Work Space Talk Show

Architect and author Stefan Al joins us to talk about the long history of dwellings, and what that history reveals about the housing problems we face today.Stefan is a professor at Hunter College, a trained architect, and the author of "Dwelling on Earth". In this conversation, he and Nathan discuss how homes evolved from early shelters to dense Roman apartment buildings, why the home and workplace were once the same space, how zoning became one of the biggest barriers to new housing, and why converting empty offices into apartments is much harder than it sounds.They also get into mixed-use cities, the American single-family ideal, AI tools in architecture and planning, and why the built environment keeps forcing humans to solve new problems created by previous solutions.Learn more about Stefan: https://www.stefanal.com/Check out "Dwelling on Earth" - https://www.stefanal.com/books/dwelling-on-earthSubscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@workspacetalkshow?sub_confirmation=1Learn more about the Work Space Talk Show: https://workspacetalkshow.com/

America’s housing affordability problem is often discussed through prices, interest rates, investors, or politics. Dr. Joseph Gyourko argues that the core issue is more direct: we are not building enough housing where people want to live.In this episode of The Work Space Talk Show, Nathan Manuel talks with Dr. Joseph Gyourko, Martin Bucksbaum Professor of Real Estate, Finance and Business & Public Policy at The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, about the history of housing affordability in the United States, the post-1970 shift in local zoning and supply restrictions, and the price-to-income ratio that explains why so many households feel squeezed.They also discuss institutional single-family rentals, whether banning institutional buyers actually helps renters, why the commonly cited housing shortage number may be too low, what China’s overbuilt housing market reveals about supply-side policy, and why local zoning boards often represent existing neighbors more clearly than future residents.For anyone working in real estate, construction, architecture, development, or public policy, this conversation connects housing economics to the systems that determine what actually gets built.Learn more about Dr Gyourko: https://gyourko.github.io/Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@workspacetalkshow?sub_confirmation=1Learn more about the Work Space Talk Show: https://workspacetalkshow.com/

Nathan sits down with Yoel Borgenicht, President of King Rose Construction, for a conversation about construction, leadership, and what it takes to build a company around trust, speed, and people.Yoel shares how he moved from law into construction, why general contracting is more complex than most people realize, and how King Rose grew from residential projects in Manhattan into demanding commercial work across labs, retail, offices, and institutional clients.They also discuss client relationships, project speed, the Bangalore office, hiring and retention, and why physical work deserves more respect.This episode is about construction, but it is also about the people, systems, and relationships that make the built environment possible.Learn more about King Rose Construction: https://kingroseny.com/Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@workspacetalkshow?sub_confirmation=1Learn more about the Work Space Talk Show: https://workspacetalkshow.com/

In this episode of The Work Space Talk Show, Nathan sits down with Brooke Gothard, Partner at Partners Real Estate, to talk about the relationship side of commercial real estate and how deals actually get done.Brooke shares how she grew up around the Atlanta commercial real estate business, built her career through CBRE and JLL, and eventually made the move to Partners Real Estate. The conversation covers brokerage, market knowledge, off-market deal flow, ownership, risk, investment opportunities, and why relationships still matter in an industry where data and AI are changing how people work.Nathan and Brooke also discuss the role brokers play in the larger built environment pipeline, from capital and leasing decisions to the projects that eventually become work for architects, builders, operators, and owners.Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@workspacetalkshow?sub_confirmation=1Learn more about the Work Space Talk Show: https://workspacetalkshow.com/

The Work Space Talk Show covers the people, projects, and decisions shaping commercial real estate today. From ownership and property management to construction, development, and workplace strategy, this channel delivers sharp market updates and in-depth conversations with the builders, operators, and owners shaping how commercial spaces are planned, built, and managed.In this introductory episode, Nathan explains why the show exists, who it’s for, and the kinds of conversations you can expect in future episodes.