50+ Messages / Page

  Kea at Strong Towns · [email protected]
November 11, 2019 at 1:14 PM

How we know that the Strong Towns approach is working.

Email Newsletter John, We've seen it with our own eyes.  North Americans are starting to wake up to the fact that the things we've built have put their cities' finances in a truly dire situation—even if it looks, on the surface, like their particular place is doing great.  And thousands of times,…
  The Strong Towns Team · [email protected]
November 8, 2019 at 4:19 PM

How can a neighborhood where billionaires live be going broke? (And other top stories of the week.)

Email Newsletter Before we give you the top stories...did you get your #StrongTownsSoCal Gathering tickets yet? You get some great giveaways with your registration. Check it out and save your seat right here. December 4th-6th.    1. The real reason why Bill Gates’ and Jeff Bezos’ posh suburb is goi…
  Kea at Strong Towns · [email protected]
November 4, 2019 at 4:36 PM

Your city has a lot in common with Detroit. But you may not know it yet.

Email Newsletter John, If you care about American cities, you probably get a little sad when you think about what's happened to Detroit. And it's no wonder. Perhaps more than any other US metro, the Motor City has been held up again and again as a cautionary tale about what can happen when indust…
  The Strong Towns Team · [email protected]
November 1, 2019 at 4:07 PM

We don't just need more housing. We need more housing developers. (And other top stories of the week.)

Email Newsletter Psst: Did you see? We've just announced the tentative agenda for the Strong Towns: Southern California Regional Gathering! Check it out and grab your ticket right here.    1. The Trick-or-Treat Test by Daniel Herriges | October 30, 2019 The spooky wisdom of the spookiest night of t…
  Kea at Strong Towns · [email protected]
November 1, 2019 at 12:52 AM

Psst...you might see someone familiar on CNBC's The Exchange tomorrow...

Email Newsletter John, We don't usually email you at night...but we've got some exciting news. Ready? Strong Towns is coming at you live tomorrow on national TV.  That's right: if you tune into CNBC's The Exchange tomorrow at 1pm EST, you might just see a familiar face: our founder and president,…
  Kea at Strong Towns · [email protected]
October 30, 2019 at 4:35 PM

Put your neighborhood to the Trick-or-Treat test.

Email Newsletter John, Whether you're putting the finishing touches on your kid's costume or stocking up on candy to hand out to other people's little goblins, we're willing to bet that Halloween is on your mind today. But if you live in a part of town where the neighborhood design just isn't con…
  Kea at Strong Towns · [email protected]
October 28, 2019 at 4:34 PM

Why do we light every single parking lot at night?

Email Newsletter John, When's the last time you walked through an empty parking lot in the dark of night? The answer is probably "not lately"—because in most American cities, local regulations demand that we keep that lot floodlit by streetlights from dusk til dawn. Sure, it's a massive waste of…
  The Strong Towns Team · [email protected]
October 25, 2019 at 3:28 PM

Top stories: When "tiny houses" were just "houses"—and every neighborhood could grow incrementally by right.

Email Newsletter 1. We Used to Just Call These “Houses” by Daniel Herriges | October 21, 2019 We used to have a different name for the modest dwellings that now get labeled “tiny houses.” For most of history, this was simply a house—a low-cost way for people to put down roots in a place and begin t…
  Kea at Strong Towns · [email protected]
October 23, 2019 at 3:03 PM

Can your town build a better zoning code—incrementally?

Email Newsletter John, When's the last time you dug into your town's zoning code?  If the answer is "never," that's okay. (If the answer is, "I'm in that thing every day," that's okay too.) Because even without seeing your local regulations, we can make a safe guess about them: there's probably mo…
  Kea at Strong Towns · [email protected]
October 21, 2019 at 3:33 PM

Is neighborhood decline normal?

Email Newsletter John, Pop quiz: about how many blocks of your community would you describe as "in decline"?  If you're struggling to count them all, you're not alone. Because in most North American cites and towns, that's the norm: practically every neighborhood has at least a few blocks that are…
  The Strong Towns Team · [email protected]
October 18, 2019 at 3:08 PM

Could parking *spaces* stand to shrink? And other top stories of the week.

Email Newsletter 1. It’s Not Just Parking Minimums That Can Shrink by Doug Bojack | October 11, 2019 Many thoughtful urbanists want to #endparkingminimums. We do too. But there’s something else we can address. It’s a relatively small change that can have a big impact…and it could be a good first st…
  Kea at Strong Towns · [email protected]
October 16, 2019 at 3:38 PM

The suburbs are working exactly as designed. And that's the problem.

Email Newsletter John, Have you ever noticed the way that urbanists talk about the suburbs?  Those things just grow like weeds! It's like they don't even have a plan! What are we going to do with all that sprawl?  You might have noticed that we don't talk about things quite that way at Strong T…
  Kea at Strong Towns · [email protected]
October 14, 2019 at 3:07 PM

What happens when the dominant development pattern *succeeds*?

Email Newsletter John, Here at Strong Towns, we talk a lot about how our dominant planning paradigm is dooming our cities to decades of financial insolvency and maintenance obligations we can't afford.  But here's the thing. Sometimes...it doesn't work out that way. Sometimes, our top down, build…
  The Strong Towns Team · [email protected]
October 11, 2019 at 3:36 PM

Can walkable neighborhoods improve the financial health of cities *and* people's lives?

Email Newsletter 1. Listen Up, Washington: No New Roads by Charles Marohn | October 7, 2019 The advocacy group Transportation for America makes a bold move on transportation funding. We applaud them for it. 2. A Good, Long Walk by Charles Marohn | October 4, 2019 A trip to Italy reveals the physi…
  Kea at Strong Towns · [email protected]
October 9, 2019 at 5:12 PM

Three ways to identify productive growth in your city—and its opposite.

Email Newsletter John, There are two ways to make a human body stronger: the healthy way, and the unhealthy way.  We're talking diet and exercise vs. anabolic steroids. Gently leveling up your weight training over time vs. loading up on as many performance enhancing drugs as you can get your hands…
  Kea at Strong Towns · [email protected]
October 7, 2019 at 3:36 PM

The Strong Towns movement just had a major victory.

Email Newsletter John, If you know anything about how our national transportation priorities are shaped, you know that advocacy organizations play a huge role. And one of the biggest ones, Transportation for America, has long advocated for better streets for all road users. The only problem? They'…
  The Strong Towns Team · [email protected]
October 4, 2019 at 3:36 PM

Launching Strong Towns: The Book, and other top stories from the ST movement this week.

Email Newsletter 1. The “Strong Towns” Book Is Out Today! by Strong Towns | October 1, 2019 The wait is finally over. The Strong Towns book is out today! Here is information on where to buy, as well as one simple, 30-second thing you can do that could make all the difference. 2. How the Governmen…
  Kea at Strong Towns · [email protected]
October 2, 2019 at 3:40 PM

Our cities need bottom-up change. And this city exemplifies why.

Email Newsletter John, Our founder and president, Charles L. Marohn, Jr, published his first book yesterday, Strong Towns. (Get your copy here if you haven't already). But today, we're focusing on the subtitle of that book: A Bottom-Up Revolution to Rebuild American Prosperity.  Why can't top-down…
  Chuck at Strong Towns · [email protected]
September 30, 2019 at 2:19 PM

One more day.

Email Newsletter John,  My new book—Strong Towns: A Bottom-Up Revolution to Rebuild American Prosperity—comes out October 1. Yes, that's tomorrow. I can't believe it either. You still have a little time to pre-order your copy today and ensure you are one of the first ones to get it in October.  Ge…
  The Strong Towns Team · [email protected]
September 27, 2019 at 3:36 PM

When does Air Bnb actually make a neighborhood stronger? And other top stories of the week.

Email Newsletter 1. The Case that Short-Term Rentals Actually Make Our Neighborhoods Strong by Kea Wilson | September 25, 2019 What if Airbnb—maligned by urbanists everywhere—didn’t have to be part of the problem, but could rather be part of the solution for making our neighborhoods stronger, more …
  Kea at Strong Towns · [email protected]
September 25, 2019 at 3:38 PM

We've never done this before.

Email Newsletter John, We're just days away from the publication of our founder, Charles L. Marohn's Jr.'s, first book: Strong Towns: A Bottom-Up Revolution to Rebuild American Prosperity. We're unbelievably excited—and that's why we're doing something we never do.  That's right: we're putting an …
  The Strong Towns Team · [email protected]
September 23, 2019 at 9:05 PM

Will we see you in SoCal?

Email Newsletter John, We usually don't message you twice in one day...but we're pretty excited.  Registration is now open for the Strong Towns: Southern California Regional Gathering! On Thursday, December 5th, the Southern California Regional Gathering brings the power of Strong Towns to bear o…
  Kea at Strong Towns · [email protected]
September 23, 2019 at 3:04 PM

Our cities are done building infrastructure. What do you do now?

Email Newsletter John, We’re done building infrastructure. The idea that any city in North America will, in the future, have appreciably more roads or streets, more sidewalks and curbs, more pipes or pumps or valves or meters, is absurd. Some may add a bit here or there, but for the most part we’r…
  The Strong Towns Team · [email protected]
September 20, 2019 at 3:06 PM

What if we talked about empty highways the way we talk about empty trains?—and more top stories from the week.

Email Newsletter Psst: early bird registration for the Southern California Regional Gathering on December 4-6th is opening soon to the general public! Quantities are limited, so members, get your exclusive pre-sale tickets while you can; subscribers, watch your email on Monday for more details.   1…
  Kea at Strong Towns · [email protected]
September 18, 2019 at 3:02 PM

What does a Strong Towns developer look like?

Email Newsletter John, It's one of the most frequent questions we get at Strong Towns. Who are the developers out there who are applying the Strong Towns approach in their towns—even if their local zoning codes aren't on the same page?  We meet them every day. And today, we're happy to introduce …
  Kea at Strong Towns · [email protected]
September 16, 2019 at 3:18 PM

The public wants safer streets. So why won't engineers build them?

Email Newsletter John, Stop me if you've heard this one before:  You're an active citizen who's been working hard for years to get your city officials—heck, any city official—to treat your city's stroads like the public health crisis they are. And then one day, finally, you find your champion. …
  The Strong Towns Team · [email protected]
September 13, 2019 at 3:35 PM

What a video game can teach you about the power of incremental development, and our other top stories of the week

Email Newsletter 1. Want to Understand How Freeways Destroyed U.S. Cities? Watch This Guy Play Cities:Skylines. by Strong Towns | September 11, 2019 A Youtuber who goes by donoteat01 brilliantly uses the Cities:Skylines video game as a storytelling tool — in this case, to help us understand the ugl…
  Kea at Strong Towns · [email protected]
September 9, 2019 at 3:50 PM

The Strong America Tour begins tomorrow. Are we coming to your town?

Email Newsletter John, We've been working on something pretty huge this summer. We've never done anything quite like it. And it all kicks off tomorrow.  That's right: for the first time in our history, we're launching a massive, cross-country tour designed to bring the Strong Towns message (and ou…
  The Strong Towns Team · [email protected]
September 6, 2019 at 5:22 PM

Top 5 of the Week: Are we over-romanticizing the 50s and 60s?

Email Newsletter 1. What the Left Gets Wrong about Public Transportation by Strong Towns | August 30, 2019 Hint: the Right isn’t any better. 2. Dangerous Nostalgia: Why Romanticizing the 1950s and 1960s Won’t Get Us Anywhere by Kevin Klinkenberg | September 4, 2019 Large swaths of our cities were…
  Kea at Strong Towns · [email protected]
September 3, 2019 at 3:09 PM

Why are natural disasters *good* news for our national economy?

Email Newsletter John, There are two ways to look at a natural disaster like the kind of hurricane that's threatening the Southeast coast right now.  One is simple: a human tragedy that deserves our thoughts, prayers, and all our resources when it comes time to rebuild.  The other way is...well, …
  The Strong Towns Team · [email protected]
August 30, 2019 at 3:35 PM

Top 5 of the Week: Everything that's wrong with San Francisco's land use in one image.

Email Newsletter 1. What’s Wrong With This Picture? by Daniel Herriges | August 22, 2019 Commuter rail stations in the San Francisco Bay Area should be some of the most valuable land in the region (and by extension, the world). So why are there so many parking lots and one-story buildings right nex…
  Kea at Strong Towns · [email protected]
August 26, 2019 at 3:35 PM

Wait....*is* my city really going broke?

Email Newsletter John, Every day you check out Strong Towns, we seem to have the same message for you: Your city is going broke! But maybe you look out your window and wonder: But is it, really? Things look pretty okay out there to me.  Here's the thing: a lot of cities are superficially prospero…
  The Strong Towns Team · [email protected]
August 23, 2019 at 3:36 PM

Top 5 of the Week: Meet the perfect accessory dwelling unit policy (maybe).

Email Newsletter 1. The Streets of Paris by Charles Marohn | August 19, 2019 The United States isn’t France, but there are still plenty of lessons to be learned—and myths to be busted—by looking at the way their streets are designed to build wealth. 2. Celebrating the American Front Porch by Camp…
  Kea at Strong Towns · [email protected]
August 19, 2019 at 4:05 PM

What Paris can teach any American city about building enduring wealth

Email Newsletter John, We know, we know...America isn't Europe.  But does your city really have nothing to learn from the City of Lights? C'est vraiment trop bête! Last week, our founder and president, Chuck Marohn, took a little vacation to Paris. And it wouldn't be a Strong Towns vacay without …
  The Strong Towns Team · [email protected]
August 16, 2019 at 3:36 PM

Top 5 of the Week: A 15 year old died in traffic. Here's how his neighbors made sure it would never happen again.

Email Newsletter We've just announced the next two events in our regional gathering series: The Capital District Regional Gathering in Troy, NY and the Southern California Regional Gathering in Santa Ana, CA! Get all the details and register to be the first to hear when tickets go on sale.    1. Wh…
  [email protected] · [email protected]
August 12, 2019 at 3:06 PM

The real reason American infrastructure costs so much (hint: it doesn't have to with the price of concrete.)

Email Newsletter John, Steel costs too much.  Engineers are overpaid.  It doesn't actually cost more to build a road (or a bridge, or a pipe) in the United States. We just report our costs more honestly than other countries.  These are just a few of the reasons why so many people believe that in…
  The Strong Towns Team · [email protected]
August 9, 2019 at 3:04 PM

Top 5 of the Week: Proof that your city has too much parking.

Email Newsletter We've just announced the next two events in our regional gathering series: The Capital District Regional Gathering in Troy, NY and the Southern California Regional Gathering in Santa Ana, CA! Get all the details and register to be the first to hear when tickets go on sale.    1. We…
  Charles Marohn · [email protected]
August 5, 2019 at 9:37 PM

A million people who care.

Email Newsletter John, Our goal is to build a movement of a million people who care. That means we need a lot of people who believe strongly enough in the Strong Towns message to share it with someone else. When we reach that point, we believe our vision for change will be too big to ignore. And …
  Jacob at Strong Towns · [email protected]
August 3, 2019 at 9:13 PM

Connect with the movement that's changing the way our world is built.

Email Newsletter John, Strong Towns started as a blog written by just one guy in central Minnesota who wanted to speak his mind about what was going wrong in his town.   Soon, though, it grew into a thriving community of people around the world—and we called it the Strong Towns Network.  And now,…
  Daniel at Strong Towns · [email protected]
August 1, 2019 at 9:06 PM

There are a million ways to get the Strong Towns message.

Email Newsletter John, Strong Towns wants to change the way the world is built. But the way we want to do it might seem a little ununsual.  We're not consultants. We're not developing design guides or white papers or wonky data sets.  Instead, Strong Towns seeks to bring citizens from all walks o…
  Kea at Strong Towns · [email protected]
July 30, 2019 at 8:28 PM

You've taken the first step to making your town stronger. What comes next?

Email Newsletter John, You might not realize it. But when you hit that little "subscribe" button, you did something pretty amazing. You made the simple to choice to connect with the Strong Towns community—and if you stick around and get to know us, I'm willing to bet that we might just change the …