All Aboard the Strong Towns Local-Motive!
Fired up and ready to do what you can to make your town a Strong Town? Get guidance from experts in placemaking, freeway fighting, incremental development, and more September 14–November 2 during the 2023 Strong Towns Local-Motive Tour.
Each stop (which will take place on Thursdays at 12 p.m. CT) along the tour features:
An engaging presentation on a specific topic, led by a Strong Towns team member, including concrete ideas and advice for making your town stronger.
An in-depth conversation with a special guest who has extensive experience taking action in this field.
A printable “Action Guide” and other resources you can use right now in your community.
Access to a virtual After Party with fellow Strong Towns advocates and our Director of Membership and Development, Norm Van Eeden Petersman.
An opportunity to earn AICP credits for qualifying individuals.
Lifetime access to the session, so you can revisit it whenever you want!
Curious about the ride? Check out these featured sessions:
Barkha Patel.
Turn That Stroad Into a Street (or Road)
Strong Towns Speaker: Charles Marohn
Guest Speaker: Barkha Patel
Date: October 26, 2023
Jersey City made headlines in 2022 when it accomplished what Vision Zero advocates have been championing for years: zero traffic deaths on city streets. A large part of how they did it can be traced to the initiative of Barkha Patel, the director of the city’s Department of Infrastructure.
Join Patel and Strong Towns President Charles Marohn on Thursday, October 26 as they discuss how you can convert your local stroad into either a productive street or a conduit between two places.
Jerome Horne.
The Small Steps That Can Make a Big Impact on Your Transit System
Strong Towns Speaker: Charles Marohn
Guest Speaker: Jerome Horne
Date: November 2, 2023
We often think of public transit as all-or-nothing: Your city is either ready to invest billions in an amazing rail system, or you might as well just give up on having any meaningful transit. However, transit expert Jerome Horne—whose home doubles as the International Micro-Museum of Transit—asserts there are small steps any place can take to make transit possible and preferable where you live.
Grant Hamilton. (Source: The Brandon Sun/Kyle Darbyson, used with permission.)
How to Define, Refine, and Distribute Your Story
Strong Towns Speakers: Lauren Ronnander and Ben Abramson
Guest Speaker: Grant Hamilton
Date: October 19, 2023
How do you rally your neighbors to join a cause like removing parking minimums or changing zoning laws? On October 19, two Strong Towns experts, Communications Manager Lauren Ronnander and Staff Writer Ben Abramson, will provide their insights. They’ll be joined by Grant Hamilton, a marketing and communications expert whose story was the subject of a recent Crash Analysis Studio session.
For a complete list of sessions, as well as the ability to purchase one-way or round-trip tickets aboard this year’s Local-Motive, visit: strongtowns.org/localmotive.
Round-trip ticket holders also get access to two bonus pre-recorded sessions filmed live at the 2023 Strong Towns National Gathering:
“How To Use Social Media To Build a Movement and Create Change,” featuring Strong Towns regular and Cities Decoded founder Tiffany Owens Reed, Active Towns founder, John Simmerman, and YouTubers Ray Delahanty (CityNerd) and Alan Fisher, moderated by our very own Mike Pasternock.
“Uncovering What’s Wrong With the Property Tax Assessment System and Holding Local Governments Accountable” featuring Joe Minicozzi and Lanier Hagerty of Urban3.