good traffic.

Matt McPheely — developer of the Union House project in Greenville, South Carolina — is in good traffic this week to talk about building flexible housing that helps move a city's workforce closer to jobs, in a city not usually known for experimental cohousing developments.

From navigating zoning codes and neighborhood opposition to designing adaptable homes that work for both single families and roommates, Matt shares on what it takes for small-scale developers to build solutions in places like Greenville.

Timeline:

00:00 Matt McPheely is in good traffic.

00:54 Union House in Greenville, SC — the backstory.

02:23 Why “co-living” needed a new vocabulary.

03:35 From subdividing land to building something new.

05:20 Designing homes that fit the neighborhood.

07:01 Adaptability: single-family or roommate-ready.

09:13 Navigating neighbors, zoning, and misconceptions.

11:27 Timeline and roadblocks — small developer challenges.

14:02 How Greenville’s new zoning code enabled the project.

16:19 Crowdfunding and community response.

17:44 Who lives at Union House? Teachers, restaurant staff, hospital employees, etc.

19:11 Partnering with local institutions.

22:26 Replicating and scaling the model.

23:32 Why en suite bathrooms matter.

25:15 Parking, cars, and transit in Greenville.

27:29 Inspirations and influences.

29:58 Lessons from living in Spain — walkability and community.

34:52 What to look for in a zoning code.

38:10 Greenville as a case study for mid-size cities.

41:02 What’s next: more Union Houses + a community hub project.

42:23 Wrapping up.

Further context:

On Union House (via Boyd Architects).

On the current state of the development.

Follow Matt, on LinkedIn.

Miguel Mendoza — founder and director of Nómada Estudio Urbano in Ciudad Juárez — is in good traffic this week for a conversation on tactical urbanism, placemaking, and cross-border design between Mexico and the United States.

From wooden pallet furniture in one of the most violent cities in the world, to Bloomberg Philanthropies–supported park and street projects, Miguel’s work in Ciudad Juárez and El Paso shows how small-scale public space interventions can improve safety, foster community engagement, while maintaining a city’s cultural identity.

We also look at how culture shapes design choices, why early childhood spaces can unite neighborhoods and political discourse, and what cities can learn from each other across the border.

Timeline:

00:00 Miguel Mendoza is in good traffic.

01:20 Growing up between Ciudad Juárez and El Paso.

04:22 Juárez was considered the most violent city in the world.

06:16 First pop-up interventions with recycled materials.

09:02 Why paint and furniture matter for public space.

13:08 From community projects to city partnerships.

16:27 Art, murals, and public perception.

22:07 Drawing on desert culture for design.

25:04 Working across the U.S.–Mexico border.

33:04 Malcolm X Park basketball court mural.

34:43 On a project in Juárez.

40:17 Life on the border vs. the American media narrative.

43:30 Sharing urban design ideas across cities.

45:09 Early childhood public space design in Tijuana & Mexicali.

48:03 Kids’ spaces as a unifying force.

50:26 Juárez’s identity and public space.

53:04 Miguel’s favorite commute.

Further context:

Nómada Estudio Urbano on Instagram.

Featured in ArchDaily.

Burhan Azeem — the youngest Cambridge City Councilor ever elected — is in good traffic this week for a dive on effective local politics, building bike infrastructure quickly in the states, and being elected to office at 24.

The city — home of Harvard and MIT — is getting a ton done, and fast. Burhan's work focuses on housing, transit, and actually completing ambitious infrastructure projects for his Cambridge constituents (outcomes > process).

We also underscore the powerful influence of voter participation and young leadership in driving meaningful neighborhood action.

Timeline:

00:00 Burhan Azeem is in good traffic.

00:22 Youngest council member in Cambridge history.

01:02 The first day in elected office.

02:23 Housing in Cambridge.

05:08 Cambridge vs. Boston: policy divergence.

10:02 Bike infrastructure successes.

10:45 Cambridge and Paris success stories and commonalities.

20:32 Collaboration with universities like Harvard, MIT.

27:18 Addressing climate change hyper-locally.

30:54 Behavioral change and systemic solutions.

31:23 The impact of urbanization on emissions.

33:12 Policy entrepreneurship.

34:18 Communicating complex topics effectively.

47:45 The importance of local elections.

49:48 Wrapping up.

Further context:

Burhan's reelection campaign.

On Burhan, via MIT Technology Review.

Follow Burhan, on X.

Sophie McAdara — Programs and Operations Manager for Bring It Home, and former City of Bentonville urban planner — is in good traffic this week to discuss just what the heck is going on down in Northwest Arkansas. Bentonville, and neighboring towns, have been part of a regional boom in recent years. National attention has followed, and much praise has been given.

From mountain bike lanes alongside local roads, to robust greenway projects, and urban integration with natural surroundings, the area has begun to foster a unique identity.

Walmart, the University of Arkansas, and others have invested significantly in the livability of the region.

Apologies for any subpar audio — we had to use a backup track for a portion of the episode.

Timeline:

00:00 Sophie McAdara is in good traffic.

04:10 Non-profit developers and community land trusts, explained.

13:14 Sophie's journey into urban planning.

24:15 The growth of Northwest Arkansas.

29:32 Local organizations and partnerships.

32:59 Community feedback in urban development.

35:05 Current NWA transit situation.

37:22 Bentonville bike infrastructure.

43:07 Congress for the New Urbanism and Emerging New Urbanists.

48:14 How to get involved with Emerging New Urbanists.

49:47 Wrapping up.

Further context:

Bring it Home (Sophie's organization).

Emerging New Urbanists.

Ex. of Bentonville bike infrastructure.

Follow Sophie.

Support Sophie's art.

This week, we discuss the potency of urbanism's gateway drug: summer festivals. Culturally, Americans love to frequent farmer's markets, watch fireworks, and attend live arts shows in the park. We often don't realize that these are all functions of a walkable environment (even if often temporary).

Vendor tents are proxies for small shops, food trucks could be permanent neighborhood eateries, and running into friends could be a norm rather than a novelty.

Instead of closing a parking lot or street for one night only, what if we planned our cities to facilitate and prioritize community all year long?

Also: On nostalgia, Pokémon Go, and the Oregon Shakesphere Festival.

Timeline:

00:00 Aly's back.

01:06 Summer festivities and temporary walkability.

02:05 Nostalgia and summertime memories.

02:47 Pokemon Go and gamified outdoor activities.

07:49 Urbanism and community events.

12:18 Navigating festivals and parking challenges.

22:45 Festival fatigue and urban living.

27:07 Our upcoming trip to Ashland, Oregon.

30:03 Wrapping up.

Eric Kronberg — Principal at Kronberg Urbanists + Architects — is in good traffic this week to talk about the mechanics of building better neighborhoods. Are family units have gotten smaller, while our home sizes have gotten larger. This means less supply, and less opportunity to build more. We get into what makes zoning reform such a powerful tool in evolving this housing dynamic, why parking minimums are the silent killer of affordability, and how small-scale development is the most durable path forward.

Eric translates urbanism into practical action better than anyone — not just through design, but through policy advocacy and development.

His perspective is vital to American urbanism.

We discuss:

00:00 Eric Kronberg is in good traffic.

01:34 From Ohio roots to southern urbanism.

04:25 What zoning actually does (and doesn’t do).

06:25 Parking minimums, explained.

11:27 Visual storytelling in policy change.

21:04 Household size, square footage, and the housing crisis.

28:22 Why Atlanta’s growth patterns matter nationally.

31:05 Optimistically tackling NIMBY politics.

34:35 How local advocates shape real change.

43:22 On the Incremental Development Alliance.

46:15 Revising ordinances and quick development math.

49:26 What new developers need to learn.

52:18 The promise of an e-bike commute.

Further context:

The household size slide we reference.

Kronberg Urbanists + Architects.

Incremental Development Alliance.

Inc Codes.

Follow Eric on LinkedIn.

Tahra Hoops — Policy wonk, and Director of Economic Analysis at the Chamber of Progress — joins the show this week to talk about the generation that's been simultaneously told it's going to "save the world," has "no work ethic," has "been through a lot," and yet is "soft."

Zoomers are a nuanced bunch, and that makes us a unique and challenging crew to communicate policy to/with. Add in a segment of the generation (more on this breakdown in the episode) growing up in a media environment that's primed for misinformation/disinformation and equipped with the power to skip-to-next without absorbing the full story (this applies to short-form video, presidential politics, and just about anything in between), and the results are what you might expect. It impacts how we co-mingle, vote, where we choose to live, and the level of hope we possess.

Tahra's work is all about synthesizing and breaking down both cultural and economic data and trends into more understanding information — largely pertaining to housing and cost of living.

We discuss:

00:00 Tahra Hoops is in good traffic.

02:32 Policy communication and rapid response.

05:24 Balancing data collection and real-time reactions.

10:13 The housing crisis and policy solutions.

22:34 Generational perspectives on politics.

33:42 Introduction to The Rebuild and cost of living issues.

34:28 Small policy changes with big impacts.

35:32 Examples of effective policy initiatives.

37:09 Governor Shapiro's abundance politics.

38:15 The importance of positive feedback in politics.

40:42 Challenges in housing policy comms.

47:29 Why we live where we live.

52:10 In praise of walkability.

01:00:05 Wrapping up.

For context:

⁠The Rebuild (Tahra's Substack).⁠

The Progress Chamber.

Some of Tahra's Gen Z commentary.

Tahra on X.

This week, we're workshopping ways to get car companies to prioritize pedestrian safety. Why don't all cars have speed governers that cap at, say, 85 mph? And, a call for community feedback.

For context:

On TomTom's safety tech.

@SubwayTakes on TikTok.

On 'Brick' which I may have called Block, in the episode...my mistake).

Clayton Sealey — Charlotte, North Carolina civic leader and the brain behind @cltdevelopment — is in good traffic. We hit on progress in the rapidly growing southern city, roadblocks at the state level, and housing / transit policy momentum. We also discuss the how behind getting involved with city council in your locale, utilizing North Carolina's many collegetowns as American precedents, and the ever-present predicament of strengthening civics education.

We discuss:

00:00 Charlotte's appeal.

03:03 Involvement in Charlotte's development.

03:23 City population rankings in context.

04:38 Charlotte's zoning and development stasis.

05:18 Path into urban development.

09:04 Advocacy and community involvement.

15:16 Challenges in local politics.

16:46 State vs. city dynamics.

22:41 Housing bill and development tensions.

27:36 Simplifying economic conversations.

28:26 Trust in urban development.

29:12 Traffic and urban growth.

29:46 Building a framework for development.

34:01 The weather factor.

39:52 College towns as American precedents.

44:57 Exciting North Carolina infrastructure projects.

50:46 Favorite commute.

Connect with Clayton:

On Instagram.

On X.

Writer of the weekly Bike Bulletin newsletter (subscribe right now.) — Sam Westby — is back on the show. We knock out a current events survey, with topics curated through both of our weekly research habits in the urbanism, bikes, and adjacent worlds. It's mostly positive, and hopefully always constructive.

Sam's off to Spain to bike for a while. Make sure to follow his incredible rides and work (links below).

We discuss:

00:00 Sam's recent activities.

02:42 The Bike Bulletin newsletter.

03:38 Automated cameras on buses in Massachusetts.

07:14 Seattle's quick fix for bike lane safety.

11:47 Paris' ambitious plan for a walkable city.

15:13 New York City's progress in bike infrastructure.

24:43 The benefits of protected bike lanes.

25:18 Parking vs. bike lanes: the business impact.

27:19 Context matters: urban vs. suburban solutions.

28:27 The importance of bike share systems.

36:30 Public investment in infrastructure and innovation.

40:36 The role of public and private sectors in development.

45:47 Concluding thoughts.

The following links are the conversational guideposts you'll hear about in this episode:

One: automated ticketing of cars parking in bus lanes.

Two: cities can improve cycling infrastructure overtime based on feedback, like Seattle does here.

Three: Paris is making another 500 streets car-free.

Four: New York City traffic fatality data, safety measures, and bike infrastructure improvements.

Five: Maximizing bikeshare ridership.

Six: On underpublicized public R+D and investment that underpins American innovation — from railroads, to highways, to the internet (and a caution to those chastising and cutting it).

SUBSCRIBE TO THE BIKE BULLETIN (Sam's newsletter).

+ Follow Sam on Instagram and TikTok.