The Bottom-Up Revolution

Jessica David and Josh Daley are co-founders of Local Return, a nonprofit in Rhode Island dedicated to building community wealth through ownership and investment. They empower residents through education and financing, with a particular focus on small-scale developers and small business owners. Today, Jessica and Josh explain how Local Return works, how it benefits communities, and the legal and technical challenges of starting this kind of program.

ADDITIONAL SHOW NOTES

• Local Recommendations:
  • Apsara Thai
  • White Electric Coffee
  • Figidini’s Pizza
• Local Return (site)
• Tiffany Owens Reed (Instagram)
• Do you know someone who would make for a great Bottom-Up Revolution guest? Let us know here!

Christine Corrado is a city councilmember in Brighton, New York. She’s also the founder of Brighton Safe Streets for All and has served on a variety of city committees, from the Zoning Board of Appeals to the Public Works Committee. She and Norm discuss how she’s making her community safer and more prosperous.

ADDITIONAL SHOW NOTES

• Brighton Safe Streets for All (Facebook)

• Christine Corrado

  • LinkedIn

  • Town of Brighton (site)

• Norm Van Eeden Petersman (LinkedIn)

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

Professor Jack Duncan is a professor of architecture and preservation at the College of Charleston. His mission is to help students and communities understand and rediscover the human-scaled patterns that make places beautiful, legible, and lasting. Today, Jack joins Tiffany to discuss how this mission relates to architecture, urbanism, and craftsmanship.

ADDITIONAL SHOW NOTES

• Local Recommendations:

  • Nathaniel Russell House

  • Magnolia Plantation Gardens

  • Angel Oak on Johns Island

• Duncan & Co. Studio (site)

• Tiffany Owens Reed (Instagram)

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

Gioia Calabretta is one of the leaders of Livable Lynchburg, a Local Conversation in Virginia. She is also Strong Towns’ graphic design intern. She and Norm discuss a walk audit she recently participated in, as well as her unique viewpoint as both a Local Conversation leader and Strong Towns staff member.

ADDITIONAL SHOW NOTES

• Livable Lynchburg (Instagram)

• See more from Gioia:

  • LinkedIn

  • “I Refuse To Accept That My Best Days of Walkability Were in College” by Gioia Calabretta

• Norm Van Eeden Petersman (LinkedIn)

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

Will Gardner is the founder of South Coast Places For People, a new nonprofit — and Strong Towns Local Conversation — in Massachusetts. He previously founded Alma del Mar Charter Schools and now spends much of his time plotting street redesigns, housing reforms, and community events.

In this episode, Will discusses the three working groups his Local Conversation recently started, which focus on parking reform, backyard cottages, and street safety.

ADDITIONAL SHOW NOTES

• Local Recommendations:

  • Millicent Library in Fair Haven

  • New Bedford Whaling Museum

  • Ice Cream Cottage

• South Coast Places For People

• StrongHaven (Substack)

• Learn more about Strong Towns Local Conversations.

• Tiffany Owens Reed (Instagram)

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

Today, Norm is joined by Jess and Dan Sollaccio from Warrenton, Oregon. Jess is a city commissioner and a small-scale housing developer. Dan is a commissioner for the Warrenton Budget Committee and works remotely for a financial institution. They explain their asset-based mindset for strengthening their community, as well as their efforts to redevelop a vacant building into a community hub.

ADDITIONAL SHOW NOTES

• Jessica Sollaccio (site)

• The Outpost (site)

• Norm Van Eeden Petersman (LinkedIn)

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

Memphis, Tennessee, was ranked the #1 most dangerous metro area by Smart Growth America in 2024. That’s not stopping Kelsey Huse, a safe streets advocate and grad student studying city and regional planning. She’s tackling the problem head-on by analyzing car crash sites, helping launch a city-wide advocacy coalition, and raising awareness for safer infrastructure online.

Today, Kelsey joins Tiffany to share the inside scoop on Memphis’ dangerous design and how she’s working to change it.

ADDITIONAL SHOW NOTES

• Local Recommendations:

  • Lulu’s Cafe

  • Overton Park

• Follow Kelsey on Instagram at Memphis Urbanism

• Learn more about the Memphis Crash Analysis Studio.

• Tiffany Owens Reed (Instagram)

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

Eva López Chávez is a city council member in Salt Lake City, Utah. Eva has been involved in many layers of local government, including working as a city staffer and construction project manager. Today, she and Norm discuss how she became a city councilor and how she’s building prosperity in her city.

ADDITIONAL SHOW NOTES

• Connect with Eva:

  • Instagram

  • LinkedIn

  • City Council (site)

• Bring the conversation to your community by booking Norm as a speaker!

• Norm Van Eeden Petersman (LinkedIn)

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

Ashley Thornton is the founder of Waco Walks, an organization devoted to promoting walkability in Waco, Texas. She was inspired to start the organization after spending a year with walking as her primary form of transportation.

Ashley and Tiffany discuss the design choices that make Waco difficult to walk in and how Waco Walks is working to change that.

ADDITIONAL SHOW NOTES

• Local Recommendations:

  • El Conquistador Mexican Restaurant

  • Dubl-R Burgers

  • Cameron Trading Company

  • Helados La Aztecas on 25th

• Waco Walks (Facebook)

• Act Locally Waco (site)

• Tiffany Owens Reed (Instagram)

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

Mark Hoppen is a former city manager and Strong Towns member who’s been quietly strengthening communities in Washington state for decades. In this Bottom Up Short, Norm and Mark talk about why someone should pursue a career in city management, what real priorities look like in that role, and how to lead with both care and practicality.

ADDITIONAL SHOW NOTES

• Gig Harbor Boatshop (site)

• Bring the conversation to your community by booking Norm as a speaker!

• Norm Van Eeden Petersman (LinkedIn)

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