For a second time, Charles Marohn is facing a challenge from the engineering profession over his work as the founder of the popular advocacy organization Strong Towns. This time, Marohn and Strong Towns are pushing back.
Strong Towns has published a new article been documenting an ongoing legal and licensing conflict that has emerged in response to the criticisms of the transportation engineering field as a core message of the advocacy of the organization. Here's how the article summarizes the two complaints so far that have been filed against Strong Towns and its founder, Charles Marohn.
The first Board of Licensure complaint filed against Marohn came in 2015. That complaint, made by an engineer affiliated with the transportation advocacy group MoveMN and the American Society of Civil Engineers, alleged that Marohn’s writing and speaking reflected negatively on the actions of some engineers and thus violated Minnesota Rules 1805.0200, which states:
“A licensee shall avoid any act which may diminish public confidence in the profession….”
On this first complaint, the Board of Licensure found that there was “no violation,” but notified Marohn that the “complaint will be held in the Board’s archives and is available should additional evidence warrant that the file be reopened.”
The second complaint was filed on March 5, 2020 by an engineer from South Dakota, a state where Marohn has spoken numerous times on the need for reform and where there is an active Strong Towns group in Sioux Falls. The complaint was submitted in retaliation for Marohn’s advocacy, going on to cite numerous examples of Marohn’s speech as the impetus for the complaint.
Marohn has documented the most recent complaint with articles published in August 2020 and November 2020, but the most recent article announces that Strong Towns is pushing back by filing "a complaint in federal district court against the Minnesota Board of Architecture, Engineering, Land Surveying, Landscape Architecture, Geoscience, and Interior Design (commonly called the Board of Licensure) and the individual members of the Board that are participating in this action."
The recent article also includes a discussion of the implications for the Strong Towns organization—including its many members around the country—by strongly restating its commitment to reforms.
When it Comes to Road Diets, Evidence Doesn't Matter
Drivers are a powerful enough lobby to overcome all evidence of the need to redesign streets for safety. Examples from Maryland and Virginia provide the latest case studies in Vision Zero futility.
Downtown Omaha Planning for its Post-One-Way-Streets Era
The Omaha City Council has decided to reverse the transportation model adopted in the city in the 1950s, for the benefit of traffic safety and local retail activity.
D.C. Fare-Free Transit Program Could Come at the Expense of the K Street Transitway
When presented with a choice between investing in improved service or funding a fare-free program, the D.C. Council is choosing fare-free transit, and potentially overriding the wishes of the mayor.
‘Forward Together’ Bus System Redesign Rolling Out in Portland
Portland is redesigning its bus system to respond to the changing patterns of the post-pandemic world—with twin goals of increasing ridership and improving equity.
Plan to Potentially Remove Downtown Milwaukee’s Interstate Faces Public Scrutiny
The public is weighing in on a suite of options for repairing, replacing, or removing Interstate 794 in downtown Milwaukee.
Can New York City Go Green Without Renewable Rikers?
New York City’s bold proposal to close the jail on Rikers Island and replace it with green infrastructure is in jeopardy. Will this compromise the city’s ambitious climate goals?
700-Acre Master-Planned Community Planned in Utah
A massive development plan is taking shape for lakefront property in Vineyard, Utah—on the site of a former U.S. Steel Geneva Works facility.
More Cities Ponder the End of Drive-Thrus
Drive-thru fast food restaurants might be a staple of American life, but several U.S. cities are actively considering prohibiting the development of new drive-thrus for the benefit of traffic safety, air quality, and congestion.
Air Pollution World’s Worst Public Health Threat, Report Says
Air pollution is more likely to take years life off the lifespan of the average human than any other external factor, according to a recent report out of the University of Chicago.
Placer County
City of Morganton
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Dongguan Binhaiwan Bay Area Management Committee
City of Waukesha, WI
Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority
Indiana Borough
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
