The Bottom-Up Revolution
What happens when a planner stops following broken rules and starts rewriting them instead?
Brad Callender, director of planning and zoning for Monroe, Georgia, legalized the housing people actually need. Duplexes and backyard cottages are now popping up across town. He joins Norm today to explain how he did it as a department of one.
Transcript (Lightly edited for readability)
Welcome to Bottom-Up Shorts, a Strong Towns Podcast. I'm Norm Van Eeden Petersman, Director of Membership and Public Engagement for Strong Towns. I've met thousands of Strong Towns members now, and each time, after hearing their stories, I'm often inspired to say, "Man, I've got to tell somebody about so and so." That's the case with Brad Callender, who is the Director of Planning and Zoning for the city of Monroe, Georgia.
He and I actually connected in my first early days at Strong Towns as I was reaching out to Strong Towns members and asking and learning from them what it meant to be a Strong Towns member, what it was that they were doing in their community. Brad fits the bill of somebody that is taking action in his community in order to bring in not just the things that we need to see in the long term, but also those short-term changes, those things that allow for good things to happen down the road. So this is the idea of these shorts -- quick introductions to people doing remarkable and exciting things in their community.
I got to connect with Brad most recently at CNU in Providence, Rhode Island. While we were there, I think we did something that definitely stands out to me as one of those things that happens when you really love your place. Brad took out his phone as we were sitting on a picnic table and began showing me images of buildings and projects and small businesses and small residences within his community that he was proud of, taking note of and seeing emerge within his community -- good things taking place under the watchful observation of somebody that says, "I love my place and I want to improve it."
So Brad, can you talk about your work as the Director of Planning and Zoning in your community and how you are trying to take that approach of fixing some of the big things, but also addressing so many of those smaller impediments to good progress within our communities? I think that really stands out in the work that you're doing in Monroe.
Absolutely. Yeah, so what we've done is taken a pretty big approach in Monroe to addressing issues with our ordinance and taking the old requirements in our ordinance. We adopted a form-based code for the core of our city, where the suburban requirements were just not doing the city any justice at all. We adopted a form-based code where we really shrunk down -- we got rid of most of the lot minimums. They don't even exist anymore within our ordinance.
What we have now are just some basic lot requirements, the forms of the lots themselves -- minimum widths -- and the rest of the lot itself is just dictated by what you will build on the lot. What that's done is enabled us to increase the amount of infill that we've got going on inside the core of our city.
In addition to allowing the form-based code that we've adopted, we've also increased the number of house types that we would permit inside the city that were normally not allowed in the past. So what we're starting to see is a creep, if you want to call it that, just an incremental increase in the number of dwelling types inside the center of the city that we were not seeing before. It's happening slowly, because people are just now getting wind that you can actually do this. Because for so long in a city like Monroe and other places in Georgia, they are so used to the norm, and they're so trained in being able to do suburban-style development, even within the core of our cities.
Now they're able to do something different, and they're able to do it by right in our city. So they're kind of surprised that they can come to me, get a permit by right, go build a duplex on a lot without having to go through a zoning change or anything. They love it.
How did you pick up some of those key elements of the types of housing that you need in your neighborhood and learning from the past of what used to be there? Can you talk a little bit about -- at Strong Towns, we talk about the traditional development pattern and some of the ways in which we've made certain types of housing illegal. We talk about missing middle housing sometimes, but I always say, "No, it's banished middle housing." But you're taking efforts to legalize small and to allow that type of activity to occur. Can you describe what that path has been like? Maybe as part of an education effort also within the community to help bring people on side with this.
Luckily for me, the city had approached the form-based code years ago, so the missing middle concept is not foreign to a lot of our leadership here. So I'm a little bit blessed in the community that I had some folks that were not completely oblivious to what's going on. When I walked into this community five years ago, they were anxious and ready and hungry for this type of change. So I brought more to the table, I guess, when I brought my experience to the table. But missing middle housing is what they could not describe or actually verbalize in their way when they said they wanted to change. I'm like, "I know what you want, and you want missing middle housing."
We are missing -- you have this lower end of single family, and the push from the big development community, the big push out of outer Atlanta is this big apartment-style development that they were seeing. That's really the only types of pressures they were seeing. I'm like, "What we're missing is everything inside the middle, everything that we hear about in Strong Towns and new urbanism." So that's what our ordinance did. It basically opened up the ability for us to build all of those housing types in our city. We've made those all by right. Working with a consultant that helped us write the form-based code, we just basically introduced those on day one. Those were all added to the ordinance and were never a question for us. We never had to debate what type of house we want to put in there. All of them were added on day one. We never looked back.
From day one for a year when we were going through the code change, it was cottages. We call them cottages. They're technically tiny homes, but we use the word "cottage" just to be friendly, so we weren't giving a misnomer to our community. Some folks were like, "Tiny home, what's that mean?" We're like, "Well, cottage. We'll just call it a cottage." Those are homes that are as small as 400 square feet. That gave people a little bit of comfort level, if that makes any sense. They weren't thinking tiny home, because they think about something you see on Chip and Joanna Gaines, and they think there's some park that's going to come rolling into our community. So that kind of softened things up from a public perspective, I guess you could say.
But then we had the cottages by right, the duplexes by right. The house sizes also, we were not dictating anymore, so we don't even have minimums, except for the 400 square foot. Very receptive in our community. Like you had shared, I was showing you those pictures. Those are already being built in our community. Now we're starting to see a few more pop up. Since I'd seen you, we've gotten some permits that have been issued.
It's been great. The core idea is not to remove the ability to build single-detached homes. You certainly were showing some examples of that. It's to say that is not the only thing that can be allowed within the community. I think the other element of it that really stood out in what you're describing was the way that the form-based code and other tools like that really helped to reprioritize the interface with the street.
Jane Jacobs has a memorable description of planners or city officials that see the community through a windshield versus those that see it on foot. Can you talk about some of the efforts that you're making to reintegrate streets into neighborhoods so that they become really a part of something that builds value and builds that sense of place and that sense of belonging?
Street connectivity is one of our big issues. Luckily, in Monroe, I've got some good bone structure, is what I call it. We have great interlocked and integrated streets within downtown and connected to our downtown. Monroe is an older city, so I'm a little bit fortunate that I have that. I don't have to go out and actually connect new neighborhoods to our older neighborhoods, so they're already kind of interconnected.
But where I have the opportunity, I work with our Central Services Department. We are trying to increase the number of sidewalks where we had no sidewalks before. We're trying to increase our walkability to where we had no walkability before. We just had streets that were just paved and we didn't have any ability for people to walk around. It wasn't safe.
I'm trying to kind of answer your question because we had some challenges here that were very rural, if that makes any sense, for Monroe. So our challenges weren't quite as urban as some other locations, but we're adding street furniture to some locations, so it's making it more friendly too, especially in the downtown area. We've done a lot of things to make things a little bit better. I just went on a mural walk earlier, where I'm writing a mural guide for the city at this point. So we're trying to do things in downtown to make things a little bit better. That really, I wouldn't call it a Jane's walk that I was just on, but I definitely was sweating before you and I jumped on this podcast because it's really hot outside.
But again, an element of that is making sure that there's adequate shade, if there's any way for that shade to be provided, either by buildings that hug the street or by street trees that are well maintained and actually reserved and loved. Then you get to enjoy that whimsy, that sense of place and character that comes with things like murals and really highlighting the sense -- this is a place that has a rural character but also is increasingly urbanizing over time and just the benefits that can come if that actually is something that builds greater prosperity within the community that is shared by all.
I remember too, you were showing me images where now garages are not so prominent. That's one of the hallmarks of a lot of suburban-style housing development -- the garage is the only thing that you see. In contrast, you're saying, "No, let's restore the face of our structures and make that more visible."
One of the things I'd love to ask -- one of the catchphrases I use on this podcast is, "Don't judge your own beginning by someone else's middle." But Brad, you're well on your way to a really healthy middle already in terms of the things that you're doing. Certainly internally, we say, Edward Erfurt, my colleague, has said, "Yeah, check out what Brad is doing. There's some really exciting things happening in Monroe" with the work with the form-based code and other things like that. But to help us understand this, maybe what has been your pathway to your middle of where you're at currently and the types of formative influences that have guided you on this journey?
For me personally and professionally, or just for the city of Monroe? Both are useful for you. I mean, my background, I know I shared this with Ed too, specifically. I started out as a planner. I've been doing this for 26 years, and I started out as a single-use planner. I used to be really good at it. Single-use, separation of uses. I learned for a long time that that was harmful as I pursued to elevate myself and get certifications in the planning field. I realized, "Hey, I might be doing this kind of wrong." Then I got my certifications and explored further. Then I got into new urbanism and got my accreditation with CNU, and I'm like, "I've been doing it terribly wrong and backwards."
I turned -- I completely did a 180. I'm like, "Not only have I been doing it wrong, I've just been doing it terribly wrong." So I'm completely the opposite, I would say, from where I was in the beginning of my career in terms of allowance and permission and permit ability. I wasn't really a bureaucrat in the beginning of my planning career, but I did what any planner would do. There were rules, there were requirements, there were checklists, there were procedures and processes and reviews and things you had to do when you did a development.
I was good at reviewing when someone submitted a plat to me for development or review, anything we had to go through based on those rules. But I wasn't questioning the rules that I was looking at. Was it good for the community that I worked for? When I went for those accreditations and certifications, I changed myself. I wanted to work in communities that were beginning to change and question themselves, and Monroe was one of those. So that's what made me attracted to Monroe -- they were in the throes of saying, "We want to change. We do not want to be like their sister cities in Georgia, which have a lot of development pressure. We want to be different."
This city has also enabled me to elevate myself professionally. We're kind of going hand in hand together, and I've got good leadership here. We're all the same mindset of where we want to take the city. When I say "we," I just mean the direction the city wants to go. This isn't about me professionally. I am a beneficiary of good leadership here, a strong political culture that wants to do these things, because they are the ones who helped me get this code passed. Obviously they are the council and they passed the ordinance, so I'm supported in that realm. I feel very fortunate to be in my position.
It's a small community, it's not a big city, and I'm a one-man show here. I'm it. So I'm extremely busy. I know I want to pull my hair out sometimes, but I'm a little bit of a workaholic too. I enjoy what I do here, and I don't feel like I'm ever going to find a challenge that doesn't push me to a point where I don't want to try to conquer it and help the community. I always find one here that makes me -- the right kind of challenge, something here that's been good for the community. Every obstacle we come across, I want to tackle for the community.
In this case, it's all been about getting better housing here. Like I described to Ed, I called it the "legacy of nonsense." Those are the older subdivisions and tract-built types of elements we have on the edge of our city. We still have those. I'm not going to say that they don't. If anyone takes a look at our city after they listen to this and says, "Hey, that guy still has subdivisions in his city. Those look like they're on stroads." Well, you might see those because those are legacies of nonsense that I can't control, that I just basically inherited. So you can't stop those. Those are by right. You have constitutional protection. So those are just rolling along.
But we've done what we can with those when it comes to standards of their homes and how they would look. Like Norm alluded to, the garage has changed. We pushed the garage back. We made them build a home in the front of the lot so it looks like a house instead of having the garage in the front.
Me professionally, Monroe has helped me come along a little bit. I've been here for five years, and I've advanced a lot with the city, and me personally. I feel like the city's kind of come along with me. We both have seen some good changes coming along. The code being adopted this past year was a success for me and the city. We both had crossed a big threshold. I had a commissioner say this not too long ago. They said this was the best condition the city had been in ever. This was a former mayor who's on our council now, and he spoke about that in lots of ways -- the police force, just our sanitation, the way things are kind of operating. Things aren't perfect, like any city, but he spoke about that across the board, and I felt like that felt good. We don't have people coming up to our meetings, banging the table, saying things are just horrible here. People kind of feel content.
So yeah, I would say that professionally, the city and I are kind of moving along in a good direction. Do I want to retire here? Sure. Yeah, so hopefully I'm able to take them to another level.
What gives me hope too is that there's a new generation of planners and engineers and others that are working in these fields that are becoming Strong Towns members, and they are grappling a little bit with, "Hey, I want to bring these ideas forward, but I find that there's not room in my current professional work environment to bring this up." But they're learning these ideas in ways that they are having to unlearn less, maybe, of the legacies of nonsense. I like the way that you've managed to find a way to persevere in doing this and now be able to be an instructor, be a guide for others in this as well. I think there's something really powerful in that.
Maybe it's a quick side tangent, but I want to ask because I don't always ask people -- we got to hang out at the National Gathering. What was your experience of the National Gathering like? Then we'll wrap up with the question of what gives you hope.
This one was really good this year. I was able to -- the impression this year just keeps building, right? My first one with you guys was Charlotte. Of course, my first interaction with you, Norm, I can't match your energy. That was one of your first interactions. Obviously, my first interaction with you joining as a friend of Strong Towns. Yeah, you have the energy. So I'm like, "I don't have Norm's energy, but I want to try to match it." When I see you, I'm like, "There's Norm. I want to match his energy." So that's great. I love every time we get to see each other. It's been great.
But this year when I saw you, I lit up. It was wet that day. It was raining outside, but I forgot all that. Everything went great. I thought the gathering was really good this year. I don't know what the attendance was like, but it seemed like there were more people here than there were in Cincinnati, to me. The numbers have grown. I don't know what your attendance was like this year, but I liked that we got the conversation group up on the stage. That was powerful to me. We all had our vests on. That was a big moment, and I really enjoyed that.
I love the debate part. I liked participating with you guys. Next year, I hope we have the debate. I don't care what the topic is. I want to participate. I want to be on your team next time, though, because that was more fun than anything else. We just pick a random topic and debate it. That's what we should do. You don't know what the topic is, you're just going to opt to debate and "Here's your topic, go." That's what we should do next year.
I continue to press for the idea of a tension room at the National Gathering, a room that you go to if you actually want to seek out those moments where you're like, "Hey, where are we grappling with things?" Basically put above the door, "This is a tension room, expect it," and then just allow for that healthy dialog to occur. Not that we don't allow that dialog to occur elsewhere, but I think to amp it up a bit and have that opportunity.
But in the midst of tension, what is it that gives you hope?
Well, it's you guys. It's seeing you. It's coming to those conferences too, because I look forward to that every year. I would be honest with you, attending those conferences and seeing you guys and seeing the same struggles that some other folks have in their communities -- we all are, across the board. We're all dealing with housing shortages across the nation, so it's how everyone else is dealing with it. I get to see someone's successes. I get to see someone's challenges. I take bits and pieces from each one and try to apply them here. That's what helps push me a little bit.
I enjoy the gatherings. I enjoy the CNU conferences. I enjoy being together. So each year, I guess looking forward to that is my big deal every year. That's not like a vacation for me. I just look forward to seeing all you guys and being with you, seeing you too. All of the sessions there are very helpful to me.
Yeah, no, that's fantastic. For those that are listening, definitely, if you plan to do business, go check out Monroe, Georgia if you're in the area. You can also find and follow Brad on LinkedIn, as he continues to post there and share content and also engage in the community. Hope that you've appreciated this. Really appreciate Brad jumping on to talk about his journey and also to be able to provide some light on similar journeys that perhaps you're considering. Whether that's a calling into professional work as a planner, as an engineer, in the building trades, whatever that looks like. Certainly, there are so many things that you can do as you go out, sweat a little bit on a walking tour, take note of the places in your community where needs have emerged, and then ask yourself the question, "What is it that we can do to address that need?"
As always, thank you for listening to this Bottom-Up Short. Take care and take care of your places.
This episode was produced by Strong Towns, a nonprofit movement for building financially resilient communities. If what you heard today matters to you, deepen your connection by becoming a Strong Towns member at strongtowns.org/membership.