David Toyer, President of Toyer Strategic Advisors, has helped individuals and small businesses resolve some complex code violations over his 20+ year career in land use and economic development. In this episode, Sam the intern asks Toyer to provide some practical advice on what to do:

* if you get a code violation

* if your starting a new business

You’ve undoubtedly heard the expression NIMBY which stands for Not in My Back Yard and the term “NIMBYs” that’s used to describe those that don’t support new housing. But did you know that there’s a growing group of individuals called YIMBYs (Yes in my Back Yard!) a group people who advocate for abundant, affordable housing.

In this episode, David Toyer is joined by Greg Smith and Andy Randles, members of Seattle YIMBY (a local affiliate of YIMBY Action). Greg and Andy talk about YIMBY’s goals, local #housing challenges, and some of the local and state policies that affect housing creation and affordability.

Want to learn more? You can check out seattleyimby.org or yimbyaction.org.

In Part IV of our podcast series on Managing Washington’s Growth we continue our conversation with Joseph Tovar, who is one of the ‘founding fathers’ of the Growth Management Act (GMA) and who continues to contribute to growth management and planning improvements.

In this episode we got the opportunity to cover the following:

* Why led the Legislature to adopte the Middle Housing Bill and other recent legislation.

* The top planning issues that the students in his class at WWU are likely to face and the guidance and advice he has.

* What he thinks may change with GMA over the next 20 years.

Got a question for Joe? You can email him here.

In Part III of our podcast series on Managing Washington’s Growth we continue our conversation with Joseph Tovar, who is one of the ‘founding fathers’ of the Growth Management Act (GMA) and who continues to contribute to growth management and planning improvements.

In this episode we got the opportunity to cover the following:

* The importance of public participation in planning. How do you engage the public in planning?

* His time as a project manager at the Ruckelsaus Center for Collaborative Governance and his work on the Road Map to Washington’s Future, which became guidance to the Legislature on potential amendments to the GMA.

Got a question for Joe? You can email him here.

Welcome back to Toyer’s Takes! This bonus edition of the podcast is all about answering questions posed by you all! In these short episodes, our intern Sam will read one or two questions sourced from our readers and friends, and David will provide his take!

In this episode, David discusses some of the projects that he and Toyer Strategic Advisors have worked on throughout his career as a consultant and an economic developer. Tune in for Toyer’s Takes!

If you have a question you want answered, all you need to do is leave a comment, send us an email, or reach out on social media. We may answer it on a future episode and if we do you’ll win some swag!

Also, you can now download our episodes from Spotify or Apple Podcasts if that’s your preferred medium!

The Rural Economic Development converstion continues with David Toyer and special guest Becky McCray of SaveYour.Town discuss:

* Talk about her book “Small Town Rules” with Barry Moltz

* Plan for zero

* Customer service is all you got

* Anywhere, Anywhen (remote work)

* The 5 Year Bridge Plan

* Bringing the community together for planning

In Part II of our podcast series on Managing Washington’s Growth we continue our conversation with Joseph Tovar, who is one of the ‘founding fathers’ of the Growth Management Act (GMA) and who continues to contribute to growth management and planning improvements.

In this episode we got the opportunity to cover the following:

* What it was like to be a member of the first Growth Management Hearings Boards (GMHB) for 12 years right after the GMA was adopted and during a time when decisions on how the law would be applied set the precedents that have shaped planning.

* What his thoughts are on some of the most foundationally important decisions the GMHB made at that time.

Got a question for Joe? You can email him here.

In this episode I am joined by special guest Laura Williams, an education consultant and author of “The Improvement Game: Exploring Education through Passion, Agility, and Authentic Learning Experiences,” for a conversation about authentic learning, agile classrooms, and the importance of education in both economic and workforce development.

Ask any economic developer, site selector, and/or corporation what their top three concerns are and workforce development is likely to be first or second on that list. One way in which K-12 education can help better address the workforce development challenge is through the creation of “Authentic Learning” programs - specialized programs that bridge the gap between what students are taught in school and experience working on real-lfe business problems. In Authentic Learning programs, students essentially become the ‘consultant’ responsible for understanding the problem, identifying the solution(s), and presenting recommendations to the business or organization on how to solve it.

Our special guest, Laura Williams, has been a leader in expanding Authentic Learning, helping Iowa’s Area Education Agencies (AEAs) expand Authentic Learning Programs statewide through the creation of a project clearinghouse that connects schools, students, and businesses. She’s also been a boots on the ground education consultant helping schooldistricts implement authentic learning programs in the classroom using tools like Agile Classrooms.

Got a question for Laura or want help for your school district? You can reach her by visiting the Authentic Learning Alliance or emailing her here.

The Rural Economic Development converstion continues with David Toyer and special guest Becky McCray of SaveYour.Town discuss:

* Workforce housing

* Housing challenges in rural areas

The Rural Economic Development converstion continues with David Toyer and special guest Becky McCray of SaveYour.Town discuss:

* About the Small Biz Survival Blog

* Communites that make an impression (shout out to Bellaire, MI and the Bellaire Smokeshop)

* Small changes for businesses

* About “the secret” - evening customers are different than daytime customers

* time of day marketing

* Making downtown appealing, bringing customers downtown

* host events, host other businesses

* invite people, market yourself

* game nights, clubs

* join a local group

* Businesses leveraging each other (Hampton, IA; Ponca City, OK; Crow’s Nest Pass, AL - Stone’s Throw Cafe)

* Small business days - not just a day (example: Shop Indy Local)