Edmond among nation’s Strong Towns
By: J. David Chapman/March 25, 2021
March Madness is one of my favorite times of the year. It means spring is in the air, and summer is just around the corner. Three Oklahoma teams, OSU, OU, and ORU, made it out of the first round and progressed to the round of 32.
Six years ago, a national organization called Strong Towns initiated a contest themed after March Madness where they took applications from cities to determine the strongest, most financially resilient communities. Successful cities would be those that are doing the hard work of becoming stronger by putting in place the processes, systems and commitments that build enduring resilience and long-term prosperity. Ward 2 City Councilman, Josh Moore, thought his city, Edmond, had everything the Strong Towns organization was describing. He filled out the application, and Strong Towns staff and board members chose Edmond as one of the 16 cities in the bracketed tournament.
In the first round, Edmond faced Northfield, Vermont. There were four rounds of competition in which members, readers and listeners got to vote on the matchups between the towns based on written submissions, photos, podcast interviews and a webcast.
While Edmond did not make it out of the first round of the Strong Towns annual tournament, it is a major accomplishment to be chosen to compete. Our cities and towns are supposed to be places of stability and prosperity. They’re hubs of human activity from food production to health care and commerce, education, play, support, justice, and so much more.
This year’s national winner will be announced on April 9. Last year’s winner was Watertown, South Dakota.
The COVID-19 pandemic, the ice storm of 2020 and extreme cold weather this year have tested the stability and resilience of our towns and cities. Local leadership has been on the front lines, facing the challenges head-on. Most do it with little or no pay while maintaining full-time jobs and careers. There has been help from the county and federal government; however, that too became a competition for funding. Many faced the challenges with budgets stretched beyond the breaking point. They were forced to innovate with systems resistant to change, not knowing what might come next. To be successful, city leaders must lead despite the anxiety and distrust that permeates modern discourse.
Oklahoma cities and towns have shown great resilience, and congratulations are due to Edmond for representing that resilience!
J. David Chapman is an associate professor of finance and real estate at the University of Central Oklahoma (jchapman7@uco.edu).