Upzoned

An eight-mile gap keeps Los Angeles from having a continuous river bike route through the heart of the city. Voters approved hundreds of millions of dollars to help close it, but years of planning have pushed the project toward a possible billion-dollar price tag. Carlee Alm-LaBar is joined by transportation advocate Dave Snyder, Pasadena city councilmember and longtime local government leader Rick Cole, and Strong Towns chief technical advisor Edward Erfurt to examine how a straightforward connection became a megaproject. Flood control, emergency access, environmental concerns, neighborhood connections, labor requirements, and long-term reliability have each added something defensible to the plan. Meanwhile, a simpler path could reportedly close the entire gap with the money already available.

ADDITIONAL SHOW NOTES

"The eight-mile gap in the L.A. River bike path downtown has a billion-dollar problem" by Mack Baysinger, Latimes.com (August 2026)

Downzone:

Start Your Farm: The Authoritative Guide to Becoming a Sustainable 21st-Century Farmer, by Ellen Polishuk and Forrest Pritchard (Site)

the Movement Newsletter (Substack)

Carlee Alm-LaBar (LinkedIn)

Dave Snyder (LinkedIn)

Rick Cole (LinkedIn)

Edward Erfurt (LinkedIn)

Theme Music by Kemet the Phantom.

 

This podcast is made possible by Strong Towns members. Join fellow members discussing this episode in The Commons.

Hartman, Colorado, reached a point where it could no longer function as a town. Its water system was unsafe, every member of the town board had resigned, and no one remained with the authority to hold an election or sign the agreements needed to fix the water. Norm Van Eeden Petersman is joined by Joshua Hopkins, mayor of Chugwater, Wyoming, and Strong Towns executive director John Reuter to look past the political infighting and ask what happened before the final collapse. The question facing places like Hartman and Chugwater is increasingly basic: How much town can a very small community actually afford to maintain?

ADDITIONAL SHOW NOTES

"Colorado declares town abandoned amid water and leadership crisis" by Ramon Antonio Vargas, Theguardian.com (August 2026)

Norm Van Eeden Petersman (LinkedIn)

Joshua Hopkins (LinkedIn, Instagram)

John Reuter (LinkedIn)

Articles mentioned and Downzone:

How a Rodeo Arena Can Strengthen A Rural Community (Bottom-Up Short Episode)

Don’t Give Up on Your Small Town (Article)

Whatever Happened to the Music Teacher? How Government Decides and Why by Donald Savoie (Book) 

Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion by Robert B. Cialdini (Book)

Chugwaterite (Instagram)

Theme Music by Kemet the Phantom.

 

This podcast is made possible by Strong Towns members. Thank you! Join fellow members discussing this episode in The Commons.

What if the easiest way to overcome opposition to new housing was simply to pay people to accept it? A recent article in The Atlantic argues that after state laws, packed public meetings, and economic appeals have failed to overcome local resistance, cash payments might succeed where persuasion has not. Chuck Marohn is joined by John Reuter, executive director of Strong Towns, and Dr. Chloe Groome, treasurer of Strong Towns Chicago, to test that idea against what they’ve seen in real neighborhoods. Their discussion turns to what happens when new neighbors are framed as a burden, and whether cash can do the work that persuasion, trust, and local relationships have failed to do.

"A Perfectly Crude Solution to America’s Housing Shortage" by Rogé Karma, Theatlantic.com (July 2026)

Chuck Marohn (LinkedIn)

John Reuter (LinkedIn)

Dr. Chloe Groome (LinkedIn), Strong Towns Chicago (Site)

Articles Mentioned and Downzone:

The Human Condition by Hannah Arendt (Site)

Farm To Taber (YouTube Channel)

Stolen Revolution: Betrayal and Hope in Modern Iran by Yeganeh Torbati and Bozorgmehr Sharafedin (Site)

Theme Music by Kemet the Phantom.

 

This podcast is made possible by Strong Towns members. Thank you! Join fellow members discussing this episode in The Commons.

What happens when one generation holds much of the country’s housing wealth and has little reason to give it up? Chuck Marohn talks with Strong Towns board chair Andrew Burleson and historic property renovator Richard Rumrill about boomers buying bigger homes, even as younger families wait for those houses to come back onto the market. The generational frustration is easy to understand, but the expected handoff assumes older homeowners will be ready to leave. What happens when the people expected to move have nowhere they want to go, and everyone behind them is still waiting?

ADDITIONAL SHOW NOTES

"Boomers Were Supposed to Downsize. They Are Buying Bigger Homes Instead." by Rachel Louise Ensign, Wsj.com (July 2026)

Chuck Marohn (LinkedIn)

Andrew Burleson (LinkedIn), Free Range City (Substack)

Richard Rumrill (LinkedIn), Strong Towns RVA (Site)

Articles Mentioned and Downzone:

Regime Change: Inside the Imperial Presidency of Donald Trump by Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan (Site)

Kids Over Cars (Substack)

#42 Charles Duff: North Atlantic Cities - The Forgotten Blueprint for the Future Building Culture (Podcast)

The North Atlantic Cities by Charles Duff (Site)

Theme Music by Kemet the Phantom.

 

This podcast is made possible by Strong Towns members. Thank you! Join fellow members discussing this episode in The Commons.

Americans have been told that buying a home is one of the safest ways to secure their future. But when retirement depends on home values continuing to climb, affordability begins to look like a threat. Carlee Alm-LaBar is joined by Daniel Herriges, co-author of Escaping the Housing Trap, and Alli Thurmond-Quinlan, executive director of the Incremental Development Alliance. Together, they push beyond the idea that housing is simply an investment problem. Limited supply, narrow housing choices, transportation, retirement, and municipal finance are all tied into the same system, leaving people with fewer ways to find security at every stage of life.

ADDITIONAL SHOW NOTES

"The Housing Crisis Is Also a Retirement Crisis" by Kyla Scanlon, Nytimes.com (July 2026)

Downzone:

From Strength to Strength, by Arthur C. Brooks (Site)

Construction Physics (Substack)

World Cup 2026 (Site)

Carlee Alm-LaBar (LinkedIn)

Daniel Herriges (LinkedIn)

Alli Thurmond-Quinlan (LinkedIn)

Theme Music by Kemet the Phantom.

 

This podcast is made possible by Strong Towns members. Join fellow members discussing this episode in The Commons.