The Pillaging of Detroit

Stunning new data analysis on the homes lost to tax forfeiture in Detroit shows that, in just a three-year span, $300 million in real estate transferred from homeowners living in Detroit to outside owners.

Top StorySeairra JonesSeptember 20, 2022property tax, homeowners, poverty, local government, Just Accounting for Health, transparent local accounting, home buyer, michigan

The Suburbs Are a “One-Life-Cycle” Product

A recent CNBC documentary features Strong Towns insights from Charles Marohn about why suburban development is so risky.

Top StoryRachel QuednauSeptember 20, 2022suburban development pattern, suburban experiment, suburbs, incremental development, incrementalism, incremental, Incremental Housing, housing cost, housing, housing affordability, housing crisis

The Jackson Water Crisis Is Not a Fluke. Your City Could Be Next.

For seven weeks Jackson’s residents had to bear the brunt of a failing water system, and unfortunately it was bound to happen.

Podcast, Marohn, Top StoryStrong TownsSeptember 19, 2022podcast, suburban experiment, suburban development pattern, mississippi, water, sprawl, fragility, growth ponzi scheme

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, Top StoryCharles MarohnSeptember 19, 2022streets, capitalism, decline, small towns, suburban development pattern, minnesota, stroad, safe and productive streets, neighborhoods

Talking to Strangers

Our Neighborhood Storyteller reflects on beating social isolation—even in isolated places.

Neighborhood Storyteller, Top StoryKarla TheilenSeptember 18, 2022neighborhood storyteller

Friday Faves - Your Weekly Strong Towns Roundup

Chestnuts, Tolkien, and developer kings. These are just some of the stories from around the internet that Strong Towns staff were reading and talking about this week.

Top StoryStrong TownsSeptember 16, 2022friday faves

New Tools To Visualize How Your City Could Benefit From Incremental Development

The American Enterprise Institute has released some impressive—and free—data tools for understanding housing markets and development potential. And as a bonus, attend their upcoming talks if you’re in California!

Herriges, Top StoryDaniel HerrigesSeptember 16, 2022housing, housing crisis, incrementalism, incremental development, incremental, Incremental Housing, walkability, events, event, maps, california

The Bottom-Up Revolution Is…Speaking Up to Build Strong Towns

Norm Van Eeden Petersman is the new member advocate at Strong Towns, as well as the leader of a Local Conversation group in Delta, BC.

Podcast, Top StoryStrong TownsSeptember 15, 2022local conversations, canada, podcast

$4.7 Billion New Jersey Turnpike Expansion Ignores Local Leaders and Invites More Gridlock

The New Jersey Turnpike Authority plans to spend $4.7 billion updating and widening an eight-mile section of the turnpike, in the hopes of relieving congestion. Here’s why it’s not going to help.

Top StoryKelcie Ralph and Nicholas KleinSeptember 15, 2022highways, highway spending, freeways, freeway widening, congestion, traffic congestion, congestion pricing, local government, transportation spending, infrastructure spending, transportation, end highway expansion, new jersey

E-Bikes: The Frankenstein's Monster of Transportation?

A recent Atlantic piece paints e-bikes as an awkward, doomed-to-fail mashup of the motorcycle and the bicycle. What’s the Strong Towns take?

Podcast, Top StoryStrong TownsSeptember 14, 2022podcast, bikes, e-bikes, biking, bicycling, bikeability, transportation, upzoned

Main Street vs. Big Box Stores: A Western North Carolina Analysis

Property taxes represent the largest source of revenue for most local governments, and data shows that even unglamorous downtown areas offer more value as taxable properties than big box stores.

Top StorySeairra JonesSeptember 13, 2022big box stores, property tax, finance, public finance, Just Accounting for Health, urban3, value per acre, taxes, transparent local accounting, local economy

Suburbia Was a Housing Program

Suburbia was an experiment—an experiment in the service of building lots of housing very quickly.

Top StoryAddison Del MastroSeptember 12, 2022suburban experiment, suburbs, suburban development pattern, housing, housing policy, housing cost, housing crisis, housing affordability, NIMBY, Incremental Housing

The Block Party

This Sunday, a Strong Towns member invites our Neighborhood Storyteller to see how his neighborhood alliance is building community…with a block party!

Neighborhood Storyteller, Top StoryKarla TheilenSeptember 11, 2022neighborhood storyteller, montana, neighborhood association, community, community development, community engagement, neighborhoods

Friday Faves - Your Weekly Strong Towns Roundup

Pizza rolls, protective groundwater, and the Chinese Revolution. These are just some of the stories from around the internet that Strong Towns staff were reading and talking about this week.

Top StoryStrong TownsSeptember 9, 2022friday faves

Large Trucks Need Better Street Design

It's hard being the driver of a large truck, these days. You want your urban truck-driving experience to be better, but how? Answer: By supporting great pedestrian and cycling projects!

Top StoryNorman Van Eeden PetersmanSeptember 9, 2022bicycling, protected bike lane, bike lanes, car culture, transportation, pedestrians, safe and productive streets, safety

The Bottom-Up Revolution Is…Planting Street Trees and Neighborhood Connections

Emma Durand-Wood is a Strong Towns member who is a leader in her neighborhood association and a big advocate for street trees in Winnipeg.

Podcast, Top StoryStrong TownsSeptember 8, 2022street trees, neighborhood association, success stories, canada, podcast

The Starter House Is Nearly Extinct

Increasingly, for entire cities in the U.S., buying a starter home on a modest income is no longer an option.

Herriges, Top StoryDaniel HerrigesSeptember 8, 2022housing cost, housing, housing affordability, housing crisis, Incremental Housing, housing market, housing policy

6 Tips for Hosting Your First Local Conversation

Want to get together with your neighbors to talk about Strong Towns ideas? Here’s some tips on getting started.

Top StoryJohn PattisonSeptember 7, 2022local conversations, community

Letting Ugly Things Grow

If you value the end state of a walkable, diverse, dynamic place with a lot of local character, then you must also value the process that gets you there.