Top 5 Recent Stories (January 27-January 31)

How much a mile of road actually costs, the demolition of a church to make room for a self-storage facility, and why a smart city future won’t make up for getting the “dumb” stuff wrong. These stories and more in our weekly Top 5.

Top StoryStrong TownsJanuary 31, 2020post roundup

California's Bad Party: SB50 Fails Again

California has the nation’s worst housing crisis. It’s also the place mired in the worst gridlock when it comes to how to respond to it.

Herriges, Housing, Top StoryDaniel HerrigesJanuary 31, 2020California, SB50, housing, housing crisis, fieldsteadca, fieldsteadcafeatured

Cyclists are somehow both “vehicles” and “pedestrians.” This ambiguous status puts lives at risk.

How do we make cyclists safer? Put more of them on the road.

Bikeability, Top StoryGreg WalkerJanuary 30, 2020bikeability, pedestrian safety, bike infrastructure

Американская Хрущевка (American Khrushchyovka)

What do Soviet-era construction and 21st-century American construction have in common? More than you might think.

Architecture, Top StoryJohnny SanphillippoJanuary 30, 2020architecture, montana, hotels, soviet union, centralization, capitalism

"Which Way To Your Car, Sir?"

People who get around without a car experience the indignities that come from being routinely ignored in the design of things.

Bikeability, Top StoryDaniel HerrigesJanuary 30, 2020bike parking, bikeability, bike infrastructure

Pay Attention to How a City Makes You Feel

How a place makes us feel can’t replace the hard feedback of things that can be measured, but it can be a hint that something is working…or not.

"Snow plows come in only one size: ginormous." Or do they?

Do we size our city for the equipment we want, or size our equipment for the city we need?

Roads and Streets, Top StoryCharles MarohnJanuary 29, 2020STROADS, narrow streets, Fire Trucks, Fire Departments, streets, snow

No, Mathematicians Have Not "Solved" Traffic Jams

What kind of problem is traffic? Is it a mathematical or programming problem, a physics problem, an engineering problem, an economics problem, or a cultural, behavioral, or political one? The right answer: “Yes.”

Herriges, Top Story, TransportationDaniel HerrigesJanuary 28, 2020traffic congestion, traffic engineering, congestion

It's All Downhill from Here

The slide into municipal insolvency isn’t as fun as they made it sound. It’s time for cities to #DoTheMath.

Boomers, Stickers, and the Lifecycle of a Cool Neighborhood

Today’s trendiest neighborhood will be tomorrow’s old news. Should this matter to a Strong Towns advocate?

Top Story, RuralJohn PattisonJanuary 28, 2020stability, rural, Portland OR, New York

How Much Does a Mile of Road Actually Cost?

The Federal Highway Administration has a chart full of answers to that question you might find useful.

Nominate Your Town for the 5th Annual Strongest Towns Contest

You’ve always said more people should know how great your town or city is. Now they will.

Strongest Town Contest, Top StoryStrong TownsJanuary 27, 2020Strongest Town Competition, Strongest Town 2020, Updates

Church to be Demolished for Self-Storage Facility

If you want to lay up treasures for yourself in Roseville, Michigan, you’ll soon have a new option. But it comes at a high cost to the wallet (and soul) of the community.

Faith, Zoning, Economic Development, Top StoryCharles MarohnJanuary 27, 2020churches, storage units, subsidies, Detroit, Michigan

Top 5 Recent Stories (January 20-January 24)

L.A.’s transit past, the importance of good design (even in a housing crisis), and why auto-centric development is especially hard on seniors. These stories and more in our weekly Top 5.

Top StoryStrong TownsJanuary 24, 2020post roundup

How to Get to Great Bus Service in a Car-Dominated Place

The most exciting advances in public transit in North America are coming from some unexpected places, where they’re figuring out how to achieve more with less. Indianapolis might be the newest to join that club.

Herriges, Public Transit, Transportation, Top StoryDaniel HerrigesJanuary 24, 2020buses, transit, BRT, aBRT, Indiana, Indianapolis

Who's Afraid of New Apartments?

More research from the Upjohn Institute, following an attention-grabbing study last year, helps us understand the cause-and-effect chains that result when a new apartment building opens in a low-income area.

Herriges, Housing, Top StoryDaniel HerrigesJanuary 23, 2020housing, gentrification, neighborhood change, housing cost, economics

Combating Loneliness in Italy with "Social Streets"

A father in Italy created a local Facebook group to help his son find playmates in their neighborhood. It sparked a national movement to create more “Social Streets.”