It’s the start of a new decade (if you hadn’t heard), and we also just published our 50th episode of the Go Cultivate! podcast (if you don’t count a handful of bonus episodes). Good enough excuses in our book to look back at what have become our most popular episodes since we started this thing back in August of 2018.

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Here we go!

10. Chuck Marohn and the revolution we need

This is our second interview with our dear friend Chuck Marohn, Founder and President of Strong Towns. We discuss some of the themes from his brand-new book (Strong Towns: A Bottom-Up Revolution to Rebuild American Prosperity), what's keeping our cities from building prosperity, and what regular citizens and professionals can do about it.

9. A small city does the math on new development

In this episode, we talk with Michael Kovacs and Justin Weiss from Fate, Texas, about their city's unique approach to steering development in a way that strengthens their financial future, rather than jeopardizing it. It does involve math, but it turns out to be actually pretty simple!

8. Are We Doing This Right? – Granny Flats Edition

What the heck are ADUs, and why aren't there more of them? In this edition of our “Are We Doing This Right?” series, we discuss the benefits of these 'granny flats' (as they are sometimes, less clinically, referred to), some common preconceptions about them, and how your city could encourage people to build them.

7. Math, maps, and money: How fiscal analysis can change the conversation in communities

Felix Landry discusses the importance of understanding the fiscal consequences of our development patterns, as well as the ways that cities can use map-based fiscal analysis to make more holistic land use decisions. The only episode on this list from 2018!

6. Revitalization without gentrification?

In a discussion that spanned two episodes, Bianca and Derek Avery of COIR Holdings talk about what it means to be a responsible developer—especially at a time when many people are skeptical of the profession. We talk the difference between a "spreadsheet developer" and a "community developer," and the possibility of "revitalizing" a neighborhood without generating displacement. One of the absolute essentials from our archives!

5. Who do you trust?

Daniel Herriges of Strong Towns and Felix Landry join the podcast to tackle the subject of trust and city planning. What happens when the public doesn't trust planners? What does that even mean? And how can we work to build trusting, responsive, two-way relationships between community members and the folks in local government?

4. Building community wealth with Monte Anderson

Small developer Monte Anderson has become something of a fixture on the Go Cultivate! podcast. His most popular appearance is his second recording with us, where we go a bit more in depth about his Dallas-area projects that give small-time entrepreneurs a place to make a living and build wealth for the community.

3. Property tax caps aren't helping

In 2019, Texas became the latest state to pass or amend legislation capping the amount cities’ revenue from property taxes can increase year to year. In this episode, we discuss the fallout from this type of legislation in states across the country—and what cities can do in response.

2. Co-creating the city you want to live in, with Ben Orcutt

Ben Orcutt is a bike advocate-turned-small business owner and candidate for city council of Anderson, Indiana. In this episode, we discuss the importance of believing in your neighborhood, how cities could help clear hurdles for citizens who want to contribute, and what we stand to gain by focusing on authenticity and transparency in local government. Listen to this episode if you want some inspiration, because Ben is full of it!

1. Are We Doing This Right? – Single-Family Zoning Edition

We’ve reached number one! And given the year in housing news and intensifying calls for re-legalizing missing middle housing, it’s no surprise this topic struck a chord. Across the country, cities big and small are facing a housing affordability crisis, yet many single-family houses sit vacant. Many of the same cities have serious infrastructure funding shortages. In this episode, we examine the role of single-family zoning in shaping these issues and more—and we explore why there is momentum building to re-legalize other housing types, such as duplexes and fourplexes.

These just happen to be the most-listened to episodes we’ve put out so far, but there are plenty more to tackle from our back catalogue! And better yet, we’ve got some exciting episodes planned for 2020, so you’re going to want to stay tuned. We also love hearing from you if you’d like us to cover a certain topic: podcast@verdunity.com.

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