In this episode of The Bottom-Up Revolution, host Tiffany Owens Reed is joined by Chloe Groome and Aaron Feldman, co-leads of the Local Conversation group Strong Towns Chicago.

They discuss the initiatives that Strong Towns Chicago is working on, including legalizing fourplexes throughout the city and getting city officials involved in tactical urbanism. They also talk about the challenges the group faces and their strategies for overcoming those difficulties, including building a coalition with other advocacy groups.

• Local recommendations:

  • The winter Christkindlmarket

  • Summer streetfests.

  • Four Moon Tavern.

  • Live music concerts.

  • Lou Malnati’s Pizzeria.

• Strong Towns Chicago (Instagram).

• Tiffany Owens Reed (Instagram).

• Do you know someone who would make for a great The Bottom-Up Revolution guest? Let us know here!

In this episode of Bottom-Up Shorts, host Norm Van Eeden Petersman is joined by Joshua Hopkins, the newly elected mayor of Chugwater, Wyoming. They discuss Hopkins’ path to becoming mayor and how he created a rodeo ring that provides a third place for his community and supports local businesses and walkability.

• Tri-County Mercantile.

• Read more from Strong Towns about Chugwater.

• Norm Van Eeden Petersman (LinkedIn).

• Do you know someone who would make for a great The Bottom-Up Revolution guest? Let us know here!

Sara Studdard is a community engagement and communications expert. She’s also a partner at City Thread, a nonprofit consulting firm that specializes in helping city governments design and implement active mobility plans.

Studdard joins this episode of The Bottom-Up Revolution to explore how having a variety of mobility options (walking, biking, public transit, etc.) benefits communities, as well as the importance of effective messaging and communication.

• Local recommendations:

  • Nowhere Coffee.

  • Westwood Neighborhood.

• City Thread (site).

  • “Communication Strategies That Work” (blog).

  • “How to Activate Local Support Through Messaging” (blog).

  • Case Study: Providence, Rhode Island.

• Tiffany Owens Reed (Instagram).

• Do you know someone who would make for a great The Bottom-Up Revolution guest? Let us know here!

In this episode of Bottom-Up Shorts, host Norm Van Eeden Petersman is joined by Sully Israel, leader of Strong Towns Santa Barbara, a Local Conversation group. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Santa Barbara’s main street was closed to car traffic, which revitalized the area. Now, Israel and his group are working to keep the street closed to cars and address the community’s other needs in the public realm.

• See more from Sully on his YouTube channel Sullyville or connect with him on LinkedIn.

• Strong Towns Santa Barbara (site).

• Local coverage of efforts to keep State Street car free.

• Norm Van Eeden Petersman (LinkedIn).

• Do you know someone who would make for a great The Bottom-Up Revolution guest? Let us know here!

• Subscribe to The Bottom-Up Revolution on iTunes, Google Podcasts, Podbean or via RSS.

In this episode of Bottom-Up Shorts, host Norm Van Eeden Petersman is joined by Ken Kunka, a consultant and coach for small-scale developers. A former building and permitting manager, Kunka helps others develop their craft as builders of stronger communities, with a focus on infill development. Here’s how he does it.

• Norm Van Eeden Petersman (LinkedIn).

• Do you know someone who would make for a great The Bottom-Up Revolution guest? Let us know here!

Jaime Izurieta is an architect, designer and author from Montclair, New Jersey, who focuses on the interaction between users and the built environment. He’s also the founder of Storefront Mastery, an award-winning creative agency that works with place management organizations to design and activate interactions between local businesses and their community.

This week, Izurieta joins host Tiffany Owens Reed to discuss the importance of designing experiences, instead of just buildings, and how local leaders can shift their perspectives of downtowns to make them more successful.

• Local recommendations:

  • Le French Dad Bakery.

  • Local Coffee Montclair.

  • Watchung Booksellers.

  • Tino’s Artisan Pizza.

• Storefront Mastery (site).

• Check out Jaime Izurieta’s book, “Main Street Mavericks.”

• Learn more about the Storefront Renaissance League.

• Tiffany Owens Reed (Instagram).

• Do you know someone who would make for a great The Bottom-Up Revolution guest? Let us know here!

In this episode of Bottom-Up Shorts, host Norm Van Eeden Petersman is joined by Julie Emery, one of the leaders of Strong Milwaukee, a Local Conversations group. Emery and her group are helping to make their community stronger by building bus benches. Here’s how they started their program and how it’s evolving.

• Norm Van Eeden Petersman (LinkedIn).

• Do you know someone who would make for a great The Bottom-Up Revolution guest? Let us know here!

Katy Clagett is a commercial real estate appraiser, but at her core, she’s an urban explorer and champion for overlooked spaces. At this year’s National Gathering, she won the Small Bets Competition for her “Flock Party” pitch of reclaiming a neighborhood alley using sheep and goats.

Clagett joins this episode of The Bottom-Up Revolution to talk about the ways bottom-up projects can bring neighbors together and build community, as well as her experience with spearheading this kind of project.

• Local recommendations:

  • Manheim Gardens.

  • Broadway Cafe.

• Flock Party before-and-after images.

• Tiffany Owens Reed (Instagram).

• Do you know someone who would make for a great The Bottom-Up Revolution guest? Let us know here!

In this episode of Bottom-Up Shorts, host Norm Van Eeden Petersman is joined by Sarah, the leader of Strong Towns Poway/Rancho Bernardo, a Local Conversations group. Sarah and several of her friends teamed up to install bike racks in places that were lacking them. Here’s how they used a really small budget and lots of determination to make something good happen in their community.

• Norm Van Eeden Petersman (LinkedIn).

• Do you know someone who would make for a great The Bottom-Up Revolution guest? Let us know here!

This Member Week, we’re excited to introduce you to Bottom-Up Shorts, a new collection of 10-minute episodes that we're adding to The Bottom-Up Revolution feed. Each week, Member Advocate Norm Van Eeden Petersman will talk with inspiring guests who are taking action in their community.

This week, he’s joined by Manav Sharma, one of the leaders of Strong Towns Vancouver, a Local Conversations group. Sharma and his group were inspired to make their community stronger through the tactical deployment of stickers. Here’s how they’re doing it.

• Become a member today!

• Strong Towns Vancouver sticker campaign coverage, pictures and video.

• Resources for creating safe and productive streets.

• Norm Van Eeden Petersman (LinkedIn).

• Do you know someone who would make for a great The Bottom-Up Revolution guest? Let us know here!

Rik Adamski is the founder and president of Ash+Lime, a planning firm that strives to help cities and neighborhoods create thriving places by drawing on the wisdom of the past. Originally from Chicago, Adamski consulted for several of the most prominent planning organizations in the U.S. before moving to Texas and embracing a more nimble, actionable and participatory approach to developing communities.

In this episode of The Bottom-Up Revolution, Adamski joins host Tiffany Owens Reed to discuss his approach to urban planning, the challenges of implementing a new planning approach in cities, and the importance of community engagement and incrementalism.

• Local recommendations:

  • Ten Bells Tavern (reopening soon).

  • Texas Theatre.

  • Jefferson Boulevard.

  • Tyler Station.

  • Stockyards District in Fort Worth.

• Ash+Lime (website).

• A Better Brainerd report.

• Tiffany Owens Reed (Instagram).

• Do you know someone who would make for a great The Bottom-Up Revolution guest? Let us know here!