Books, Podcasts, & Articles

Browse our collection of thought-provoking books, podcasts, and articles to help you explore ideas about building stronger, more connected communities. Whether you’re new to the conversation or looking to dive deeper, these resources offer fresh perspectives and practical inspiration. Some items originate from the Strong Towns movement, others, our local conversation members just love!

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How Would Your Town Welcome 5,000 New Neighbors?Every town will be asked to grow. Maybe not today, maybe not all at once. But when that moment comes, how will yours go about it?

What’s With the Vacant Storefronts? 8 Reasons for Empty Commercial SpacesHere are eight reasons a storefront might sit vacant, applying to both professionally new built and legacy storefronts.

The Story of The StreetsExamining the development of infrastructure in Lexington, Virginia

No One Should Be the Second Person To Die on a Dangerous StreetIf a roof is leaking in a public building, we know to fix it asap. So why don’t our public officials move with the same urgency when dealing with a much more serious problem: the death of a person on our streets?

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Strong Towns Across the Commonwealth

Stay up to date on the stories shaping communities across Virginia. From local success stories to lessons learned in other towns, these pieces highlight what’s working, what’s changing, and how we can learn from each other.

Are Walking Tours the Missing Piece in Local Planning?Charlottesville’s political wounds ran deep. Now, the city is turning to bikes, sidewalks, and street-level trust to chart a new course.

Growth Ponzi Scheme Leaves Virginia Town With $34 Million DilemmaThe Growth Ponzi Scheme encourages city governments to take on obligations they can never hope to sustain. Purcellville, Virginia, offers a stark example of where this path leads.

Alexandria, Virginia, Says Goodbye to Exclusionary ZoningAlexandria, VA, one of the U.S.’s earliest settled cities, has just eliminated single-family zoning.

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How To Make Your City Stronger With 4 Hours and a ShovelAdvocates in Lynchburg, Virginia, are proving that you don't need an official task force to make your city stronger. You just need to care enough to show up.

After Another Fatal Crash, He Drew a Crosswalk. Now He Might Face Jailtime.The latest fatality on a Charlottesville road was the last straw for Kevin Cox, but his efforts to make the area safer might land him twelve months of jailtime. What if cities saw actions like his not as crimes—but as calls for change?

Building a Stronger Harrisonburg, One Small Step at a TimeStrong cities learn from their struggles and celebrate the progress they've already made. Here’s how Harrisonburg, Virginia, is embracing that ethos and making strides toward a stronger future.

"Streets Closed to Vehicular Traffic"Downtown Leesburg, Virginia, goes car free for one weekend.

Healing a Neighborhood with Paint and PossibilityHarrisonburg skipped the renderings and went straight to the street—using a live demo to calm traffic and earn back trust.

How Harrisonburg Is Reclaiming Its Streets From the Bottom UpCity staff in Harrisonburg, Virginia, are embracing a process of co-creation with the public they serve. Here’s what that means.

Bottom-Up Shorts: How to Build Momentum as a Local AdvocateIn this Bottom-Up Short, Norm is joined by Christian Schick, a Local Conversation leader from Virginia. His group has built a lot of momentum in the past year, and Schick talks about how they did that in a productive and helpful way, particularly while juggling local elections. (Transcript included.

Inside Eden Center: What a Strip Mall Can BeWe’ve explored the outside of Fairfax County’s Eden Center before, but what does the inside of this surprisingly fine-grained strip mall look like?

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