ADUs Are Working Great—Just Not for the Twin Cities

Why hasn't there been more small-scale and incremental housing added in the Twin Cities after the zoning reform that was passed several years ago?

Incremental Housing, Top StoryZak YudhishthuApril 20, 2023ADUs, Minnesota, Incremental Housing, housing, housing policy, zoning, accessory dwelling units

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

Revised Zoning Rules Make Minnesota City Legal Again

Zoning restrictions in this Minneapolis suburb have rendered much of its original development in violation of its current rules. The city’s leadership is looking to change that.

Incremental Housing, Top StoryBen AbramsonFebruary 9, 2023Incremental Housing, zoning, Minnesota, housing, Development, development pattern, development, traditional development pattern, suburbs, suburban development pattern, suburban experiment

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

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

If You Want People to Use Public Transit, Connect the Places Where People Want to Walk

The Strong Towns team got together recently and used some of Minneapolis’s public transit. Here’s our reflections from that experience.

Public Transit, Transportation, Stange, Top StoryJay StangeAugust 23, 2022transit, public transit, public transportation, transportation, Not Just Bikes, CityNerd, Minnesota, Minneapolis

A Recent Lawsuit Uses “Environmentalism” To Argue Against Walkable, Compact Development in Minneapolis. What the Heck Is Going On?

The environmental groups suing Minneapolis to block implementation of its groundbreaking 2040 Plan have a limited understanding of environmentalism, but a keen grasp of how to slow down policy reform.

Environment, Incrementalism, Herriges, Zoning, Top StoryDaniel HerrigesJune 22, 2022Climate Change, climate, environment, Minnesota, Minneapolis, zoning, NIMBY, incremental growth, incremental development, incrementalism, infill

A Minnesota Judge Throws the Book at Immoral Tax Assessments

This case shows why local governments need to do a better job accounting for maintenance costs.

Finance, Infrastructure, Marohn, Top StoryCharles MarohnMay 9, 2022maintenance, finance, local finance, municipal finance, Assessments, local government, infrastructure maintenance, Infrastructure, infrastructure, infrastructure cost, Minnesota, Law

The Real Reason We Keep Getting Distracted by Transit Boondoggles

When it comes to transit mega project delays and overruns, there are typically two reactions: to trash the project mercilessly or unconditionally back it to the end. But there is a third option.

Infrastructure, Marohn, Transportation, Top StoryCharles MarohnFebruary 14, 2022Infrastructure, infrastructure, megaprojects, Megaprojects, transit, commuting, transportation spending, infrastructure spending, Minnesota, transportation

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

State and Local Policy Tensions Focus Zoning Reforms

Let’s step back and evaluate the status of some recent, high-profile zoning reforms.

Housing, Zoning, Top StoryTheo Mackey PollackJanuary 25, 2022housing, housing crisis, housing affordability, zoning, upzoning, Minnesota, Minneapolis, Oregon, California

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

My Journey from Free Market Ideologue to Strong Towns Advocate, Revisited

I’ve had to reconcile my foundational belief in markets with my experiences working with cities. This has been a painful process.

Marohn, #InfrastructureCrisis, Engineering Profession, Infrastructure, Local Government, Top StoryCharles MarohnOctober 25, 2021Market Urbanism, Local Government Aid, infrastructure cost, Minnesota, small towns, Infrastructure, infrastructure, engineers, engineering profession, local gov

The State Fair Parking Lottery

What a million-person festival and an experiment in pop-up entrepreneurship teach us about the incoherence of parking policy.

Parking, Herriges, Top StoryDaniel HerrigesSeptember 1, 2021parking, Donald Shoup, Minnesota, parking pricing

The Question Every City Should Be Asking

Let’s #DoTheMath in Ramsey County, Minnesota.

#DotheMath, Suburban Experiment, Suburban Poverty, Zoning, Davis, Top StorySarah DavisAugust 4, 2021Value Per Acre, Urban3, Minnesota, St. Paul, suburban development pattern, traditional development pattern, #DoTheMath

A Preview of Bi-Partisan Compromise on Infrastructure (Sorry, It's Not Good)

We should not be cheering on simulacrums of reform when the majority of spending is going to programs that are making us weaker as a country, as cities, and as neighborhoods.