Are We Losing the Places That Bring Us Together? | The Rundown

What happens when the spaces people rely on to connect outside of home and work begin to disappear? The idea of the "third place," first defined by sociologist Ray Oldenburg, points to the everyday settings that foster community and belonging, and experts say they remain critical to health and happiness. Debbie Laliberte Rudman of Western University, urban planner Corey Horowitz of DIALOG, and cultural programmer Said Yassin examine how these spaces shape social life and what is at risk as cities evolve. Then, a fight to save one of Toronto's most recognizable gathering spots brings that question into focus, as organizers mobilize petitions and pack city hall committee rooms to protect the iconic dive bar Sneaky Dee's, with general manager George Diamantouros on the front lines of a battle over what the city stands to lose. 00:00 Intro 1:01 What are “third places” and why do they matter? 2:00 How do you build spaces for community today? 5:39 What happens when we lose these places? 8:04 Why are they so hard to create now? 12:20 Are cities replacing community or losing it? 20:12 Can Sneaky Dee’s actually be saved? About The Rundown: The Rundown is your nightly half-hour deep dive into just one headline. With host Jeyan Jeganathan, we’ll cover everything from housing and health care to climate and AI. We’ll break down why each topic matters, who’s living it, and what’s being done to make things better – starting right here in Ontario. Slow down. Tune in. Make sense of the moment. And tell us what you think. Follow on social media: Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/therundowntvo Facebook- https://www.facebook.com/TheRundownTVO X- https://twitter.com/therundowntvo Bluesky- https://bsky.app/profile/therundowntvo.bsky.social Subscribe to TVO Today to watch more content like this: https://www.youtube.com/@tvotoday Listen to the podcast: https://www.tvo.org/podcasts/the-rundown-audio Check out the rest of the TVO ecosystem TVO Docs - https://www.youtube.com/@tvo TVO Kids - https://www.youtube.com/@TVOkids TVO Learn - https://www.youtube.com/@tvolearn Download the TVO Today App Apple - https://apps.apple.com/ca/app/tvo-today/id1616182112 Available on: Roku, Apple TV, Android TV, Samsung, LG, Amazon Fire TV Enjoying this content and want to make a meaningful impact? Consider donating today! https://support.tvo.org/site/Donation2?mfc_pref=T&idb=599945504&df_id=16843&16843.donation=form1&DONATION_LEVEL_ID_SELECTED=1661&mfc_pref=T