Happy 4th!

We will not be publishing on Thursday, 7/4 or Friday 7/5. Happy 4th of July to our U.S. readers!

Strong TownsJuly 4, 2019

Want to Organize Strong Towns Advocates in Your City? Join Us for an AMA Webcast Where You Can Learn How It's Done.

Our next Ask Strong Towns: Celebrity Edition webcast features two rock-star local organizers who have advanced the Strong Towns movement in their cities: Jim Hodapp of Strong Indy, and Jordan Deffenbaugh of Strong Towns Sioux Falls. This live, members-only webcast is coming your way on Tuesday, July 23rd!

Ask Strong Towns webcast, Ask Strong Towns, Top StoryStrong TownsJuly 3, 2019

What Neighborhood-Led Investment Looks Like in Detroit

Rafa Wright—Detroit native, community leader, and soon-to-be owner of a new, Detroit-based neighborhood grocery—shares how you can make neighborhood-led investments in your community, including how to observe where people struggle, how to find the right investments for your neighborhood, and how to get your neighbors involved in the process.

Making Normal Neighborhoods Legal Again

The growing movement to end exclusive single-family zoning—as Oregon just did in its cities—is not a radical or untested experiment: it’s a return to a historical norm. The actual radical experiment is the strange notion that a neighborhood should be required to contain only one type of home.

Housing, Herriges, Top StoryDaniel HerrigesJuly 3, 2019upzoning, single-family, Oregon, Seattle, Portland OR, next increment, duplex, fourplex, ADUs

Why Are U.S. Drivers Killing So Many Pedestrians?

U.S. drivers are killing 50 percent more pedestrians than a mere decade ago; meanwhile, European drivers are killing a third fewer. Why?

#SlowtheCars, Top StoryJoe CortrightJuly 2, 2019Pedestrian Safety, #SlowTheCars, Europe, data, safety

My Journey from Free Market Ideologue to Strong Towns Advocate, Part 2: Pequot Lakes Bypass

Early in my career, I helped plan a highway bypass for a small town that I was sure would generate a positive return on investment in the form of economic growth. The only problem? The actual numbers we calculated told a different story.

Sacrifice a Historic Downtown Neighborhood for a Hospital? There's a Better Option.

When we do the math, we find that preserving historic buildings and districts is the best thing we can do for our cities’ economic futures. Utica, New York should consider this when choosing where to locate a new hospital campus.

"Start Small, and Make a Lot of Noise": How to Improve a Neighborhood from the Bottom Up

There are huge swaths of 1950s and 1960s suburbia that need a bit of TLC—and expensive, top-down “sprawl repair” isn’t going to be up to the task. What’s required is a more patient, grassroots approach. Urban planner John Yung has some ideas.

Watch a Licensed Engineer Coach Cities on How to Game FEMA Assistance

Got potholes? Can’t get federal funding for routine street maintenance? That’s what you think! As it turns out, there are all sorts of ways that cities game that system.