Friday Faves - Your Weekly Strong Towns Roundup
Each week, the Strong Towns team shares their favorite links—the things that made us think in new ways, delve deeper into the Strong Towns mission, or even just smile.
The Strong Towns HQ in Brainerd was forced to move offices this summer and Chuck is still getting set up. This week he found a few pieces of used furniture for the space. Hopefully one day our whole staff can gather here again and enjoy this comfy space.
This week, we’re happy to say that John was able to move back home after being evacuated due to the wildfires, although the air quality in Oregon is still awful and some of his friends have tragically lost their homes. We’re keeping that region in our prayers.
In other news, we just did a Strong Towns presentation last night for the City of Taylor, TX, and we have several more coming up soon. Check out our full event list—most of which are virtual and open to the public—here.
Finally, we’re also excited to report that the newest Strong Towns Academy course, “Creating Housing Opportunities in a Strong Town,” will start rolling out on Monday. You can sign up for that course here to get immediate access, and we’re also still offering a great discount if you want to get the full bundle of all eight academy courses, covering over 32 hours of continuing education credits.
Here’s what Strong Towns staff were reading this week:
Alexa: I’ve been interested in the concept of public vs. private property and what happens when the two are put into conflict with one another. This story explores how a law in Florida that was supposed to protect the people’s right to public beaches has made it even more precarious. A story of wealthy newcomers who disrupt a long-term resident’s’ ability to take a stroll along the beach that her family has been visiting for thirty years is compelling and one that can give everyone something to think about.
Chuck: This article came up during dinner conversation at my house this week and, strangely, I was the only one who hadn’t heard about it. I’m obsessed with this topic—and will confess to being a fan of the show “Ancient Aliens” just for the sheer speculative value—because I think our imagination about what is out there is too centered on humanity and the biological functions as we experience them on Earth. It will be one of the greatest disappointments of my life if I grow old and expire before we’ve definitively confirmed some form of life beyond our planet. It seems only a matter of time, an exciting albeit humbling thought.
Rachel: I’ve been closely following the stories of restaurants and restaurant workers during this pandemic because I have many friends in the industry, I love a good meal and I believe that local restaurants are a vital part of the fabric of any community. This essay in Belt Magazine (incidentally, a fantastic publication focusing on the Rust Belt and Midwest that you should check out if you haven’t already), follows one Chicago-based chef who has been cooking and coordinating food for people in need for much of the pandemic. Cooking for others and sharing meals together are such essential human activities, especially during times of crisis. I’m heartened to see people finding ways to keep preparing delicious food and serving it to hungry people during this wild year.
Daniel: This is a long read from City Pages, an excellent local weekly in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area, about Lake Street, which was the epicenter of the protests following George Floyd’s death earlier this year. It paints a vivid picture of an area that has been home to generations of people who had very little—from Scandinavian immigrants more than a century ago to Latinos and East Africans today—but who found ways to build something that was theirs. I like that the piece leans into the contradictions and complexity of this community, doesn’t sugar-coat its challenges, and compellingly illustrates how bottom-up efforts to build community are buffeted by top-down economic and political forces. There’s a lot to chew on here for the Strong Towns advocate interested in how to build resilience in America’s high-poverty neighborhoods.
Lauren: This video was shared by someone in the Strong Towns Facebook group this week, and it made me chuckle. It’s a humorous example of how looking at things from a new perspective can help us identify ways to improve our places that specifically touches on auto-dependency and displacement caused by building freeways through cities. The poignant bit comes late in the game, so hopefully the silliness of the intro will help get you there.
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Finally, from all of us, a warm welcome to the newest members of the Strong Towns movement: Greg Anderson, Clem Foltz, Michele Guay, Chris Holcomb, Sally Morrow, Darrell Rigsby, Danielle Stewart, and Gordon Waller.
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What stories got you thinking this week? Please share them in the comments or continue the conversation in the Strong Towns Community.