This week in High Value, we follow Chris Ekte as he deals with headaches at work—including an ominous note about a former employee.

High Value Serial, Top StoryHamilton LudwigJanuary 21, 2022High Value series, series

The Galesburg Papers, Part 1: The Diagnosis

Citizens of Galesburg, IL, are trying to save their public indoor pool and create a new activity complex. City council is sympathetic, but there's just one problem: money.

The Bottom-Up Revolution Is...Collaborating for Neighborhood Revitalization

Gregg Lombardi is helping unite resources, organizations, and legal strategies to support a Kansas City neighborhood.

Podcast, Top StoryStrong TownsJanuary 20, 2022The Bottom-Up Revolution, taking action, crime, neighborhood revitalization, missouri

How Big Is an Incremental Step? Let's #DoTheMath

For our real-estate markets to allow incremental development to be economically viable, there are some challenges we need to confront.

Time for a Little "Self-Gentrification"

“You don’t have to move out of your neighborhood to live in a better one,” says Majora Carter in her new book, Reclaiming Your Community.

Top StoryJay StangeJanuary 20, 2022gentrification, housing, neighborhood revitalization, blight, books, neighborhoods

Weaponizing Historic Preservation

Has historic preservation harmed the capacity for cities across the U.S. to address the housing crisis?

Podcast, Top StoryStrong TownsJanuary 19, 2022podcast, housing, housing crisis, historic preservation, upzoned

Start With What You Know. Build on What You Have.

This simple, fun workshop will help your community discover just how many assets it has to work with.

Top StoryJohn PattisonJanuary 19, 2022community, community building, bottom-up, how to, taking action

What Would Mass Upzoning *Actually* Do to Property Values?

A common objection to broad upzonings is, “Won't allowing more development everywhere set off speculative feeding frenzies?” The answer? No. Here’s why.

Herriges, Top StoryDaniel HerrigesJanuary 19, 2022upzoning, zoning, development, incremental development, incrementalism, next increment

Seems to Me That "Maybe" Pretty Much Always Means "No"

Flaky residential zoning has no place in a Strong Town!

Top StoryMarlene DrukerJanuary 18, 2022zoning, Land Use, Form-Based Code, small scale development, local government

Eden Center: Is This Strip Mall Paradise?

If we’re going to be stuck with strip malls, then this one in Virginia is about as fine-grained and urban as it gets.

A Guy for Everything

Aging in place means being able to forge relationships with the people in your community—people who can support you when you need it the most.

Peter Norton: The Illusory Promise of High-Tech Driving

Technology historian Peter Norton talks about why we need to be more skeptical toward the utopian promises of self-driving cars.

Podcast, Top StoryStrong TownsJanuary 17, 2022podcast, cars, car culture, car dependency, auto-oriented, books, self driving cars

Q: Are You a Democrat or Republican? A: I'm Non-Binary.

Last week, Chuck did an AMA on Reddit and received a ton of great questions. Here’s some of the highlights!

Top StoryJay StangeJanuary 17, 2022Social Media, Strong Towns Community, Not Just Bikes, community building

Building Something from Nothing in Utica

This grassroots organization has taken it into their own hands to activate and revitalize their community in Utica, NY.

Top StoryArian HorbovetzJanuary 17, 2022bottom-up, community, community development, pop-up, placemaking, revitalization, public space, new york

Friday Faves - Your Weekly Strong Towns Roundup

Piano tuners, 3-D-printed houses, and masking and privilege. These are just some of the stories from around the internet that Strong Towns staff were reading and talking about this week.

Top StoryStrong TownsJanuary 14, 2022friday faves