what government provided housing could be. [this video]
Recommends toomuchtodo · 2023-11 · on “The US Housing Market Has Become an Impossible Mess”
Vienna is a great example. [LINK] (Youtube: Vienna's Radical Idea? Affordable Housing For All) [this video] (Youtube: Does Vienna Have the World's Best Council Housing?)
Recommends toomuchtodo · 2023-12 · on “US homelessness up 12% from 2022, hits highest level since 2007”
Government can build if private industry will not. If you argue "we can only fix this with the private sector and private investment", welp, we tried that and we're plain ol' fucked at the moment. Vienna is a great example. [LINK] (Youtube: Vienna's Radical Idea? Affordable Housing For All) [this video] (Youtube: Does Vienna Have the World's Best Council Housing?)
Cites rossng · 2021-04 · on “A billion for every chip-maker who 'makes in India,' sources say”
Sure, I can at least give you my opinion. * They eliminate a lot of street life. Towers almost always have completely dead frontages at ground level - and they are unlikely to be directly adjacent to a real street. You will be driving to a mall - private space that has none of the democratic nature of a public street. * They often reduce the connection between neighbours. Meeting someone in a lift or a corridor isn't the same as stopping to talk to someone in the street. * The 'parks' are normally poor quality. Humans tend to feel more comfortable in enclosed spaces[1], whereas the parks are open fields that feel overshadowed by the large towers. * The parks often feel unsafe too. A signific
Cites malermeister · 2023-06 · on “Airbnb rental revenues have plunged in some parts of the US, this chart suggests”
> Also with all rental properties being government-owned there would be zero uniqueness and everyone would be forced to make due with whatever the government thought they needed. A good example of this is old Soviet-style tower blocks, where no matter how big your family you get the same size apartment. That part is just not true. See Vienna. This is public housing: [LINK] So is this: [this video]
Cites toomuchtodo · 2023-10 · on “If the Economy Is So Strong, Why Are Consumer Stocks Tanking?”
> If we do that you'll have two social classes. You'll have the price fixed low income housing that looks like it belongs in a Command & Conquer game It does not have to be this way. [LINK] [this video]