Strong Towns

Aerial view of State College, Pennsylvania at golden hour.

State College Nixes New Downtown Parking Garage After Public Uproar

The borough’s council voted to reverse its decision to demolish several legacy businesses to build a new parking garage.

October 10, 2023 - Strong Towns

Empty Parking Lot

Strong Towns: For Better Cities, End Parking Subsidies

The parking mandates and subsidies prevalent in American cities stifle development and remove agency from property owners and residents.

June 13, 2022 - Strong Towns

Bollards

To Protect Pedestrians, Install More Bollards

Roadway designs protect drivers and construction workers with robust barriers. Why don't we protect pedestrians in the same way?

August 4, 2021 - Strong Towns

Yield Sign

Strong Towns Takes Licensing Challenges to Court

For a second time, Charles Marohn is facing a challenge from the engineering profession over his work as the founder of the popular advocacy organization Strong Towns. This time, Marohn and Strong Towns are pushing back.

May 25, 2021 - Strong Towns

Good Side of the Downside: The End Is (Only) Near

Depressed by city planning in your neck of the woods? Ben Brown says to lower your expectations.

August 5, 2017 - PlaceShakers

Road Construction

Op-Ed: On the Pitfalls of Federal Spending

Charles Marohn of Strong Towns makes the case that whoever's in the White House, simply increasing federal spending on infrastructure isn't the wisest move.

January 19, 2017 - Strong Towns

Pickerington, Ohio

Which U.S. Cities Are Lowering Parking Minimums?

Based on crowdsourced data from across the country, this updated map shows which municipalities have eliminated, lowered, or discussed their parking minimum laws.

December 1, 2016 - Strong Towns

Stroading

Charles Marohn: Not Your Typical Urbanist

From his home in Brainerd, Minnesota (population 13,500), this fiscally conservative engineer leads a growing movement. His slow-and-steady approach to urban development has real bipartisan appeal.

December 10, 2015 - MinnPost

Great Placemaking Begins with Acknowledging the Obvious

Our brains simply tune out anything that might suggest that our behavior is in some way complicit in our problems. Scott Doyon zeros in on the obvious, but often overlooked, problems with our auto-oriented culture.

March 20, 2013 - PlaceShakers

City Deficits "Driven" by Suburban Patterns

As San Diego is paralyzed by the cost to maintain its infrastructure, Howard Blackson revels in a eureka moment, provided by Chuck Marohn, in recognizing the city's explicitly suburban pattern of development is a well-documented financial blunder.

April 24, 2012 - PlaceShakers

Innovation when Good Planning Policy Has Become the Norm

Scott Doyon argues for a stripped-down, back-to-basics 'punk rock' approach to urban growth and development to replace the 'rock and roll' excesses of planning during the housing boom; and he profiles the new innovators who are doing just that.

February 5, 2012 - PlaceShakers

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Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools

This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.

Planning for Universal Design

Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.