Episode 17

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Published on:

21st Sep 2023

Building Community: Mike Keen’s Journey of Urbanism and Sustainability

This week host Nick Kuhn and Bethany Hartley talk with Mike Keen, Founder of Hometowne Development LLC. Mike discusses his work in the Near Northwest neighborhood of South Bend, Indiana and the upcoming opening of Ward Baking Company. He shares his journey from being a college professor to becoming a small-scale developer and the principles of urbanism and sustainability that guide his work. Mike shares how incremental development and collaboration between the public, private, and nonprofit sectors create a thriving community. He also talks about the small-scale development movement and highlights the need for multifamily housing to address the affordability crisis.

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QUOTES

  • "So what we find is that to make this small-scale development work, whether it's in our neighborhood across the city, or we now do consulting with other cities, you need to bring together a set of champions that come from these different sectors and who want to collaborate" -Mike Keen [06:29]


  • “What I would say for anybody doing anything, and this includes small-scale development, is see if you can find yourself a mentor and begin to talk with them and find other people who have done it." -Mike Keen [08:57]




TIMESTAMPS

03:30 Renovating a flower shop

07:39 Lessons learned: Take action and start small

10:42 What Mike is most proud of in his work

13:47 The need for increased housing density

17:46 South Bend town makers group and supporting local businesses

19:08 The South Bend Elkhart Partnership




RESOURCES

South Bend Elkhart Partnership: https://southbendelkhart.org/ 


CONTACT

Nick Kuhn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kuhnnick/ 

Bethany Hartley: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bethanyhartley/ 

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About the Podcast

Rooted and Reaching
Stories about local Startups and Founders in South Bend and Elkhart
There’s a job to do, and in the South Bend - Elkhart region, a midwestern work ethic is changing the narrative from rusty to ready. Our cities are opening up and working together as a region—universities are engaging beyond their campuses, sharing their brainpower and realizing that they’re bigger and better with the community behind them. Organizations are reaching out to newcomers and helping them build local networks, leveling the playing field. Infrastructure is being creatively adapted to be gathering places where new deals are made, new collisions happen, and new entrepreneurs take root. Join the Rooted & Reaching podcast, where we discuss the startup life with entrepreneurs with connections to the South Bend - Elkhart region.

In doing this, we will inform the general public and ourselves about what resources are available and the major pain points of entrepreneurs in our region. This podcast is also intended to tell the amazing stories of our local entrepreneurs in the hope that it will inspire another person in the region considering an entrepreneurial pursuit to take that leap of faith and see the supportive atmosphere in the area.