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.

What's Actually Wrong With This Building?

Heated discussion about a new condo in Sarasota, FL, has got locals calling the building an eyesore. But is this a case of misdirected ire?

Architecture, Herriges, Urban Design, Top StoryDaniel HerrigesJanuary 25, 2023architecture, design, density, f, Florida, downtown, zoning, urban design

What Causes Traffic Problems? Updating Your Mental Model

Part of why we can't agree on constructive solutions to traffic congestion is that our basic mental model of what causes traffic is wrong. But what if we made a slight update to that model?

An Empty Big-Box Store Is a Lesson In "Commercial Density"

What can be done about retail structures when they’re abandoned by their big-box tenants? One solution: break them down into smaller, much more dynamic spaces.

Postcards from the Edges: With COVID-19, Density Is Not Destiny

Two polar cases suggests that density (or lack thereof) has little to do with the spread of the pandemic.

What If You're Right?

Suppose the doomsday predictions are right and the COVID-19 crisis empties our cities. That’s not automatically good news for the suburbs.

Top Story, CoronavirusJohnny SanphillippoMay 26, 2020Coronavirus, suburban development pattern, rural, density

Not so Fast: Density Isn’t Plague-Inducing

Commentators have speculated that density has been toxic during the coronavirus crisis. But Joe Minicozzi of Urban3 did what he does best—he ran the numbers—and found a different story. This is why data should prevail during a pandemic.

Urban3, Urban DesignJoe MinicozziApril 20, 2020coronavirus, Urban3, Joe Minicozzi, density, urbanism, public health

Pandemics Take Advantage of Everything Good in Cities. Here’s How we Protect Them.

The lesson of coronavirus is not that it’s bad to have strong human connections in cities. The lesson is that we need to be able to shut them down quickly when we need to.

Top StoryTristan ClevelandMarch 19, 2020public health, coronavirus, density

David Sim of "Soft City": Making the Places We Live More Human

People might think of city life as necessarily “hard.” But the creative director at a Copenhagen-based urban design firm begs to differ. There are a few simple principles that can “soften” our city, drawing us closer together and radically improving our quality of life.

Question of the Week: Why is Master-Planned Development Less Financially Resilient?

Your Strong Towns Knowledge Base question of the week, answered here.

Knowledge Base, Top StoryDaniel HerrigesApril 26, 2019density, master planned, fragility, Value Per Acre

Question of the Week: What is the Right Density for a Strong Town?

Your Strong Towns Knowledge Base question of the week, answered here.

Knowledge Base, Top StoryStrong TownsApril 19, 2019neighborhood change, density, zoning, Infill Development

Surprising Approaches To Achieving Density

We can build compact, walkable cities in an adaptable and economically inclusive manner — no high-rise towers needed.

Andrew Price, Small Scale Developers, Urban DesignAndrew PriceJanuary 3, 2018granularity, density

A Fateful Summit

A brilliant application of Strong Towns thinking highlighted at the Strong Towns Summit.

Marohn, #DotheMath, Success Story, summitCharles MarohnApril 3, 2017Fate, density

What happens when you densify the suburbs?

This video of Mississauga, ON shows us that density will not save the suburbs.

Top Story, Sanphillippo, VideoStrong TownsNovember 10, 2016density, Canada, suburbs, suburban retrofit

Spiking a Rising Tide

A fetish with density is spiking the rising tide of housing demand in cities like Portland. To make housing affordable, we have to deal with the cause of the spike.

Marohn, #DotheMath, HousingCharles MarohnOctober 31, 2016Portland OR, affordable housing, density, public transportation, Light Rail

Best of 2015: The Density Question

Density is not our problem or our solution. Insolvency is our problem. Productive places are the solution.

Best of Blog, Top Story, #DotheMath, Cost of DevelopmentCharles MarohnDecember 17, 2015density, infrastructure cult, Infrastructure

Respect the Renter

In spite of the fact that ⅓ of all American are renting their housing, there seems to be a notion in many neighborhoods and towns that owners are the only residents who are going to be valuable members of their communities. Instead, renters should be more fully welcomed into their neighborhoods and respected as the diverse, engaged community members that they can be.

Environmentalism and Density on Minnesota's Lakes

A small town in Minnesota just gave an extended middle finger to one of the state’s most impotent bureaucracies.

MarohnCharles MarohnApril 21, 2015Minnesota, Baxter MN, Land Use, density, zoning

Is this success?

As fiscal becomes the new sustainable, let's make sure we actually #dothemath.

#DotheMath, Urban DesignCharles MarohnApril 7, 2015density, Smart Growth, urban design

Loose threads

Our audience growth continues to accelerate – we have doubled in size since November – and, as we continue to experience, Strong Towns readers and listeners don’t comprise a nice, clean demographic profile (one of the greatest compliments you all provide).

In short, I appreciate that I sometimes need to slow down and connect some dots. I’m going to try and do that today.

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