The Suburbs Will Thrive or Fail on Their Own Terms

The society that built Main Street is long gone. Is it time to move on to Plan B?

Will Pandemic-Era Migrations Lead to Further Insolvency?

The shift to remote work is prompting people to move away from cities. What are the long-term implications of this “urban shuffle”?

Podcast, Upzoned, Coronavirus, Top StoryStrong TownsMay 5, 2021local economy, Podcast, Upzoned, coronavirus, suburbs

"Another Kind of Piñata You Can Be"

The suburban growth model might as well be called an extractive industry: it deals just as much of a beating to communities that embrace it.

Want to Change the Way Our World is Built? You Won't Do it by Fighting a Culture War.

We won’t end the Suburban Experiment by denying that people enjoy living in the suburbs…or by telling them they shouldn’t enjoy it.

Suburban Experiment, Herriges, Top StoryDaniel HerrigesJanuary 6, 2021suburban experiment, suburbs

In Praise of Streetcar Suburbs

The streetcar suburb was the dominant development type in American cities between about 1890-1930. What lessons can we learn about how to build our cities today?

Planning Profession, Top StoryPete SaundersSeptember 2, 2020suburbs, Streetcars, development pattern, planning profession

7 Rules for Rehabilitating Suburbia

A lot of places that were built on the premise of efficient, manicured order are going to need to pivot to a different vision of the future: one based more on nimble, ad-hoc adaptation.

Herriges, Top StoryDaniel HerrigesMay 21, 2020suburbs, suburban retrofit, suburban poverty

James Howard Kunstler: Living in the Long Emergency

One of our most trusted guides on the social and economic fallout of the COVID-19 crisis, its impact on suburbia, and how to live in the long emergency.

Podcast, Top StoryStrong TownsMay 12, 2020James Howard Kunstler, Coronavirus, suburbs, Podcast, books

What Does It Mean to Be a "Strong Town" During a Pandemic?

Are spread-out suburbs safer in a pandemic than compact, walkable cities? Short answer: Yes. Does that mean suburban-style neighborhoods are “stronger” during a pandemic? Not even close. Here’s why.

We're not going to build more Main Street towns. Here's one way to move on.

What if the “beautiful dream” of a Main Street urbanism isn’t available? What can be done to adapt that dream to auto-dependent suburbs? More than you might expect.

Housing, Neighborhoods, Sanphillippo, Top StoryJohnny SanphillippoJanuary 15, 2020colorado, Denver, suburbs, incremental development

Choose Your Fate, Texas

The numbers don’t lie: business-as-usual suburban development won’t bring a booming town long-term financial strength. But it turns out that to #DoTheMath is only the first step toward changing your community's business model.

The real reason why Bill Gates' and Jeff Bezos' posh suburb is going broke

Medina, Washington is struggling to pay its bills. How can this be? And what does it mean for towns and cities that don’t have the two richest people in the world living there?

Upzoned, WIlson, Reuter, Podcast, Cost of Development, Top StoryKea WilsonNovember 1, 2019Bill Gates, Jeff Bezos, Seattle, Medina, suburbs, tax revenue, Infrastructure

From New Deal Utopia to Strong Town

A “green belt” suburb with its roots in the New Deal faces pressures associated with conventional, auto-oriented development. How should residents approach decision-making so that the town’s future is as rich as its past?

My City's Needs Are Growing Faster Than Its Budget. That's Why We Need the Strong Towns Message.

My bedroom community’s streets are aging, and we recently learned that we need to double our pavement preservation spending to keep them from declining further. Here’s what we’re doing about it—and why the Strong Towns philosophy is instrumental for us.

"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.

Urbanism Doesn't Have to Mean Downtown Living

The values often labeled “urbanism” are really about living the kind of locally-centered life that’s easier on your wallet, the environment, and your health—and that makes our communities more prosperous and resilient as well. But do you need to move downtown to be an urbanist? Absolutely not.

Horbovetz, Top StoryArian HorbovetzMay 14, 2019neighborhood, suburbs, urbanism

Housing Markets Should Be More Like Supermarkets

In many areas of modern life, the market provides a cornucopia of choices to accommodate people’s diverse needs, wants, and tastes: just visit a supermarket to see this. When it comes to housing options, though, the reality is starkly different.

Housing, Zoning, Maitland, Top StoryAustin MaitlandApril 4, 2019suburbs, missing middle

The Death of the Suburban Fourplex

Most apartments built today are in huge complexes along busy streets, not tucked away in quiet neighborhoods in “missing middle” buildings like fourplexes, which used to be common. But how did the missing middle go missing, anyway?

Housing, Zoning, Top StoryJames KilbornMarch 28, 2019missing middle, fourplex, suburbs

Learning to Love a Humble Neighborhood

Perhaps we should spend more time trying to understand and appreciate the humble, marginally better neighborhoods that are already tucked away in our cities. Here’s one such neighborhood in Lexington, Kentucky.

Gray, Top Story, Urban Design, Housing, Neighborhood DesignNolan GrayAugust 13, 2018affordable housing, suburbs, zoning

The Apartment Complex

Affordable housing can take many shapes and show up in surprising places. These places aren’t subsidized or government-run, but they house millions of Americans.