Registration is now open to our members for the 2014 National Gathering in Minneapolis, September 12-14, 2014.

The most successful small towns are the ones that can see beyond their borders, understand how the world is changing and position themselves for that change. The small towns that become ghost towns stay locked in their thinking, irrationally believing that “what always worked” will always work, that we only need to keep doing what we are doing and things will work out.

"An aging society with rising expectations, burdened with rates of chronic diseases exacerbated by sedentary lifestyles, will probably divert spending from both military development and the economic growth that sustains it."

So the question really is, are the state/federal taxpayers going to subsidize their roadway or are rest of the county’s residents going to?

Unless you are a modern day Istanbul and sit at the crossroads of trade and commerce with the ability to skim margins off the goods flowing through your community, why would a city rely heavily on the sales tax? The only reason is because it is easy. Unfortunately, for building a strong town, easy is not always productive.

A special thank you to everyone who became a member of Strong Towns this week. I knew you would pull through for us. It means so much. I’m exhausted after this long week but promise you to be hard at again Monday morning. Until then, enjoy your weekend and be safe out there.