Strong Towns

We're changing *everything* about the North American pattern of development. You can help make it happen by becoming a member today!

[Yimbytown 2026 is in Raleigh, Nov 17-19 @CityBuilder_NC]

DOING THE MATH AS A CITY COUNCIL MEMBER

Steven Zittergruen is a city councilor and @StrongTowns member from Iowa. In this Bottom-Up Short, he joins Norm to discuss the ways he’s making his community stronger.

Does your city councilor understand the math?

#electionsmatter
https://t.co/GJCcrEXxAc

[Strong Towns @StrongTowns]

Local governments must have the ability to shape growth and grow strong. Preemption can be justified to help them get “unstuck” but this kind of bulldozing over local leaders and the people they represent is wrong.

[Strong Towns @StrongTowns]

Cities must be allowed to grow and change. This is terrible policy. It prioritizes parking spots over homes, makes the same tired excuses about utilities, and bans building new housing that local leaders want.

[Danielle Smith @ABDanielleSmith]

Over the past few months, endless Albertans have told us the same story.

They saved for years to buy a single family home on a quiet street. They picked that neighbourhood on purpose, because of the park at the end of the block or the school two streets over or the neighbours who watch out for each other.

Then one morning the house next door came down, with no notice, and later a 16 unit complex went up in its place, with nowhere for anyone to park and no consideration for the neighbourhood.

Those are not complaints. They are people describing the place they built a life in with their family.

So today we are acting. Edmonton will return to the density and height rules that were in place before 2024 and common sense minimum parking requirements, utility and water infrastructure considerations are coming back. Calgary will hold the line it set when it repealed blanket rezoning. Both cities will take a hard look at their bylaws and come back with something more balanced.

Alberta needs more homes. We are building more of them than almost anywhere in Canada. But a home is more than a house, and a neighbourhood is more than a supply of lots.

[Jonathan Berk @berkie1]

"By eliminating our parking minimums, we would free up space for more housing units, open space, and other community-desired uses, which are essential to making sure Chelsea is a vibrant and affordable place to live."

- @ChelseaGov_MA City Manager Fidel Maltez

[Daniel Ashworth, Jr. @DAAJr904]

@NickHowland15 And as far as growing our budget, we aren't going to do that by filling the rest of Duval County with single-family houses, but by redeveloping and densifying downtown and the urban core. See the "Growth Ponzi Scheme" from @StrongTowns

[bikemattic @bikemattic]

Thanks @aaron_renn for featuring @clmarohn and @StrongTowns - an essentially conservative approach that I hope will gain traction with your audience - The Growth Ponzi Scheme | Charles Marohn https://t.co/MBE8IJurbg via @YouTube

[Aaron M. Renn 🇺🇸 @aaron_renn]

This week I finally get Charles Marohn (@clmarohn) on the podcast to talk about the Strong Towns movement. https://t.co/2RBa3efCBH

[Yimbytown 2026 is in Raleigh, Nov 17-19 @CityBuilder_NC]

North Carolina politicians are now acknowledging that suburban sprawl is NOT a fiscally sustainable model.

Our friends at @strongtowns tell elected officials to use "tax value per acre" as a metric for fiscal sustainability. That's how we, as citizens, receive quality services at a reasonable cost.

Does your city councilor understand the math?

#electionsmatter

[John Olson @JO_Urbanist]

Bigger may be better for safety for some things (drainage culverts, structural beams), but
1) With Traffic, bigger means faster and more dangerous;
2) With Parking, bigger means more parking and wasted economic opportunity or low viability.

[Strong Towns @StrongTowns]

Understanding how state policies may affect housing production is key to having a thoughtful conversation about which policies to pursue.

Great bottom-up approach here: build different tools, be transparent about the assumptions and uncertainty, and see what we can learn.

[Stephanie Kestelman @stephkestelman]

Registration is open for the Housing Technology Innovation Challenge, hosted by @TurnoutRocks with support from @Arnold_Ventures.

Participants will develop of a tool that can simulate the impact of different policy reforms on housing production at the state level. The best tool will be easy-to-use, clear on assumptions, communicate areas of uncertainty, and be feasible to replicate and scale across states.

To learn more, check out https://t.co/BO5sFnk364. Share with your networks! Come build something cool with the potential to shape housing policy!

[Stephanie Kestelman @stephkestelman]

If you want to learn more about the challenge, check out the latest episode of Upzoned: https://t.co/Ma9ufZH3XD

[Jonathan Berk @berkie1]

One year ago today, my City eliminated minimum parking requirements for multifamily housing.

One year later: the sky didn’t fall. Most projects still include parking. But some infill housing is finally moving forward where parking mandates once made it infeasible.

📍Salem, MA

[Neighbors Welcome! Rhode Island @rhodyneighbors]

This November 7th with @StrongTowns! What happens when communities make room for growth? Join us November 7 for a workshop on how thoughtful growth can strengthen local economies, expand opportunity, and help build strong, lasting communities.

https://t.co/VtM4d9djQb

[Rachel Cohen Booth @rcobooth]

“People accuse us of wanting people to live in undignified housing, but they just struggle to understand that it can be a perfectly fine option for many people at different points in their life.”

https://t.co/IDujRG1vm2

[Strong Towns @StrongTowns]

As long as we’re not building more sprawl, we agree!

[YIMBY Action @yimbyaction]

We don't have to choose between filtering and building affordable housing. 🏠

We need both.

Build affordable homes directly. Build more market-rate homes. Legalize ADUs, duplexes, starter homes, and small apartments.

We need to say yes to ALL kinds of housing.

[Strong Towns @StrongTowns]

A sewer can hit capacity for a few hours a day and have plenty of room the rest of the time.

That’s a problem you can solve without putting housing on hold. 2/2

https://t.co/ptboYN3p8c

[Strong Towns @StrongTowns]

“We can’t build more housing. The sewer is full.”

It’s a great way to end the conversation.

It’s also probably not true. 1/2

[Charles Marohn @clmarohn]

Institutionalizing decline and devaluing large swaths of America so that housing becomes affordable is a strategy, it's just not my strategy.

[John T. Reuter @johntreuter]

And this is true of almost every downtown and Main St in cities and towns of every size across America! Largely true of our favorite residential neighborhood too. We’ve prohibited building the places we love.

[Jarrett Walker @humantransit]

One of the best podcasts I've done on the public transit challenge in the US. A great conversation with @clmarohn, the founder of @strongtowns. Please share. https://t.co/FxO6yQCkXU