What's Actually Wrong With This Building?

Heated discussion about a new condo in Sarasota, FL, has got locals calling the building an eyesore. But is this a case of misdirected ire?

Herriges, Top StoryDaniel HerrigesJanuary 25, 2023architecture, design, density, downtown, zoning, urban design, florida

Will There Still Be Chinatowns in Utopia?

“Community character" is often invoked to support exclusion and discrimination, but there are also communities whose unique "character" matters—a lot. How (if at all) should local government support such places?

Herriges, Top StoryDaniel HerrigesJanuary 18, 2023local government, local regulation, race, housing policy, neighborhoods

There’s No Such Thing as Affordable Housing

Los Angeles lost a hundred thousand affordable homes in a decade. Don’t look to bulldozers to explain how.

The Top 3 Strong Towns Articles and Podcasts from 2022: Daniel's Picks

Strong Towns Editor-in-Chief Daniel Herriges shares his favorite content from this past year.

Herriges, Top StoryDaniel HerrigesDecember 14, 2022best of strong towns

Reminder: The Place You Live Is Not New York (Unless It Is)

Discourse about affordable housing is dominated by a handful of extremely unrepresentative places, and the solutions that might be applicable in those places don't translate in the rest of the U.S.

The #BlackFridayParking Exception That Proves the Rule

Most parking lots on Black Friday are not going to be full. Here’s one retail complex that’s an exception—but it just proves that having “enough” parking is always less important than creating a place people want to be.

Good Ideas Need Pollinators

Bottom-up change led by local heroes leads to momentum that replicates virally—and we're seeing the results nationwide.

Herriges, Top StoryDaniel HerrigesNovember 16, 2022member week

“The City Should Put a Trader Joe’s There” (and Other Muddled Thinking About Development)

Many of us are keen to express the “what” that we’d like to see in the built environment, but unwilling to think rationally and clearly about the “how.”

Pre-Approved House Designs Jump-Start Infill Development in South Bend

While other places keep finding ways to say “no” to new housing, this Indiana city is offering pre-approved development templates to small-scale developers at no cost.

Not Just Bikes: Crossing the Street Shouldn't Be Deadly (But It Is)

This latest Not Just Bikes video demystifies deadly street design by contrasting what it’s like to navigate streets on foot in the U.S. and Canada with what it’s like in the Netherlands.

New Tools To Visualize How Your City Could Benefit From Incremental Development

The American Enterprise Institute has released some impressive—and free—data tools for understanding housing markets and development potential. And as a bonus, attend their upcoming talks if you’re in California!

The Starter House Is Nearly Extinct

Increasingly, for entire cities in the U.S., buying a starter home on a modest income is no longer an option.

Letting Ugly Things Grow

If you value the end state of a walkable, diverse, dynamic place with a lot of local character, then you must also value the process that gets you there.

Herriges, Top StoryDaniel HerrigesSeptember 7, 2022urban design, urbanism, aesthetics, ecology, incremental growth, incrementalism, incremental

We Are Holding Engineers Accountable for Dangerous Road Designs. The Engineering Powers That Be Want Us To Shut Up.

Pointing out the emperor’s nakedness doesn’t make you very popular in the emperor’s court. That’s not going to stop us from pointing out gross negligence in the engineering profession when we see it.

Engineering Reform, Herriges, Top StoryDaniel HerrigesAugust 29, 2022engineering ethics, engineers

2 College Towns Leading the Way on Land-Use Reform

Although they stand in very different parts of the country, these college towns are spearheading the push to eliminate harmful, longstanding land-use policies.

What Causes Traffic Problems? Updating Your Mental Model

Part of why we can't agree on constructive solutions to traffic congestion is that our basic mental model of what causes traffic is wrong. But what if we made a slight update to that model?

Can Hamilton, Ontario, Hold the Line on Development—Literally?

This Canadian city made an unprecedented decision to stop expanding its urban growth boundary. What comes next?

Herriges, Top StoryDaniel HerrigesAugust 17, 2022growth, sprawl, infill, Infill Development, canada, suburban experiment, growth ponzi scheme

Is Wall Street Actually Taking Over the Housing Market?

Are Wall Street-backed investors the reason you can’t afford a house? The truth is a bit more complicated than that.

Herriges, Top StoryDaniel HerrigesJuly 27, 2022housing, housing cost, housing crisis, housing market, homeowners, home buyer

Community Is Important. But “The Community” Is an Illusion.

You should be wary of anyone who claims to speak for “the community” or “the public,” especially when it’s in lieu of telling you who will benefit from the actions they support.