Oftentimes, people in rural settings drive long distances to bigger towns to find community engagement. This renovated soda fountain shop shows why it’s worth looking for that sense of community a little closer to home.

Public Space, Community, Top Story, Community StoriesSeairra SheppardMarch 30, 2023Wyoming, rural, Small Towns, small towns, community, Third Places, restaurants, coffee shops, public space

Finding the Pulse of My Hometown

Our Neighborhood Storyteller visits her hometown to both mourn and celebrate the changes that have happened there over the years.

Theilen, Top StoryKarla TheilenDecember 4, 2022Brainerd MN, Small Towns, small towns, local business, Minnesota, restaurants

This Ice Machine Is a Case Study in Neighborhood Decline

When you prioritize fast car movement on a street that should be for building community wealth, don’t be surprised when you end up getting neither.

Marohn, Roads and Streets, Top Story, Safe & Productive Streets, Transparent AccountingCharles MarohnSeptember 19, 2022Safe and Productive Streets, streets, STROADS, Brainerd MN, Minnesota, capitalism, decline, neighborhood, Small Towns, small towns, suburban development pattern

Build Galesburg for People, Not Cars

Galesburg, IL, is talking about Strong Towns ideas, centered around a question that many Strong Towns readers are familiar with: “Is our downtown built for cars instead of people?”

Sheppard, Urban Design, Top StorySeairra SheppardAugust 23, 2022downtown, Small Towns, main street, car dependency, auto-oriented, people centered places, design, Illinois, incrementalism, bottom-up

Can New Jersey Supermarkets Predict an End to the Suburban Experiment?

The trajectory of these Jersey supermarkets is a microcosm of how the suburban experiment altered small towns, turning them from tiny cities into suburban lifestyle accouterments.

Big Box Stores, Suburban Experiment, Top StoryAddison Del MastroAugust 9, 2022main street, Traditional Main Street, big box stores, Small Towns, small towns, suburban experiment, suburbanization, New Jersey, Addison Del Mastro, local economy

There’s No Unguarded Hour in Jasper, Indiana, the Beating Heart of Strong Towns

The decision to renovate a local theater presents a simple, but compelling, example of why Jasper, IN, was chosen as our 2022 Strongest Town Contest winner.

Strongest Town Contest, Stange, Top StoryJay StangeJuly 26, 2022Strongest Town Winner, Strongest Town Competition, Strongest Town 2022, Indiana, Jasper IN, Small Towns, small towns

Why I Started Reading the Local Newspaper

Sometimes, it’s worth it to take a step back from national news and pay attention to the things that are happening in your own community.

Community, Pattison, Top StoryJohn PattisonJuly 20, 2022local conversations, politics, localism, local government, Small Towns, small towns, Oregon, community, Community

"Streets Closed to Vehicular Traffic"

Downtown Leesburg, Virginia, goes car free for one weekend.

Walkability, Top StoryAddison Del MastroJuly 19, 2022walkability, Small Towns, small towns, Virginia, car-lite, public space, Addison Del Mastro

Stanwood Mulls Strong Towns-Style Main Street Makeover

This small town is considering overhauling its main street to embrace walkability and good old-fashioned main street urbanism.

Success Story, Urban Design, Top StoryDoug TrummJune 13, 2022Washington, Small Towns, downtown, main street, Traditional Main Street, revitalization, walkability, urbanism, success, success stories, rural

We Need More Charming, People-Centered Places

Residents of small towns shouldn’t have to travel to a large urban downtown to get a taste of a walkable, people-centered environment.

Sheppard, Walkability, Top StorySeairra SheppardMay 31, 2022walkability, Small Towns, people centered places, Third Places, Israel, pop-up, local business, markets, Markets, midwest

Large Scale, Small Scale

What if we could get back large buildings hosting businesses at a hyperlocal scale—and what if that actually helped reduce the sentiment we call NIMBYism?

Top StoryAddison Del MastroMay 24, 2022New Jersey, Addison Del Mastro, localism, NIMBY, Small Towns, small towns, hotels, history, History

Strong Towns Need Strong Downtowns

A crucial part of making your city or town stronger lies in revitalizing your downtown. Here’s how one Local Conversation organizer is doing that work in her place.

#StrongCitizens, Community, Pattison, Top StoryJohn PattisonMay 18, 2022advocacy, main street, Traditional Main Street, Small Towns, small towns, Louisiana, community, Community, local economy, downtown

I (Don’t) Want More Than This Provincial Life

When the pandemic shut down our town, I realized how much I'd taken for granted the neighbors who showed up every day to make our community work.

Community, Pattison, Rural, Top StoryJohn PattisonApril 27, 2022community, community building, neighborliness, Small Towns, small towns, Oregon, rural

The Grim Reaper of Small Towns

Our excessive expansion of the interstate highway system has destroyed urban downtowns—and it’s wiped out many small towns altogether.

#InfrastructureCrisis, Infrastructure, Sheppard, Transportation, Top StorySeairra SheppardApril 5, 2022highways, freeway widening, freeways, urban freeways, history, History, Small Towns, small towns, Infrastructure, infrastructure, transportation

Can We Please Stop Fighting About Gardens

In this town where so many people have front-lawn gardens, why is anyone still arguing that they shouldn’t be allowed?

Local Food, Sheppard, Top StorySeairra SheppardMarch 15, 2022gardening, Gardening, food deserts, local food, community, Community, city council, Illinois, Small Towns, small towns

I Found My People...in a Completely Different Town

When a community is strong, it can make even an “outsider” feel welcome.

Neighborhood Storyteller, Theilen, Community, Top StoryKarla TheilenMarch 1, 2022neighborhood storyteller, community, Hospitals, hospitals, hospitality, Small Towns, small towns, montana

Free (Rural) Land: Any Takers?

These small towns in Kansas are offering land and housing at a steal in an attempt to fortify their shrinking tax bases. What does this mean for the future of rural America?