From Service Cuts To Understanding City Insolvency
From The Strong Towns Podcast by Strong Towns
March 23, 2026 · 1h 4m · Episode 694
About this episode
The episode discusses Michel Durand-Wood's journey from observing local service cuts to understanding the structural insolvency of his city.
The conversation follows Michel Durand-Wood's path from noticing small local cuts—closed pools, rising taxes—to understanding his city as structurally insolvent. Along the way, he and Chuck talk about grants, debt, Canadian and U.S. examples, and why efficiency alone hasn’t fixed anything. Additional Show Notes Dear Winnipeg (Site) You'll Pay For This! (Book) Chuck Marohn (Substack) This podcast is made possible by Strong Towns members. Thank you!
People in this episode
Host: Chuck Marohn
Guest: Michel Durand-Wood
Topics covered
- city insolvency
- local government
- public services
- debt
- efficiency
- grants
- comparative analysis
Keywords
- city insolvency
- service cuts
- local government
- debt
- efficiency
- grants
- Canadian examples
- U.S. examples
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Strong Towns, Substack
Books & works: Dear Winnipeg, You'll Pay For This!
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