Strong Towns Successes: Events Across the Continent
For the last several years, Chuck Marohn has been traveling the North American continent, delivering Curbside Chats and other presentations, tailored to everything from tiny towns like Carlton Landing, OK and Lake Ozark, MO to big cities like Salt Lake City and Toronto. Since last July, over 6,000 people have heard the Strong Towns message in person through our events in 23 states and Canada.
They heard the Strong Towns message in community meetings, in national conferences, in schools and libraries and city council chambers. Many of these events were free and open to the public, making the Strong Towns message accessible to audiences of diverse backgrounds.
When Strong Towns hosts an event, we do more than just show up and give a presentation. We connect with our members in the area ahead of time to learn about the place. We ask leaders in the community what sort of message is most needed there. We reach out to local press to get the word out. When we arrive, we meet with local officials, host member meet-ups, and get to know the town.
Here's some feedback from our recent events.
RECENT PRAISE FOR STRONG TOWNS EVENTS:
“Strong Towns brought a fresh perspective to the conversation about urbanism and healthy development in Duluth, and we hope they will come back to visit soon!”
“Strong Towns brought a unique balance of planning and engineering to our event. For the first time, I had a local engineer approach me and say ‘Chuck just helped me understand why we need to design streets for people, not cars.’”
“The Strong Towns/Urban3 legacy in Santa Rosa is very much alive and well; I see the new city manager embracing your ideas... The urban growth boundary advocates and the open space corridor fans also applaud your concepts for urban infill. More buffer zones are on the ballot for expansion this fall (surrounding present urban growth boundaries) and the SMART train is scheduled to debut. [...] Chuck Marohn and Joe Minicozzi made a great, positive impression on our community with lasting effects.”
Photo from a Strong Towns event in Austin, TX
“I was first introduced to Chuck Marohn when I heard him speak at the BuildMaine event. That presentation, and my subsequent reading of Chuck’s work, has had a profound, paradigm-shifting and energizing impact on my thinking about economic/community development.”
Here's where we've been this year. You can also see our upcoming events or request your own.
Evelyn Warr-Omness — director of the Marion City/County Regional Planning Commission — explains what it takes to become the Strongest Town in America.
Alyssa Lee, a Local Conversation leader and strategic communications analyst, explains how to keep people engaged in community groups for the long term.
Edward Erfurt, Strong Towns’ Chief Technical Advisor, will present at the Walk Bike Roll Kansas Summit 2025 in Lawrence, Kansas on October 29-30, 2025
Chris Allen, Strong Towns’ director of Events and Partnerships, will present at the 2025 Kansas Housing Conference in Overland Park, Kansas, on October 28, 2025.
Norm Van Eeden Petersman, Strong Towns Director of Membership, will speak about housing at 2025 Northwest Michigan Housing Summit in Traverse City, Michigan, this October.
Charles Marohn, founder and president of Strong Towns, will present at the 2025 annual conference hosted by the International City/County Management Association in Tampa, Florida on October 26, 2025.
Mayor Erin Joyce shares her experience with building a stronger town as an elected official.
Mike Keen, managing partner at Neighborhood Evolution, and Jordan Richardson, a small-scale developer, explain how to make incremental housing and neighborhood vitality the norm.
Chris Allen, Strong Towns’ director of Events and Partnerships, will present at a housing conference hosted by Housing Opportunities Made Easier in Camarillo, California.
Edward Erfurt, Strong Towns’ Chief Technical Advisor, will present at the Annual Summit hosted by the Association for Economic Development Professionals in Akron, Ohio.
Block Party USA Founder Vanessa Elias shares practical ways to build more resilient neighborhoods for more resilient kids.
Alex Alsup, chief strategy officer at Regrid, connects the dots between home-ownership data and local action.
Charles Marohn, Strong Towns’ founder and president. will present on housing as economic development on September 30, 2025, in Kansas City, Missouri.
Deputy City Manager Rebekah Kik explains how to activate local development through pre-approved plans.
Strong Towns will partner with the Center for Civic Engagement to host the Civic Leader Summit in Pensacola, Florida, September 23–25.
Join us for the live premiere of a video spotlighting Marion, Ohio, this year’s Strongest Town Contest winner. Then, join a post-premiere discussion with video creator Rachel Leonardo and Marion nominator James Walker.
Chuck Marohn, founder and president of Strong Towns, will give a public presentation in Steubenville, Ohio, on September 18, 2025. The presentation will be followed by a Q&A and book signing.
Cary Tyson, executive director of Portland Downtown, offers practical advice on using Park(ing) Day to reclaim space for people.
Charles Marohn, founder and president of Strong Towns, will give a presentation on housing in Akron, Ohio, on September 18, 2025.
Charles Marohn, founder and president of Strong Towns, will be in Marion, Ohio, on September 17 for a special viewing of Marion’s Strongest Town documentary.
Community members in Memphis, Tennessee, convene to analyze the site of a car crash in a local neighborhood. The session will be streamed live to the public.
Chris Allen, Strong Towns’ director of Events & Partnerships, will present at the Kerr-Tar Regional housing Summit on September 11, 2025.
Chris Allen, Strong Towns’ director of Events & Partnerships, will speak in Oxford, North Carolina, on September 10 at 6 p.m.
Norm Van Eeden Petersman, Strong Towns’ director of membership, will speak at the ULI San Antonio Leadership Luncheon on September 10 in San Antonio, Texas.
Charles Marohn, founder and president of Strong Towns, will present at Denver South’s Edge City Summit on September 4, 2025.
Edward Erfurt, Strong Towns’ chief technical advisor, will present at the CNU Florida Summit in Tampa, Florida, on September 3 & 4, 2025.
In this month’s member-exclusive event, we’re shining a spotlight on the growing momentum behind Strong Towns Local Conversations.
Community members in Minneapolis, Minnesota, convene to analyze the site of a car crash in a local neighborhood. The session will be streamed live to the public.
If you've attended a Strong Towns event and appreciate the message we shared, consider making your commitment to this movement official by becoming a member today.