Portable classrooms, the death spiral of Big Box Urbanism, Uber gets a win in Palm Beach County, and the middle class is stranded in the suburbs
Read MoreJason DeGray is a transportation engineer as well as a member of both Strong Towns and the Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE). As a member of ITE’s advocacy committee, he brought the charge levied against the engineering profession by Chuck in his piece Just Another Pedestrian Killed to the ITE Community to be explored. The resulting internal dialogue led to the development of the op-ed below which was published in the March 2015 edition of the ITE Journal, their international publication, and is reprinted here with his permission.
Read MoreTransportation has a Goldilocks problem. At one end, there is “this mode is too solo:” the single traveler in a space-gobbling automobile. At the other, high dollar,we have “this mode is too big:” either high dollar, fixed guide-way public transit or high dollar road expansions. As a country, we’ve institutionalized these two ends, with less interest for the in-between. But thanks to technology, this is changing. We are on the cusp of widespread microtransit.
Read MoreThis week Chuck talks to Heidi Johnson-Wright, an ADA coordinator in Miami Dade County, about the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Read MoreI've explained before that I spend my days as the designer and coordinator for a business accelerator program, based out of our provincial university. It is a great privilege for me to have been able to shape and grow this program. In a nutshell, we provide funding (including living expenses) and coaching for talented people who want to turn their skills into a business. Being a city builder, this has been an amazing opportunity to work side by side with the people who fill storefronts, hire local people, open workshops and factories, and change cities through their presence. This week has been uplifting and exciting for me because our applicants for this summer are finally in, and we are now selecting our new cohort for the program.
Read MoreHow does the segment of ST members who are not planning professionals or government officials can learn enough to effectively advocate for Strong Towns - to become Strong Citizens.
Read MoreStrong towns must also be inclusive towns, communities that welcome everyone. Places where people of all abilities can live, work and get around. Rights of way that are safe and accessible to folks with a range of mobility needs.
Read MoreThis week we look at a few places, from Ferguson to CA schools to youth sports, where maximizing for one variable at a time leads to a "very suburban style of thinking, addressing each problem in a vacuum and ignoring the interrelationships that eventually govern the world."
Read MoreDrunk driving is a behavior on which we spend a lot of effort discouraging and yet somehow largely ignore the importance of design. This article asks whether America has a drinking problem or a driving problem? What's worse yet, is that through things like minimum parking requirements and zoning we are virtually coding a problem into existence.
Read MoreSteven Shultis is a member of Strong Towns and a long time supporter living in Springfield, Massachusetts. You might remember him from an earlier podcast or from our more recent conversation about Springfield. He blogs at Rational Urbanism and this article, which first appeared there, is reprinted with his permission.
Read MoreThis week Chuck has a long overdue conversation with Patrick Kennedy, an urban designer advocating for more walkable/bikable neighborhoods in one of the country's most car-focused cities.
Read MoreI've been trying to place the Strong Towns message in historical counterparts. I want to know in which other context these ideas emerged, who led them, how, and how did it turn out.
Read MoreJohn Oliver is a comedian in the court jester genre: speaking truth to power.
Read MoreIt is interesting to look back and read what people thought a couple generations ago and how their thinking shapes our world today.
Read MoreStrong Towns members' blogs engage issues of who benefits from the way our cities are built and run, who loses out, and how a local government or developer's actions reveal its true priorities.
Read MoreI hope to be back in force tomorrow. Thank you for your patience.
Read MoreNext week Chuck and Jim will be in the Los Angeles area, our first Strong Towns trip to California since 2012. We're working really hard to get to Northern CA yetis year -- keep your eyes open for that.
Read MoreIt's not going to be difficult to improve on victory when victory means a pathetic $0.92 per person.
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