The Bottom-Up Revolution

How do you turn three people with snow shovels into an initiative that gets covered on the news, triggers a city-funded pilot program, and inspires people to stay in the city long-term? That’s what Andrew Neidhardt and Dustin Moore of Walkable Albany, a Local Conversation in New York, are here to explain.

ADDITIONAL SHOW NOTES

• Walkable Albany (site).

• Norm Van Eeden Petersman (LinkedIn).

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

Rosaline Hill is a registered professional planner and awards-winning architect from Ottawa, Canada. She’s consulted on zoning for the city of Ottawa and is the founder and principle architect of BuildingIn, a planning program that helps municipalities reach their housing goals through infill development.

Today, Rosaline joins Tiffany to discuss the complexities of housing reform. She explains how she created a 3D modeling program that helps municipalities visualize and argue persuasively for development.

ADDITIONAL SHOW NOTES

• Local Recommendations:

  • Equator Coffee 

  • Capital Pathway Bike Trail

• Learn more about Rosaline’s work:

  • BuildingIn (site)

  • Walkable Ottawa (site)

  • Ottawa Cohousing (site)

• Learn about the six simple code reforms local officials can implement today to welcome new housing.

• Tiffany Owens Reed (Instagram)

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

In this episode of Bottom Up Shorts, Norm is joined by Saeed Vahid, a Local Conversation leader from Richmond Hill, Ontario. They talk about how he started the Local Conversation, how the group is collaborating with city officials, and how the expansion of the Greater Toronto Area has affected Richmond Hill.

ADDITIONAL SHOW NOTES

• Strong Richmond Hill (site).

• Norm Van Eeden Petersman (LinkedIn).

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

Diane Alisa is an author and founder of the nonprofit End Car Dependency. Her nonprofit helps support families by making it easier to get around safely without a car, build strong support networks, and empower children to be part of their communities.

Diane joins this episode of The Bottom-Up Revolution to discuss the impact of car-dependent design on families and the importance of building integrated communities (or "villages").

ADDITIONAL SHOW NOTES

• Support the work of advocates like Diane by becoming a Strong Towns member today!

• Local Recommendations:

  • Downtown Provo

• “Love Letter to Suburbia: How to Restore the American Village” by Diane Alisa

• End Car Dependency (website)

• Tiffany Owens Reed (Instagram)

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

Daniel Bloemker is a Strong Towns member and Local Conversation leader from Bellingham, Washington. He’s been instrumental in advancing local efforts on parking reform, housing, and community spaces. He joins Norm in this Bottom-Up Short to discuss these efforts and the progress the city has made.

ADDITIONAL SHOW NOTES

• Want to support advocates like Daniel? Become a Strong Towns member today.

• Bellingham won the “Most Progress in Building Better Budgets” award in the Strongest Town Contest. There are many great lessons that cities of all sizes can learn from their hard work.

Elizabeth Turman-Bryant is a councilmember in Burlington, Washington. She's passionate about community building, revitalizing historical areas, and making Burlington more bicycle and pedestrian friendly.

Turman-Bryant joins Tiffany to discuss her journey from nonprofit work to local government. She explains some of the projects she’s working on and the importance of striking a balance between the responsiveness of bottom-up activism and the influence of local government involvement.

ADDITIONAL SHOW NOTES

• Local Recommendations:

  • Tacos Tecalitlan

  • Train Wreck Bar

  • Railroads Pizza and  Bar

  • Taste of Thai by Wipa

• Tiffany Owens Reed (Instagram)

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

Denyse Trepanier is the president of Bike Walk Alameda, a nonprofit organization in the island city of Alameda, California. She joins Norm to discuss the city's efforts to improve biking infrastructure, including the creation of a network of low-stress bikeways and neighborhood greenways.

ADDITIONAL SHOW NOTES

• Bike Walk Alameda (site)

• Alameda made it to the Sweet 16 in this year’s Strongest Town Contest, from a list of almost 40 nominees. There are many great lessons that cities of all sizes can learn from their hard work. Click here to read more about their progress.

• Norm Van Eeden Petersman (LinkedIn)

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

Steven Zittergruen is a city councilor and Strong Towns member from Decorah, Iowa. In this Bottom-Up Short, he joins Norm to discuss the ways he’s making his community stronger. His efforts include revamping Decorah’s budgeting process, helping launch Decorah’s Local Conversation group, and writing about local governance.

ADDITIONAL SHOW NOTES

• Dear Decorah (Substack)

• Learn how to do the math in your own community.

• Decorah made it to the Elite Eight in this year’s Strongest Town Contest. There are many great lessons that cities of all sizes can learn from their hard work. Click here to read more about their progress.

• 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 McCollum is a registered architect and the president and co-founder of Citymakers Collective, a nonprofit that teaches aspiring architects and planners how to design resilient, beautiful and prosperous places.

He joins Tiffany on this episode of The Bottom-Up Revolution to talk about what it takes to design environments for human flourishing, as well as the importance of educating the next generation of architects and planners.

ADDITIONAL SHOW NOTES

• Local Recommendations:

  • Piedmont Park

  • Bold Monk Brewing

  • The Works Food Hall

• Citymakers Collective (Website)

• Tiffany Owens Reed (Instagram)

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

Amy Emery is a community leader focused on fostering sustainable growth and smart development in Warrenville, Illinois. In today’s Bottom-Up Short, she joins Norm to discuss several initiatives the city is running, including an incubator program for local businesses and a zoning overlay that allows for mixed-use development.

ADDITIONAL SHOW NOTES

• Warrenville made it to the Sweet 16 in this year’s Strongest Town Contest, from a list of almost 40 nominees. There are many great lessons that cities of all sizes can learn from their hard work. Click here to read more about their progress, and remember to vote today in the Championship Round!

• Norm Van Eeden Petersman (LinkedIn)

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