Call for Nominations in 7th Annual Strongest Town Contest!

(Source: Unsplash, with edits.)

A full week before any groundhogs pop their heads up to see what the spring of 2022 holds, we are excited to announce nominations are open for this year’s Strongest Town contest. 

Last year’s version of our popular contest played out in the eye of the pandemic hurricane. Local government leaders looked with cautious optimism to vaccines being rolled out to ease the burden of public health challenges in our communities. 

There is a sense now the most recent variant symptoms are milder, illnesses shorter, and hospitalizations less likely. Perhaps soon we can all look ahead, past daily public health emergencies, and toward addressing the challenges and opportunities in our communities. 

While the sporting world turns its attention to college basketball, we’re out looking for the truly great communities—from the crown jewels to the hidden gems, the big cities to the smallest towns. It’s the most positive bracket-based competition in the world.

We want to learn more about what makes your town or city great…and to perhaps name your community this year’s Strongest Town.

In this contest, towns and cities from around the world showcase their local businesses, citizen involvement, financial solvency, and other features, held up to view based on the Strong Towns approach. Finalists will face off in a series of bracketed rounds and get voted on by Strong Towns readers and members. By April 8, we'll have a winner.

The winner will receive a visit from Strong Towns President Charles Marohn to celebrate the victory and share the Strong Towns message. We’ll also write an in-depth profile of your city that we will share with our worldwide audience.

We’re announcing the contest now to give you time to nominate your own community. You don’t have to be a local official to make a nomination...although you can be. We encourage team efforts.

Applications are due by Sunday, February 20, at 11 p.m. CT.

Learn more about the contest rules, process, and timeline here, then nominate your community!