This Florida Town Rode a Rail Trail to an Economic Revival

Residents of Winter Garden, FL, realized they needed to take action to revive their declining town. They did this by focusing on one straightforward goal: bring people back downtown.

In Conversation With an Expert: Dan Burden of Blue Zones

Blue Zones Director of Innovation and Inspiration Dan Burden talks about challenges exist in changing our built environment, and what stood out in the crash he analyzed on a recent Crash Analysis Studio episode.

Safe & Productive Streets, Top StoryAsia MieleszkoApril 19, 2023Crash Analysis Studio, car crash, Safe and Productive Streets, Pedestrian Safety, pedestrian safety, speed, Speeding, speeding, main street, advocacy

Main Streets Designed Like State Highways: How They Work and How To Change Them

Two prominent communities in Berkshire County, MA, are in the midst of deciding what to prioritize on their main streets: cars or people?

Build Galesburg for People, Not Cars

Galesburg, IL, is talking about Strong Towns ideas, centered around a question that many Strong Towns readers are familiar with: “Is our downtown built for cars instead of people?”

Sheppard, Urban Design, Top StorySeairra SheppardAugust 23, 2022downtown, Small Towns, main street, car dependency, auto-oriented, people centered places, design, Illinois, incrementalism, bottom-up

Can New Jersey Supermarkets Predict an End to the Suburban Experiment?

The trajectory of these Jersey supermarkets is a microcosm of how the suburban experiment altered small towns, turning them from tiny cities into suburban lifestyle accouterments.

Big Box Stores, Suburban Experiment, Top StoryAddison Del MastroAugust 9, 2022main street, Traditional Main Street, big box stores, Small Towns, small towns, suburban experiment, suburbanization, New Jersey, Addison Del Mastro, local economy

Stanwood Mulls Strong Towns-Style Main Street Makeover

This small town is considering overhauling its main street to embrace walkability and good old-fashioned main street urbanism.

Success Story, Urban Design, Top StoryDoug TrummJune 13, 2022Washington, Small Towns, downtown, main street, Traditional Main Street, revitalization, walkability, urbanism, success, success stories, rural

Seeing the Glass as Half Full: Exploring the Reuse Opportunity for Houses of Worship on Main Street

Up to one-third of all houses of worship in the United States will have closed over the next few years. What will we do with the spaces they leave behind?

Faith, Top StoryRick ReinhardMay 20, 2022churches, Religion, religion, main street, downtown, revitalization, public institutions, Faith Featured, faith communities

Strong Towns Need Strong Downtowns

A crucial part of making your city or town stronger lies in revitalizing your downtown. Here’s how one Local Conversation organizer is doing that work in her place.

#StrongCitizens, Community, Pattison, Top StoryJohn PattisonMay 18, 2022advocacy, main street, Traditional Main Street, Small Towns, small towns, Louisiana, community, Community, local economy, downtown

Recovery Playbook: Back to Downtown & Main Street

This guide will take you through short-term and long-term strategies for downtown and Main Street recovery in the wake (and midst) of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Coronavirus, Economic Development, Strategies, Top StoryJonathan BerkMarch 11, 2022coronavirus, placemaking, creative placemaking, downtown, main street, Traditional Main Street, urbanism, revitalization, how to, economic development, Economic Development

Let Main Streets Be Main Streets

A community should determine what kind of community it wants to be, not unelected DOT engineers.

Break Out of the Resource Trap with a Strong Towns Approach

Communities in decline face a great deal of work if they hope to someday become stronger towns. Remember that it is a process, not a destination. Here’s how you can begin.

Community, Economic Development, Marohn, Resource Trap, Top StoryCharles MarohnMay 28, 2021resource trap, RBC Series, community, main street, Traditional Main Street, Resource Trap - Core Content

Reinforce the Main Street Ecosystem in Your Place

Resource-focused cities of the past built wealth in a downtown core surrounded by neighborhoods. Here’s how to recreate that ecosystem in your place, today.

Community, Economic Development, Marohn, Resource Trap, Top StoryCharles MarohnMay 27, 2021resource trap, RBC Series, community, main street, Traditional Main Street, Resource Trap - Core Content

Here's What *Not* to Do to Your Small-Town Main Street

How one small town in South Carolina destroyed everything that makes downtown downtown.

Roads and Streets, Rural, Top StoryDaniel HerrigesDecember 3, 2020STROADS, South Carolina, small towns, rural, highways, downtown, main street, Traditional Main Street

The Mall vs. Main Street: Where Are They Now?

The trajectories of two local shopping districts—a mall built in the mid-80s, and a historic downtown—provide an object lesson on the power of the “chaotic but smart” approach to growing a city.