#econdev
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jcshepard.com
The best time for that conversation is before it’s needed.
The next best time is tomorrow.

This week's long-read is "When the Zoning Code Works Against the Plan"
jcshepard.com/2026/09/zoni...
#Zoning #LandUse #Planning #EconDev #ZoningReform
When the Zoning Code Works Against the Plan
A building constructed in 1908. A town that has looked the same for over a century. And a zoning code that quietly makes it illegal to build the town the way it was always built.
jcshepard.com
September 25, 2026 at 3:24 PM
jcshepard.com
Grapes, Wine, and Practical Heritage Tourism

medium.com/small-towns-...
#ValueAddedAg #HeritageTourism #EconDev
Grapes, Wine, and Practical Heritage Tourism
In 1919, Clem Kruse started selling Oldsmobile, Maxwell, and Chalmers-Velie vehicles from the ground floor of a two-story concrete building…
medium.com
September 23, 2026 at 9:23 PM
cerdi.bsky.social
🔍 Pour réduire la pauvreté, suffit-il de réduire les inégalités ?

📉 Dans la revue World Development, F. Bresson (CERDI) propose une méthode pour mesurer la sensibilité de la pauvreté aux variations des inégalités. Application au #Brésil, 1981-2022.

👉 t.ly/xEqz2

#EconDev #Research #Poverty
© IRD - Daina Rechner
September 23, 2026 at 9:30 AM
jcshepard.com
When the Zoning Code Works Against the Plan
jcshepard.com/2026/09/zoni...

#LandUse #Zoning #Planning #EconDev #Downtown
When the Zoning Code Works Against the Plan
A building constructed in 1908. A town that has looked the same for over a century. And a zoning code that quietly makes it illegal to build the town the way it was always built.
jcshepard.com
September 23, 2026 at 12:41 AM
jcshepard.com
Rural Broadband Makes Progress… at a Cost.

#Broadband availability has improved significantly, but availability is not the same as practical, affordable, high-quality service, especially for #rural communities.

Link: medium.com/small-towns-...
#econdev
Rural Broadband Makes Progress… at a Cost
The US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) recently reported 96.9% of Americans have access to 100/20 Mbps fixed terrestrial broadband…
medium.com
September 10, 2026 at 12:04 AM
jcshepard.com
Data centers are now the defining rural land use fight, a national backlash against the physical footprint of the AI economy. Texas is a case study.

I don't support or oppose--but we need to do better.
New short-read at: jcshepard.com/2026/09/data...
#datacenters #planning #econdev
Data centers are now the defining rural land use fight -
What began as scattered neighborhood resistance to individual projects has become something much larger:  a national backlash against the physical
jcshepard.com
September 8, 2026 at 6:10 PM
jcshepard.com
New jobs and income matter—but small towns also need the everyday services that make life workable close to home.

This week I explore why grocery stores can be community infrastructure, not just “secondary” retail for economic development.

medium.com/small-towns-...
#communitydevelopment #econdev
September 4, 2026 at 6:40 PM
cerdi.bsky.social
📊 New study by @chcamara1.bsky.social (CERDI PhD) on #GenderBudgeting in India.

⚖️ Can public budgets help reduce gender inequalities? The study examines when and how gender budgeting can turn policy commitments into concrete outcomes.

📄 Read the full paper: t.ly/FSK2F

#EconDev #PublicFinance
Jeunes indiennes, Pondichéry © IRD - Jean-Louis Duprey
September 1, 2026 at 9:08 AM
surlyurbanist.bsky.social
On a whim I picked up “The Problem of Jobs” by Guian McKee…a history of economic planning in postwar Philadelphia. Only through chapter 1, but this is very much my shit. Already want to modify my econdev syllabus a bit
August 29, 2026 at 3:21 PM
jcshepard.com
Saxon Metzger, MBA, Polaris EcoSystems and Eighth Generation Consulting, talking about Planning for Power: Tribal Energy Development in Rural Western Communities on 3rd day Western Planner Conference.

Tribal energy development intersects w/ #rural community planning, land use, & #econdev

#planning
August 28, 2026 at 2:19 PM
cerdi.bsky.social
🔍 Nouvelle #recherche sur les #ODD par Julien Ah-Pine et Elda Nasho Ah-Pine.

🌍 Comment mieux comprendre leurs interdépendances ? Une méthode appliquée à 96 indicateurs dans 165 pays identifie 13 priorités pour éclairer l’action publique.

👉 t.ly/GA-vc

#EconDev #SDGs
Les Objectifs de développement durable : mieux comprendre leurs liens pour mieux agir - Cerdi
t.ly
August 28, 2026 at 11:31 AM
manup4.bsky.social
Megadeals expanded #technology and #EconDev results! How will #DataCenters invest in your area?Tax break 'megadeals' spurred #innovation in local communities phys.org/news/2026-08...
Tax break 'megadeals' spurred innovation in local communities
When cities, counties or states provide corporations with big tax breaks to lure factories, corporate headquarters and other facilities, the economic benefits may go beyond the new jobs and investment...
phys.org
August 27, 2026 at 4:23 PM
jcshepard.com
Who would have thought?

Tariffs are taxes on consumers, full stop. #econdev #Econ101
August 27, 2026 at 1:16 PM
jcshepard.com
Main Street revitalization is not only about major projects. It is also about making it easier for local people to test ideas, activate spaces, and turn small opportunities into lasting momentum.

My latest: medium.com/small-towns-...
#planning #econdev
Revitalizing Main Street the Idea-Friendly Way
Small Town Innovation Starts Downtown
medium.com
August 27, 2026 at 12:21 PM
deminlawrence.bsky.social
I want to highlight this specific thread of comments from City of Portland’s econdev guy Andrew, and a prominent LinkedIn business personality (and owner, FWIW) Shawn.

I also want to highlight my response, as I *really* try to encourage people to think BIGGER. We deserve MORE than this!
August 26, 2026 at 9:29 PM
jcshepard.com
Rural Innovation and Entrepreneurship: Beliefs Create a Capital Scapegoat

#Rural #econdev is not just urban economic development with less density. Paul O'Brien has some thought on how we can do better.

medium.com/@seobrien/ru...
Rural Innovation and Entrepreneurship: Beliefs Create a Capital Scapegoat
Nobody is coming to build your rural economy, and the people still waiting for a corporate headquarters to relocate to a county of 12,000…
medium.com
August 21, 2026 at 2:12 PM
brasher-racer.bsky.social
Updated Analysis Shows RACER Trust Investments Continue to Drive Strong Economic Growth and Job Creation. #jobs
#EconDev www.einpresswire.com/article/9348...
Updated Analysis Shows RACER Trust Investments Continue to Drive Strong Economic Growth and Job Creation
Buyer and End-User Investments Exceed $5.1 Billion; Recurring Employment Grows to Nearly 82,000 Jobs
www.einpresswire.com
August 18, 2026 at 12:20 PM
jasonewhite.bsky.social
Forestry projects live or die by fiber supply, water access, baseload power, permitting, and ESG alignment. Incentives can’t fix structural risk. In a sector defined by permanence, front‑end rigor matters. www.areadevelopment.com/corporate-si... #econdev
www.areadevelopment.com
August 10, 2026 at 3:06 AM
jcshepard.com
Too many small towns lack the technical capacity, staff bandwidth, or predevelopment resources to compete for funds or attract partners.

That’s not a failure of vision — it’s a gap in support.

medium.com/@jcshepard.a...
#econdev
Policy That Works: Building Investment-Ready Communities
Many small towns and rural communities have strong ideas and committed leadership — but face a familiar barrier: they’re not seen as…
medium.com
July 30, 2026 at 8:28 PM
ronitadancis.bsky.social
Road safety is a #transitridership issue is a #transit issue is a #greenenergy issue is a #jobs issue is a #econdev issue
kenmcld.bsky.social Ken McLeod @kenmcld.bsky.social · Jul 27
Massachusetts hot topic focuses on their Vulnerable Road User Safety Assessment which found that 41% of pedestrian-involved crashes were within 300 feet of a bus stop

That's changed their focus to look at bus stops and surrounding sidewalk and crosswalk networks
July 28, 2026 at 9:44 PM
jcshepard.com
Read it here: jcshepard.com/2026/07/poli...

#SmallTowns #Rural #Planning #Policy #EconDev #Implementation
Policy Exchange: What our Networks Have Helped Small Towns Learn -
Last July, we explored some common policy exchange mechanisms—professional networks, awards programs, and statewide roadmaps—as connective tissue of rural
jcshepard.com
July 20, 2026 at 5:38 PM
cerdi.bsky.social
🔍 #Research Focus

Can longer life expectancy change how families invest in their children?

Using data from 19th-century Armenia, S. Gharibyan, D. Gomtsyan & È. Roca Fernández show that lower mortality encouraged education, with lasting effects on economic development.

👉 t.ly/6qTCd

#EconDev
July 15, 2026 at 10:05 AM
ronitadancis.bsky.social
Excellent local #transit news is also excellent #econdev news is also excellent #climateresilience news.

See 🧵.
beyonddc.bsky.social BeyondDC @beyonddc.bsky.social · Jul 13
Feds fund 4th track at L'Enfant VRE station, ensuring continuous 4-tracks along the whole Capitol Hill to Eisenhower Valley rail bottleneck
www.bizjournals.com/washington/n...
July 13, 2026 at 8:50 PM
apa-star.bsky.social
Small towns need better ways to measure “success” than just jobs & population. Read about Whitman County, WA, and how CORI’s Rural Economic Development Tool helps planners see what’s working—and what’s not.
medium.com/small-towns-...

#SmallTowns #Rural #econdev #data
Measuring Success With Some Help From Our Friends
Pullman, Washington, is the county seat of Whitman County. It’s not the largest or smallest place out there; it’s a Main Street community…
medium.com
July 8, 2026 at 1:21 PM
jcshepard.com
New Mexico’s Looming Water Crisis
"...state climate models project that New Mexico will lose 25% to 30% of its available water by 2050."
coyotegulch.blog/2026/07/06/n...

#water #planning #econdev #rural #resilience
New Mexico’s Looming Water Crisis
Discover how New Mexico is confronting a dire water crisis as it transitions into a permanent state of aridification, impacting communities and agriculture.
coyotegulch.blog
July 7, 2026 at 4:35 PM