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Strong Towns
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A Tale of Two Developments
A Tale of Two Developments

You probably wouldn’t be able to tell these two buildings apart, yet their economic performance couldn’t be more different. A deep dive by geospatial firm Urban3 shows why that’s the case.

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Top Story 2Strong TownsSeptember 9, 2025urban3, washington, value per acre, development pattern, density
Building Safe Streets for All in Brighton, New York
Building Safe Streets for All in Brighton, New York

Christine Corrado is a city councilmember and founder of Brighton Safe Streets for All. She and Norm discuss how she’s making the her community safer and more prosperous.

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Podcast, Top Story 2Strong TownsSeptember 9, 2025podcast, The Bottom-Up Revolution, Bottom-Up Shorts, safe and productive streets, new york
The Buttonhook and the Cost of Safety We Refuse To Pay
The Buttonhook and the Cost of Safety We Refuse To Pay

We could save lives for far less than $58 million, but only if safety were the true priority.

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MarohnCharles MarohnSeptember 8, 2025end highway expansion, safe and productive streets, minnesota, stroad, traffic engineering
New Resource Helps Portland Communities Take Action on Road Safety
New Resource Helps Portland Communities Take Action on Road Safety

Portland’s regional government is giving communities the data and tools they need to make streets safer.

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Top Story 2Strong TownsSeptember 5, 2025safe and productive streets, oregon, regional, pilot projects, bottom-up
Volunteers Use Red Chalk to Protect Pedestrians and Drivers Under California’s New Law
Volunteers Use Red Chalk to Protect Pedestrians and Drivers Under California’s New Law

Since California's new daylighting law was implemented, unsuspecting drivers have accumulated over $700,000 in fines. Local advocates are stepping up to change that.

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Top Story 2Strong TownsSeptember 5, 2025local conversations, california, safe and productive streets, taking action, tactical urbanism
The Lost Art of Crafting Great Urban Places
The Lost Art of Crafting Great Urban Places

Professor Jack Duncan is a professor of architecture and preservation at the College of Charleston. He explores how architecture, urbanism, and craftsmanship work together to make beautiful and resilient places.

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Top Story 2, PodcastStrong TownsSeptember 4, 2025placemaking, podcast, The Bottom-Up Revolution, architecture, people centered places
Two Porch Crashes, One Block: Why Park Avenue Needs Quick-Build Safety Now
Two Porch Crashes, One Block: Why Park Avenue Needs Quick-Build Safety Now

Late last month, a car smashed through a front porch along Park Avenue in Minneapolis — again. It’s time for the county to stop waiting and start acting.

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Top StoryTony HarrisSeptember 4, 2025safe and productive streets, Crash Analysis Studio, minnesota, car crash, Street Design
Never Say Never: A Case for “For-Awhile” Urbanism
Never Say Never: A Case for “For-Awhile” Urbanism

Places are not static; they are dynamic. And sometimes, “for-awhile” uses can be the bridge that gets us from stagnation to vibrancy.

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Norm Van Eeden Petersman, Top StoryNorm Van Eeden PetersmanSeptember 4, 2025downtown, redevelopment, Incremental Housing, urban planning, mixed use
How Mortgage Fraud Makes the Housing Market More Expensive
How Mortgage Fraud Makes the Housing Market More Expensive

Today, Chuck and Abby explore how mortgage fraud distorts the housing market — and why no one in the financial system is interested in stopping it.

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Podcast, Top StoryStrong TownsSeptember 3, 2025podcast, upzoned, housing market, finance, crime, Incremental Housing
How Parking Day Brought This Louisiana City Back to Life
How Parking Day Brought This Louisiana City Back to Life

Here’s how Lafayette, Louisiana, went from a dying downtown to #6 in the country for outdoor dining.

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Top StoryStrong TownsSeptember 3, 2025end parking mandates and subsidies, louisiana, parklet, downtown, Local-Motive Tour
How a Walk Audit Can Build Community and Momentum
How a Walk Audit Can Build Community and Momentum

Gioia Calabretta is a Local Conversation leader and Strong Towns staff member. She and Norm discuss a walk audit she recently participated in.

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Podcast, Top StoryStrong TownsSeptember 2, 2025podcast, Bottom-Up Shorts, The Bottom-Up Revolution, local conversations, virginia, community
James Anderson: How to Encourage Innovation in Local Government
James Anderson: How to Encourage Innovation in Local Government

James Anderson leads the Government Innovation program at Bloomberg Philanthropies. Today, he explains how to help cities embrace an innovative, people-based approach to local governance.

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Podcast, Top StoryStrong TownsSeptember 2, 2025podcast, innovation, local government, new york, interview
Sleeping Babies in the Town’s Living Room
Sleeping Babies in the Town’s Living Room

When cities attempt to prescribe the exact way a building must be used, they risk regulating away the very life of a place.

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Norm Van Eeden Petersman, Top StoryNorm Van Eeden PetersmanAugust 28, 2025downtown, urban planning, zoning, Incremental Housing, ecosystems
Northwest Arkansas by the Numbers: Stability or Sugar Rush?
Northwest Arkansas by the Numbers: Stability or Sugar Rush?

What the Finance Decoder revealed about Fayetteville, Springdale, and Siloam Springs—through the eyes of a local Strong Towns member.

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Top StoryAsia MieleszkoAugust 28, 2025arkansas, Finance Decoder, member story, bottom-up, transparent local accounting
How Will Gardner Is Helping Build a Stronger South Coast
How Will Gardner Is Helping Build a Stronger South Coast

Will Gardner is the founder of South Coast Places For People, a new nonprofit in Massachusetts. He discusses the three working groups his nonprofit recently started, which focus on parking reform, backyard cottages, and street safety.

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Podcast, Top StoryStrong TownsAugust 28, 2025podcast, The Bottom-Up Revolution, massachusetts, safe and productive streets, Incremental Housing, local conversations
How One California City Teamed Up With Residents To Stop Speeding
How One California City Teamed Up With Residents To Stop Speeding

The city of Artesia, California, has been struggling with a speeding problem. Instead of just blaming drivers, city staff teamed up with local advocates to address the root problem: the street design.

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Top StoryMya RileyAugust 27, 2025safe and productive streets, local conversations, california, tactical urbanism, local government
Are Sponge Cities the Flood Control Fix We Need?
Are Sponge Cities the Flood Control Fix We Need?

Abby and guest John Pattison dive into the benefits and drawbacks of "sponge cities," cities that incorporate natural features like wetlands into their stormwater management infrastructure.

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Podcast, Top StoryStrong TownsAugust 27, 2025podcast, upzoned, stormwater, flooding, green infrastructure, transparent local accounting
Adding Third Places To Unlock a Small Town’s Potential
Adding Third Places To Unlock a Small Town’s Potential

Jess and Dan Sollaccio are city commissioners and a small-scale developers from Warrenton, Oregon. They explain their asset-based mindset for strengthening their community, as well as their efforts to turn a vacant building into a community hub.

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Podcast, Top StoryStrong TownsAugust 26, 2025podcast, The Bottom-Up Revolution, Bottom-Up Shorts, oregon, city government, small scale developers
The Buttonhook Isn’t Designed To Solve Baxter’s Mythical Congestion
The Buttonhook Isn’t Designed To Solve Baxter’s Mythical Congestion

In Baxter, “fighting congestion” is the sales pitch, but corporate subsidy is the goal.

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Marohn, Top StoryCharles MarohnAugust 25, 2025end highway expansion, stroad, congestion, minnesota, department of transportation
Portland Advocates Defend Life-Saving Street Design — and Win a Pause
Portland Advocates Defend Life-Saving Street Design — and Win a Pause

A 66% decrease in crashes wasn’t enough to protect these traffic diverters, but the unified efforts of local advocacy groups and city officials might be.

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Top StoryStrong TownsAugust 22, 2025safe and productive streets, bikeability, local conversations, oregon, walkability
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