Peace and goodwill to you, John.

 

There is so much going on, it's hard to keep up. We promised to keep you in the loop as things develop, so today we're sending you some stuff. Use what you can to make your place stronger. We're going to work on expanding these as time goes on.

• We want to share stories about what local leaders (official and unofficial) are dealing with and how they are handling the Coronavirus. We can learn a ton from each other, celebrate successes, and help communities get ahead of coming changes. We've set up a page on our community site for you to share your stories. Please go there to contribute and learn. We'll follow up and get them out for everyone to share.

• The Strongest Town competition is ongoing. We're down to a final eight great communities. This contest is a celebration of great places doing amazing things - it's exactly the kind of inspiration we're going to need in the months to come. Help others identify the strongest town. (And a sad note: The Strongest Town Celebration and Conference has been postponed to a date to be determined.)

• Today I did a long-scheduled webinar with our friends at Transportation for America regarding their new report: Congestion Con, How More Lanes and More Money Equals More Traffic. There will be a top/down push in the coming months for a huge transportation spending bill, but that's the wrong kind of economic stimulus. Read the report, listen to the webinar (coming soon), and be ready to push for a Strong Towns approach (major related announcement to come soon).

• As you know, we have an urgent need to free our cities up to adapt to stress and opportunity. California has been struggling with the centralized approach to managing local land use, but a recent pivot is opening up options for a Strong Towns approach to housing in our biggest state. My colleague, Daniel Herriges, did an analysis on the new proposal.

• On the transportation issue, we should all be proud to hear Strong Towns cited on the floor of the U.S. Congress. Your sharing this message is creating a groundswell that can no longer be ignored. Give yourself a moment of satisfaction on this one.

• I'm going from writing this update to recording a podcast (lots of you have been asking), but if you're interested in some financial talk (or just want to hear me babble), I made an appearance yesterday on the popular Bitcoin podcast Tales from the Crypt. 

 

Be safe. Take care of yourself and your neighbors. Keep in touch, and keep doing what you can to build a Strong Town. You are so needed.

 

Chuck Marohn

Founder and President of Strong Towns