The Strong Towns Podcast

Strong Towns needs your support! We can't accomplish our mission of changing the national conversation on growth and development without you. Become a member today: www.strongtowns.org/membership

On Day 4 of the Spring member drive, Chuck recaps a typical day in the life as president of Strong Towns. Then he discusses a question he received on a recent Ask Strong Towns webcast about the negative nature of so much of what Strong Towns discusses, and whether there is any way to find hope.

Strong Towns needs your support! We can't accomplish our mission of changing the national conversation on growth and development without you. Become a member today: www.strongtowns.org/membership

In this first episode of our Spring member drive, Chuck reflects on a promise he made to Strong Towns three years ago, and how that decision changed the trajectory of this movement forever.

Every month, we host Ask Strong Towns to give you a chance to ask your burning questions about our vision for change, and how the Strong Towns approach might apply in your unique place.

The live Ask Strong Towns webcast is open to all Strong Towns members, but afterward, we share the audio on our podcast.

In today’s episode, Chuck and Kea discuss several audience-submitted questions on topics ranging from TIF and bonds to historic preservation to how to campaign on a Strong Towns platform. 

Here are the questions discussed in this episode: 

1. Down-zonings are a common tool around here for the local aldermen to get what they want. I’m a believer that they make the development process longer, more expensive and, subsequently, lead to gentrification. What’s the Strong Towns take on down-zonings?
2. What are appropriate things that a city should issue bonds for?
3. What resources are available for a small town without a big planning department or budget to review their zoning code and best practices?
4. Many are excited about the new Strong Towns initiative in Akron, Ohio. What happens if it’s a resounding success and demand skyrockets?
5. Is there ever a good TIF project proposal?
6. Is incrementalism diametrically opposed to historic preservation or do these two movements in fact share common goals?
7. Local elections are coming up this fall and some candidates are wondering about how to introduce Strong Towns concepts without scaring voters off. Do you have thoughts on how to campaign on Strong Towns? If you could get a candidate to read ONLY two articles to get the essence of the Strong Towns thought process, which would they be? (Kea’s and Chuck’s answers reference: The Real Reason Your City has No Money, So You Want to Build a Strong Town and 9 Ways to Change an Elected Official’s Mind)
8. My city leadership has been slow to confront our housing issues. What would you say to a local leader to make them see that housing is a problem that deserves their attention and priority, particularly when those impacted are underrepresented among the (small town) political elite?
9. A lot of your articles are depressing. What gives you the most hope for America's towns and cities?

Visit the Ask Strong Towns page to learn more about this webcast, submit a question and get info about the next episode (happening June 28th).

Chuck and Rachel discuss Strong Towns' role in CNU26 in Savannah, GA, including live podcast recordings, an interactive debate, a Strong Towns 101 presentation and a meet-up. Get all the details here.

MENTIONED IN THIS PODCAST

• Overview of Strong Towns activities at CNU
• How to Join in on Strong Towns Events at CNU (whether you're attending or not)
• "The Little Law Office That Could" by Rachel Quednau
• Thomas Jefferson and the Tripoli Pirates: The Forgotten War That Changed American History by Brian Kilmeade
• The Death of Democracy: Hitler's Rise to Power and the Downfall of the Weimar Republic by Benjamin Carter Hett
• Cadillac Desert: The American West and Its Disappearing Water, Revised Edition by Marc Reisner
• Skin in the Game: Hidden Asymmetries in Daily Life by Nassim Nicholas Taleb
• Flint Town (Netflix series)

Kea Wilson is Strong Towns' Director of Community Engagement and, as of a couple days ago, the proud owner of a new four-family building in her hometown of St. Louis, Missouri. This is the second property that she and her partner have purchased and managed as landlord and developers and today we brought her on the Strong Towns podcast to talk all about that experience. (She's also been detailing her journey toward purchasing this property in a series of articles on the website this week.)

In this in-depth and honest podcast conversation, Kea and Rachel discuss:

• What does being a developer look like and why do it in the first place?
• How do you weight the costs and benefits of a given property (both monetary and non-monetary), and make the choice to pull the trigger on a purchase?
• Is it possible to provide quality affordable housing and still break even or make a profit as a small scale developer without deep pockets?
• What are the challenges and benefits of being a landlord?
• How can we incentivize more landlords to care about their tenants and neighborhoods? What financial, social or political systems would need to change to make this the norm?

MENTIONED IN THIS PODCAST:

• In Defense of Housing: The Politics of Crisis by Peter Marcuse and David Madden
• Mr. Money Mustache (blog)
• Bigger Pockets (real estate investing resource)
• Incremental Development Alliance
• "Who can afford to invest in a poor neighborhood?" (series) by Kea Wilson
• Podcast: Why a Simple, Frugal Life Will Make you a Happier Person (with Kea Wilson)
• "Find a Place You Love that Needs You" by Sarah Kobos
• "Stuck: Why rent- and mortgage-burdened Americans don't always move to cheaper pastures" by Kea Wilson
• The Greenlining Institute

Rachel's guest this week is Strong Towns member and occasional writer, Alex Baca. Alex just published an article on Strong Towns called "Homeownership for whom?" about the flawed model of homeownership as a platform for building household wealth — and who is excluded by that model. Alex and Rachel discuss the position of homeownership in American culture and the economy. They also chat about Alex's thoughts on bikeshare and recent updates in the bikeshare world like dockless bikes and scooters.

Mentioned in this podcast:

• Homeownership for whom? by Alex Baca
• Gerontopoly: Homeownership, Wealth and Age by Joe Cortright
• Strong Towns events in Peoria, IL
• What Cities Need to Understand About Bikeshare Now by Alex Baca (on CityLab)
• Here’s What You Can Read If You’d Like to Think About Cities In Exactly The Way That I Do — an extended book list by Alex Baca
• Can't Stop Won't Stop: A History of the Hip-Hop Generation
• Follow Alex on Twitter @alexbaca.

Today we've got the audio from a recent Ask Strong Towns webcast conversation featuring friend of Strong Towns and Principal at Urban3, Joe Minicozzi, and hosted by Chuck Marohn. 

You can watch the video from this webcast as well as see a list of questions covered here: https://www.strongtowns.org/journal/2018/4/30/ask-strong-towns-2-with-joe-minicozzi

Visit the Ask Strong Towns page to learn more about this webcast, submit a question and get info about the next episode: https://www.strongtowns.org/ask-strong-towns

Rachel's guest this week is Strong Towns Growth Manager, Max Azzarello. He discusses his nomadic lifestyle and the reason he might be settling down somewhere permanently soon. He also talks about why he drives a scooter and a recent book he's been digging.

Mentioned in this Podcast

• Public Murals for Positive Change - An Interview with Pasqualina Azzarello
• Ask Strong Towns Celebrity Edition feat. Joe Minicozzi (today at 10:30 am CT)
• May 1 event in Wichita, KS
• May 3 event in Chattanooga, TN
• May 9-10 events in Peoria, IL
• A Paradise Built in Hell: The Extraordinary Communities That Arise in Disaster by Rebecca Solnit
• How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie
• Wild, Wild Country (TV series)

Chuck has been meeting with local leaders across the country for the last several months in closed door conversations. One question he often asks these elected officials and city staff is "What do you wish people understood better about your job?" He consistently receives a very similar set of answers: "We wish the public understood how difficult this job is." "We wish people grasped how limited our resources are." "We wish people appreciated how much we do and had a little more patience." ...and on and on. The truth is that wishing these things will never make them happen, he argues. City leaders have to do their jobs despite the lack of resources and appreciation. If you want to work for a city government and make decisions on behalf of your town, you will receive critiques and high expectations, says Chuck.

Here's the real question: How do you do the job despite these things? Hear Chuck's answers on this latest episode of our podcast.

Rachel's guest this week is Chuck Marohn, and he recaps a recent series of events in Akron, Ohio as well as his article for today, The Real Reason Your Local Mall is Failing.

Mentioned in this podcast:

• The Real Reason Your Local Mall is Failing
• Join us for upcoming public events in West Grove, PA, Wichita, KS, and Chattanooga, TN.
• Strong Towns members are invited to attend our April 30 Q&A Webcast with special guest Joe Minicozzi of Urban3.
• Being Mortal: Illness, Medicine and What Matters in the End by Atul Gawande