Upzoned

In this episode of Upzoned, co-hosts Abby Newsham and Chuck Marohn talk about satellite communities — towns that are developed a distance away from existing urbanized areas. They also discuss the psychological phenomena that incline people toward big projects that may solve an immediate issue (such as housing) but will cause larger difficulties later on (such as maintenance debt)

Canada needs an additional 3.5 million housing units by 2030, and that means Canadian cities — as well as many others throughout North America — are facing the challenge of building more housing without wasting natural resources like mature trees. In this episode of Upzoned, co-hosts Abby Newsham and Chuck Marohn discuss this balancing act, the high value that trees bring to a

In this episode of Upzoned, host Abby Newsham is joined by Andrew Ganahl, managing partner of a real estate development company that specializes in urban infill housing. They discuss a Washington Post article about townhouses, exploring the benefits of this style of development and Ganahl’s own experiences with building townhouses in Kansas City. ADDITIONAL SHOW NOTES “The ne

Post-COVID-19, there’s been a resurgence of interest in mixed-use neighborhoods, leading some cities to allow for small corner stores even in neighborhoods that are otherwise residential only. In this Upzoned episode, host Abby Newsham is joined by Norm Van Eeden Petersman, the director of membership and development for Strong Towns. They discuss the role that small corner stores

After the collapse of a Florida condo made national news in 2021, new safety regulations were enacted, requiring nearly 90% of Florida units to be updated. This left condo owners and buyers blindsided by a large backlog of deferred maintenance costs with no money saved to pay for them. In this episode of Upzoned, co-hosts Abby Newsham and Chuck Marohn explain that this situation is

In this episode of Upzoned, host Abby Newsham is joined by John Anderson, a builder and developer in Georgia, to discuss the Strong Towns take on “urban homesteading,” where cities sell derelict houses to people for $1 in exchange for a promise to renovate the property and live there for a period of time. ADDITIONAL SHOW NOTES “Can Selling Off Homes for $1 Solve Urban Blight

Editor's Note: We are deeply saddened to see the damage Hurricane Helene has done to Western North Carolina. Please see the additional notes for ways you can help. In this episode of Upzoned, co-hosts Abby Newsham and Chuck Marohn discuss managed retreat, where the federal government buys land from people to encourage them to move away from areas at high risk for natural disaster

The U.S. Department of Transportation has announced a national deployment plan of vehicle-to-everything (V2X) technology, a wireless communication tool that allows vehicles to transmit data on speed, location, road condition and other basic information. The DOT plans to implement this technology in 75% of the nation's intersections over the next decade or so. In this episode of Upz

In this episode of Upzoned, co-hosts Abby Newsham and Chuck Marohn discuss the article “Toward a New Way of Educating City Builders” by Seth Zeren, a founding member of Strong Towns. They discuss the many different disciplines that are responsible for shaping the built environment, the professional silos that often develop between these disciplines, and how a shift in managemen

In this episode of Upzoned, host Abby Newsham is joined by small-scale developers Alli Quinlan and Bernice Radle. They discuss their experiences in the field of incremental development, how to make incremental development more feasible in your city, and the importance of encouraging women to become incremental developers. ADDITIONAL SHOW NOTES Alli Quinlan (LinkedIn). Bernice Ra