All Episodes
Displaying episodes 1 - 30 of 50 in total
The Band is Back Together
Wait, what? What happened? Where have you guys been? Contrary to popular belief we aren’t dead, but we have experienced lots of changes in the past few months. We’ve b...
EP 49 - Gentrification
What is gentrification? What does it look like? Is it happening here? Where is it happening? In this episode, we’ll discuss the history and origins of gentrification a...
EP 48 - Parking Minimums
Parking! Minimums! Can you feel the excitement!!!! In all honesty, this is an important topic and one of the key areas of local policy that communities can modify to s...
EP 47 - Broadband Part 2
With the recent passage of the federal infrastructure bill, broadband is once again at the forefront of the conversation. While this topic has never been far from the ...
EP 46 - The Election Experience
Election Day 2021! Both Sam and Bret were running for local office (school board and city council respectively), and this was our honest conversation about the electi...
EP 45 - Confessions "with" a Recovering Engineer
Sometimes, you get to meet your heroes. In this week's episode of My Town Hustle, we are excited to share our interview with Chuck Marohn, the Founder and President of...
EP 44 - My Town Hustle Adds Video
Can you see me now? How about now? As part of our effort to evolve My Town Hustle to the next level – we’re making the podcast a video show! We’ll still have the po...
EP 43 - A Year In Review
My Town Hustle is just over a year old! In celebration of this, we wanted to look back at our first year and reflect on our experience and share what we’ve learned. P...
EP 42 - Infrastructure Cult
Infrastructure is often hailed as the key to our future economic success. While there is absolutely no doubt that it is critically important, are we giving enough cons...
EP 41 - It's OK to Pull the Plug
Rural communities, especially those in Appalachia are filled with legacy industrial sites that remain from our collective industrial past. Often these facilities remai...
EP 40 - Relevant or Irrelevant
With so many issues demanding our attention, it is often difficult to decide between what’s important and what is relevant to our daily lives. As community advocates a...
EP 39 - Population Decline
Many communities recognize that there aren’t as many folks around town as there used to be. Why is that? In this episode, we will talk about a fascinating series of ar...
EP 38 - DORA Update
It’s the remix! DORA legislation successfully passed in Marietta in late April 2021. In this episode, Sam and Bret give updates and lessons learned on the DORA proce...
EP 37 - Future of Rural Transportation
Transportation is a key challenge facing all aspects of daily life for citizens, especially for folks living in rural communities. On this episode, Sam and Bret give ...
EP 36 - Failing Forward
Everyone fails! Failing is an important part of learning and improving. This is just as true for individuals and private businesses as it is for governments. On this e...
EP 35 - Reimagine Public Employment
We support public employees of all types – some of us have been public employees! We also know that a reimagining of some public positions could help our small commun...
EP 34 - Parklet Debrief
Is there enough public space or seating in the downtown you love to visit? Have you ever wondered how a community could quickly (and cheaply) implement more outdoor se...
EP 33 - Placemaking
Investing in the quality of our places is perhaps more important now than ever before. Creating communities where people want to live, work, and have fun is challengin...
EP 32 - American Rescue Plan
In March the American Rescue Plan was passed and signed by President Biden, providing over $360 billion in relief funding and programming in response to the COVID-19 p...
EP 31 - Ask The Lawyer: What is Preemption?
Preemption, huh? What happens when local regulations conflict with state statutes? What about when state laws conflict with federal regulations? To what lengths can lo...
EP 30 - Mental Health: A Community Discussion
Rural communities in Ohio and their citizens (and everywhere) have long been declared medically underserved. One of the key indicators where rural communities are unde...
EP 29 - Better Public Engagement
Have you ever been to a public meeting? Have you hosted one? What was it like? Could it have been better? In this episode, Sam and Bret share their experiences attendi...
EP 28 - Asset Based Development
What assets exist in your community? Are you capitalizing on those assets? Are you seeking realistic opportunities for development? Is your current development strateg...
EP 27 - 'Growing Up Poor in America' - Our Reaction
In this episode, we will be reacting to an episode of ‘Growing Up Poor in America’ produced by PBS Frontline and released in September 2020, which focuses on three fam...
EP 26 - The 30 Min Consult - Pedestrian Safety
In this episode, we do a short 30-minute consulting session on addressing a pedestrian safety issue in your town. We’ll talk about the data available to help you under...
EP 25 - Broadband
Many rural communities today find themselves caught in the ‘digital divide’: insufficient investment and deployment of highspeed telecommunication services have lead t...
EP 24 - I Don't Believe in the Brain Drain, Change. My. Mind.
What is the brain drain? Is it happening here? Is it real? Hot takes only! In this episode, we talk about the challenges smaller communities face in providing opportun...
EP 23 - Housing Affordability v. Affordable Housing
Housing Affordability? Affordable Housing? Are those the same thing? They are not! In this episode, we talk about how local communities and specifically local governme...
Happy Holidays / End of Season 1
From the fellas at My Town Hustle, we wish you all a Happy Holiday, no matter what you celebrate as we end this crazy year. We hope you all are staying safe, healthy,...
EP 21 - Ideas for your Town (Session 2)
Amazonification, ever heard of it? Or Accessory Commerical Units? Well, check it out, another Idea Session is here. On the last Idea Session, Bret wasn't there but n...
