6 Tips for Hosting Your First Local Conversation

(Source: Unsplash.)

A few months ago I created a Facebook group called Strong Towns Silverton. The goal was to get a conversation going locally about how we can use the Strong Towns approach to make our town more livable and more financially resilient. There are lots of ways to kickstart the Strong Towns conversation where you live. A Facebook group is just one possible way, though it has been the starting point for several of the most active Local Conversations, and it was the right way for me. Now, however, I’m ready to schedule our first in-person gathering next month.

As I prepare I’ve tried to keep in mind the recommendations we at Strong Towns often offer new Local Conversations, as well as stories and advice I’ve heard from people who are further ahead than Silverton is in their Local Conversation journeys. Here, then, are some tips on hosting your first neighborhood group meeting. I offer them not as an expert but as a fellow traveler. I’ll return in a few weeks to let you know how our first meeting went.

1. Keep It Informal

Treat the early days of your group as a chance to get to know one another, talk about your city, learn a little about the Strong Towns approach, and start to get a sense of how you might work together to utilize it in your neighborhoods. 

One Local Conversation leader I talked to recommended using the first meeting to learn more about the group members’ skills, experience, and especially their passions. If a large portion of the group shares a passion for, say, walkability, you might consider leaning into that when determining where to start taking action in your city. 

2. Keep It Open to All Experience Levels

Emphasize that absolutely no experience, vocabulary, or urban planning knowledge is necessary to join the conversation; just open minds and a passion for making your community stronger. 

Another Local Conversation leader I’ve spoken to, Cary Westerbeck in Bothell, Washington, used the first few meetings of his group, Bothellites for People-Oriented Places, to watch the Curbside Chat video series. The series may be a little old—8 years old now—but Cary said the short videos are still a powerful tool for introducing Strong Towns concepts and getting new people up to speed. 

Note: Cary and I co-facilitated a Local-Motive session last year called “5 Steps to Forming a Successful Neighborhood Group.” If you lead a Local Conversation, or if you’re in the process of starting one, and you’d like to watch this session, get in touch with me at john@strongtowns.org. I will send you complimentary access to it.

3. Plan Ahead

Thinking practically about logistics: rather than picking a random date and time, send out a Doodle poll with a few days and times for a first meetup to find a slot that works for a quorum of people. Shoot for about 3–4 weeks out, unless you have a venue in mind that you know will require more lead time. You may also solicit suggestions for a venue from your group; we recommend someplace public, with enough space to fit your group and not so noisy that no one can hear. Pick a bar, restaurant, library meeting room, or other space that you think might be suitable. When you call to make the reservation, be sure to ask about noise level and number of chairs.

Especially for in-person meet ups, ask your list whether they require childcare, disability accommodations, interpreter services, or any other special needs that you can reasonably provide.

4. Keep It Simple

Don’t let the perfect—or the elaborate—be the enemy of the good. If you’re like me, the easiest way to delay ever starting your Local Conversation is to wait until you find the perfect venue, the perfect night, the perfect agenda, or even (let’s be honest) the perfect organizer. The Strong Towns approach is a bottom-up revolution. It starts right where you are, with what you have, and builds iteratively from there. It’s only fitting, then, that a Strong Towns Local Conversation should do the same. 

I know of Local Conversations whose first meetings involved a few friends walking their neighborhood together. As they walked, they observed what was working in the neighborhood and what wasn’t. They saw where people were struggling. They talked about how a Strong Towns approach can be used to make their community safer, more livable, more inviting, and more resilient. A walk with friends is more than enough to get your Local Conversation up-and-running. Actually, it’s great.

5. Keep It Fun

There are a thousand-and-one things competing for our precious time, energy, and attention. None of us—including me—are involved in a Local Conversation for a living. It’s something we do in addition to our day jobs, school studies, hobbies, family obligations, or other community commitments. One way to make a Local Conversation more sustainable, and ultimately more successful, is to add an element of fun. 

This reminds me of a refrain I’ve heard from a number of local leaders I’ve met over the years: Don’t forget the food. This can be as simple as meeting at a favorite coffee shop or bringing cookies to your gathering, or as involved as Strong Towns Sioux Falls’ brilliant Citizen Taco lunches. (To learn more about Citizen Taco, check out this 2019 webcast in the Strong Towns Facebook group.)

6. Ask for Help

The final tip is to ask for help. I mean this in two ways. 

First, ask for help from your group. Just because you initiated your Local Conversation doesn’t mean all the leadership and organizing responsibilities must (or even should) fall on you. Even if your list of members is small, try to recruit another member of your group to help plan, promote, and host your first in-person gathering. 

Second, ask for help from other Local Conversation leaders. As I wrote a couple weeks ago, we recently created a Discord server just for people who are starting or leading Strong Towns Local Conversations. If you are one of our Local Conversation leaders and you’re not in the Discord server yet, email me at john@strongtowns.org. I will send you a fresh invite link. If you have questions about hosting your first meeting, I would encourage you to hop in Discord and ask there. You’ll get some great advice. I also know of Local Conversation leaders who have allowed new organizers to virtually attend a meeting, to get ideas and inspiration. 

In many ways, Local Conversations are on the front lines of the Strong Towns movement. Are you ready to lead? If you’re interested in starting a Local Conversation in your city, or if you want to see if there’s an existing group near you, check out strongtowns.org/local. And don’t hesitate to reach out to me at john@strongtowns.org if you have questions.

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