Frankfort's bustling downtown features a host of welcoming businesses and weekly live events to get people socializing on the street.

Frankfort v. Yellow Springs: The Heartland Rumble

10 March 2022

Kentucky, Ohio cities represent America's heartland in national contest to find Strongest Town

In the 7th annual Strongest Town Contest, Frankfort, Kentucky and Yellow Springs, Ohio are prime examples of the resilient townmaking practices so many Americans are seeking as they choose where to live, work, and thrive.

When voting on round two of this March Madness-inspired competition opens on March 14, each community will have another chance to show how they are building great lives for people who live there through resident-led development, good bookkeeping, and transportation that works for everyone.

Highlights:

• The Strongest Town Contest is a celebration of communities that are putting their focus on townmaking practices that build resilience and prosperity.

• The Elite Eight round features a photo tour of each community. Voting opens on Monday, March 14.

• The 2022 Strongest Town will be visited by nationally recognized author, engineer, and advocate for strong communities Chuck Marohn. This city will also be featured prominently on the Strong Towns website with a series of articles outlining their efforts to provide citizens with a good life in a prosperous place.

• Voting is open to anyone.

• Full Contest Details / Press+Partner Kit

What these cities are doing right

The predominant way our cities are built takes precious resources and squanders them on rapid growth that eventually turns into massive debt and fiscal insolvency. In order to ensure a prosperous people, the communities highlighted by the Strongest Town Contest are working to apply a time-tested approach that

Relies on incremental investments (little bets) instead of large, transformative projects
Favors resiliency of result over efficiency of execution
Is designed to adapt to feedback, to evolve over time to meet the changing needs of the community
Is inspired by bottom-up action and not top-down systems
Seeks to conduct as much of life as possible at a human scale
Is obsessive about accounting for its revenues, expenses, assets and long-term liabilities

"The contest is about the journey, not the destination," nationally recognized engineer and Strong Towns founder Charles Marohn said. "It's not a snapshot of where a place is as much as an examination of how they are trying to get to someplace better."

In the highly walk- and bikable Yellow Springs, community leaders are dedicated to making sure there is plenty of opportunity for people to live affordably and even put out their own shingle. Local government has facilitated the development of permanently affordable pocket neighborhoods. Village leadership works closely with emerging businesses to connect them with the resources they need to thrive. And the village runs a balanced budget.

Frankfort places a great deal of focus in helping local businesses make the most of existing structures, including with the use of a downtown reinvestment grant program. Regardless of where an entrepreneur wants to set up shop, one-on-one coaching is available to people who are new to the biz. With lots of support and input from the community, Frankfort works to implement a Walk Bike Master Plan to make their city the best in the state for multimodal transportation.

The Village of Yellow Springs is known for its walk-, bike-, and roll-ability.

Each round, a different aspect of participating communities will be featured on the contest website, and the public will vote on which towns are best applying the Strong Towns approach to create a thriving place.

Strong Towns helps local leaders identify the cause of decline in our cities and take action to build a stronger, financially resilient future. The Strong Towns movement is reshaping the North American development pattern with a return to bottom-up, incremental growth.

Media Contacts:
Strong Towns - Lauren Fisher, Communications
lauren@strongtowns.org / (844) 218-1681

Yellow Springs - Brian K. Housh, Village Council President
brianhoush@vil.yellowsprings.oh.us / (937) 776-9566

Frankfort - Blair Owens Hecker - Community Engagement Manager
bhecker@frankfort.ky.gov / (502) 352-2180

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