Strong Towns Event

Join us on Monday, Jan. 7 to hear engineer and city planner, Charles Marohn, talk about his development of the ‘Strong Towns’ concept. Charles argues that city planners often use the wrong criteria for developing city infrastructures resulting in towns that are neither people- nor nature-friendly. They give scant consideration to the value derived from adding parks and other green spaces that make towns more livable. He seeks to change current mindsets and create towns in which people can thrive, interact more easily, and contribute to each others’ well-being.

This is a pivotal time for many communities. Years of unstable property values are now showing up as uncertain revenue streams. Budgets are stretched. The shifts and delayed maintenance of prior years are starting to show up on the ground.

Local leaders are looking for answers. What they are discovering is that they are largely on their own.

The standard approach emphasizes growth over resilience. This is a key part of our problem. To truly do more with less, we need to understand how we have built ourselves into decline. How local investments have failed to generate prosperity. Why the standard approach is harming our towns and neighborhoods?

And, most importantly, how we start a real recovery?

The team at Strong Towns has prepared the Curbside Chat for local officials, key community leaders and engaged citizens. The presentation has five parts:

1. Background on the current financial crisis.
2. The triggers that are forcing changes in the way we inhabit the landscape.
3. The “dead ideas” we need to overcome to renew prosperity in our towns and neighborhoods.
4. What the coming new economy is likely to look like.
5. What local leaders can do to position their communities for success in the new era.

Anyone interested in the future of their community is invited to attend the Curbside Chat. The event is open to the public.

Strong Towns is a Minnesota-based non-profit organization. The mission of Strong Towns is to support a model for growth that allows America’s towns to become financially strong and resilient. The Curbside Chat program is an initiative of Strong Towns to raise awareness of changes that are taking place in the broader economy and how they will impact the way cities, towns and neighborhoods prosper.

More information on Strong Towns is available online at www.strongtowns.org. More information on Curbside Chat is available online at www.curbsidechat.org.