08/18/2026
Before we were all so connected by the internet and roads, communities had to for the most part produce what they consumed and consume what they produced. As more people arrived in a town, more was needed. As more was needed, more work was to be had. New people meant more food was needed, more housing, more shops. Which meant opportunity for people already in town and for newcomers alike.
When you think of your town as a closed loop economy, it becomes a little easier to understand how we can thrive without the mega employers that dominated our towns during the mid-20th century. There is such a push to return to that era, completely forgetting that we had healthy economies long before large industrial employers arrived. And we have forgotten how to create and build things ourselves.
Every town I work with has a housing shortage. At the same time they complain there is no meaningful work for young people, that kids are moving away, and that there isn't enough money. The answer to all of these problems is the same.
What happened to locals building their own homes? What happened to people in town running their own businesses? We didn't lose some ancient technology that made this possible. We just grew accustomed to outsourcing it.
We know we need more homes. We know people need groceries and love coffee shops and restaurants. But instead of reconfiguring our systems to empower locals to build and operate the things we want and need, we wait for someone from somewhere else to come and do that work. We assume no local could manage a coffee shop. We assume no one in town could build a home for their family. So we wait for someone from far away to do it for us, so that they can take all of our money back with them when they leave.
They aren't supplying a better product than you could produce locally, I promise you that. But they certainly have advantages. Not only do we wait on them to do this work, we reconfigured our systems for them and we even subsidize them. We build new roads and infrastructure to lower their costs while locals watch from the sidelines.
We aren't training locals to do the work we need. We are footing the bill for outsiders to come and do the work we used to do ourselves. Then we wonder where all the money went. Where the kids went. Where the pride went.
It was shipped off. One subdivision and strip mall at a time.
It doesn't have to be this way. It never did.
*This is the work I do with communities across the country. If your town is ready for an honest conversation about its civic health, find me at revitalizeordie.com
