We Can Have Both More Housing and Good Urban Form

It’s not difficult to have good urban design, the kind that respects neighbors and the neighborhoods they live in. It’s actually a lot less work than the processes we use to administer the suburban zoning codes we have today.

Marohn, Top Story, Trending, Community StoriesCharles MarohnApril 3, 2023urban design, NIMBY, YIMBY, Brainerd MN, Minnesota, housing, Housing, density, neighborhood, aesthetics

Finding the Pulse of My Hometown

Our Neighborhood Storyteller visits her hometown to both mourn and celebrate the changes that have happened there over the years.

Theilen, Top StoryKarla TheilenDecember 4, 2022Brainerd MN, Small Towns, small towns, local business, Minnesota, restaurants

Taco John’s 2.0

Our most famous case study revealed the high cost of auto-oriented development. But what if a little creative rearrangement could make things a whole lot better?

Urban Design, Edward Erfurt, Top Story, End Parking MandatesEdward ErfurtOctober 21, 2022urban planning, urban design, traditional development pattern, suburban development pattern, Taco Johns, Brainerd MN, Parking, parking, suburban retrofit, productive place

This Ice Machine Is a Case Study in Neighborhood Decline

When you prioritize fast car movement on a street that should be for building community wealth, don’t be surprised when you end up getting neither.

Marohn, Roads and Streets, Top Story, Safe & Productive Streets, Transparent AccountingCharles MarohnSeptember 19, 2022Safe and Productive Streets, streets, STROADS, Brainerd MN, Minnesota, capitalism, decline, neighborhood, Small Towns, small towns, suburban development pattern

Remembering All the Things I’m Supposed to Worry About

Our Neighborhood Storyteller recently received a call about her aging father, who, with his driving privileges revoked, has had to resort to walking on unsafe roads…

Neighborhood Storyteller, Theilen, Community, Walkability, Top StoryKarla TheilenMay 3, 2022neighborhood storyteller, Brainerd MN, walkability, aging, #PedestrianUnfriendly, Community

Pen People and Office Cities

Shopping locally means getting to be among your people—and in this case, it’s pen people!

Neighborhood Storyteller, Theilen, Community, Top StoryKarla TheilenApril 19, 2022neighborhood storyteller, community, local business, neighborliness, Brainerd MN

The Way We Design Our Streets Invites Driver Aggression

This motorcyclist was acting aggressive…but what in his environment signaled to him that aggressive driving was acceptable?

#SlowtheCars, Marohn, Roads and Streets, Transportation, Top StoryCharles MarohnApril 18, 2022#SlowTheCars, transportation, Safety, car crash, cars, STROADS, roads, Brainerd MN, design

Think of This as Your Sanctuary

Our Neighborhood Storyteller discovers a kind of community support that simply can’t be found in online retail.

Neighborhood Storyteller, Theilen, Community, Top StoryKarla TheilenApril 12, 2022neighborhood storyteller, community, local business, neighborliness, Brainerd MN

How Traffic Engineers Can Finally Tame Stroads

This engineer offers a strategy for slowing down cars that could be a bridge between what communities want and what engineers want.

#SlowtheCars, Engineering Profession, Roads and Streets, Strategies, Transportation, Top StoryMike BrownFebruary 15, 2022traffic engineering, engineers, engineering profession, Pedestrian Safety, pedestrian safety, STROADS, streets, Street Design, Brainerd MN, #SlowTheCars

Why Do We Have to Handle 30,000 Trips per Day?

When engineers say a street must accommodate a high volume of traffic, what they really mean is, "The design of this street must prioritize the convenience of commuters over all else."

Do Something Nice for Yourself

Exhausted from helping her father adjust to life in assisted living, our Neighborhood Storyteller Karla Theilen seeks comfort in a local record store.

Neighborhood Storyteller, Theilen, Top StoryKarla TheilenFebruary 1, 2022neighborhood storyteller, aging, local business, Minnesota, Brainerd MN

LaVonne, with a Capital "V"

Local business owners don’t just bring monetary wealth to a community; they can also bring a wealth of support and kindness to locals during their times of need.

Neighborhood Storyteller, Theilen, Top StoryKarla TheilenJanuary 25, 2022neighborhood storyteller, small business, entrepreneurship, aging, aging in place, local business, Minnesota, Brainerd MN

A Guy for Everything

Aging in place means being able to forge relationships with the people in your community—people who can support you when you need it the most.

Neighborhood Storyteller, Theilen, Top StoryKarla TheilenJanuary 18, 2022neighborhood storyteller, aging in place, aging, family, Minnesota, Brainerd MN, Community, coffee shops

Where Parking Reform Ideas Go to Die...or Not?

You might be used to good ideas getting killed by committee. Here’s some inspiration to keep pushing, regardless.

#BlackFridayParking, Marohn, Parking, Top StoryCharles MarohnNovember 24, 2021Brainerd MN, parking, parking minimums, #BlackFridayParking, success, success stories

A Plan for Parking That You Can Use in Your Place

Today I’m sharing a plan I offered to my colleagues on our local parking committee. My hope is that it'll benefit those who are thinking through similar issues in their places.