This has been a really amazing week. What started out with my desire to share the stories of some of our members with you became one of the more enjoyable things I’ve been able to do this year. If you’ve not had a chance, check out each of these short interviews and be blown away by the broad group of people that find a common cause in Strong Towns. I want to do more of these in 2015 and maybe even make it a regular feature, it was that good.
Read MoreHans Noeldner - energy and environmental activist - talks about winter biking, transportation as a social justice issue and getting started living a Strong Towns life.
Read MoreMike Christensen, graduate student at the University of Utah, talks about meeting Chuck at CNU, working as a GIS professional and connecting with people on social meeting.
Read MoreGracen Johnson - Place Activator from New Brunswick - talks about promoting good ideas, working with Strong Towns and how worms have brought her closer to her neighbors.
Read MoreSara Joy Proppe, project manager at Schaefer Richardson, talks about her neighborhood work, volunteering and why churches are strong, yet largely untapped, resources for cities. Proppe is also working on the Proximity Project based out of Minneapolis.
Read MoreAging suburbia is going through an identity crisis. Existing residents would like the place to stay much the same. New residents, including those who don’t live there yet, are demanding something else. The problem is that these places can’t continue to stay the same. Yet, the change is too difficult for many to swallow. This is why the default for most suburbs is decline. Growth isn’t built into their DNA.
Read MoreMichael McGinn -- attorney, neighborhood activist and former Mayor of Seattle -- talks about his journey from bike riding dad to mayor and the power of a Strong Towns approach to improve the financial and environmental health of a community.
Read MoreJohn Reuter, Executive Director of Conservation Voters for Idaho, talks about how the Strong Towns message can help with conservation and how well it resonates in small towns.
Read MoreKerry Hayes, Public Relations Director at Doug Carpenter and Associates in Memphis, Tennessee, talks about his neighborhood and the influence that Strong Towns has had on the local conversation.
Read MoreErika Ragsdale, Senior Planner with the city of Hutto, Texas, talks about her fast-growing city and how the Strong Towns fiscal message resonates with local leaders.
Read MoreStrong Towns Executive Director -- and member -- Jim Kumon reflects on the 18 months since he signed up, the National Gathering and what he sees in the future for the organization.
Read MoreStrong Towns member and new board member Andrew Burleson from Raleigh, North Carolina, talks about why he is a member of Strong Towns and what he sees for the future of the organization.
Read MoreWelcome back to the Monday Member Blog Roll!
Read MoreEvery fall we do a fundraising week where we go PBS on you and divert from our regular programming to focus on sustaining the organization. This is that week so, if you’ve been putting it off, now is the time to sign up to be a member.
Read MoreMy latest piece in The American Conservative. Please share with all your red-state politicos and their supporters (along with everyone else).
Read MoreLast month the Minneapolis Star Tribune ran a profile of me and Strong Towns. Being the state paper of record, it was a pretty big deal around here. The comments on the site really built up, so I asked for a volunteer from the Strong Towns Network to help me identify the most important ones to respond to. Derek Hofmann stepped up to help out – thank you Derek.
Here are those comments and my response to them.
Read MoreThis week the podcast features a conversation with Dave Runyon (twitter), Executive Director of City Unite and co-author of the book The Art of Neighboring: Building Genuine Relationships Right Outside Your Door.
Read MoreBiking is transportation. Walking is transportation. If you want to empower your people, if you want to make your city financially strong and resilient, follow Memphis by making incremental investments to improving biking and walking throughout the core neighborhoods of your community.
Read MoreA height limitation – like a cap on municipal debt as I’ve advocated for in the past – simply puts a limit on our ability to blow ourselves up. It allows our cities to cook like good stew in a crock pot instead of some easy mac zapped in the microwave. Yes, it is a restraint on growth….one type of growth.
Read MoreHope you had a Happy Halloween, and welcome to November. It's National Blog Posting Month, so this is a good time to jump into the conversation with fellow Strong Townies (or is it Strong Towners? Townites?) and be featured on the Monday Member Blog Roll. Here's this week's edition.
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