Marion Competing in Strongest Town Competition

The Marion Community is going head-to-head with 15 other North American cities in the 10th Annual Strongest Town Contest.

Marion has advanced to the Sweet-Sixteen this week and needs everyone in Marion, in Ohio, and around the country to cast their vote for us! In this bracket-style voting tournament, Marion will compete for the “Strongest Town” title by shining a national spotlight on the work it’s doing to become a stronger, more resilient city.

Cast your vote for Marion this week and every week at strongesttown.com.

Voting is open Monday through Thursday at 1 p.m. EST

Progress, Not Perfection

The Strongest Town Contest celebrates progress, not perfection. A “strong town” is any town, big or small, that is taking tangible steps to overcome its transportation, housing, or financial challenges. Strong Towns refers to this methodology as the “Strong Towns Approach,” and this contest spotlights the work of city residents and leaders who are using this approach to become more resilient over time.

Strongest Town Voting

Here’s how voting works. Competitors advance over five, weekly rounds. Anyone can vote once per week, and votes are tallied Monday through Thursday at 1 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. Winners are notified each Friday.

In the first, risk-free round, Marion competed with three other cities for an honorary title to recognize its efforts toward “Rightsizing Parking Policy.”

All cities advanced to Round 2, when bracket-style eliminations will begin and winners will advance based on the number of votes collected that week.

Brackets

* Round 1: Meet Your Contestants (March 3-6).
* Round 2: Sweet Sixteen (March 10-13)
* Round 3: Elite Eight (March 17-20).
* Round 4: Final Four (March 24-27).
* Round 5: Championship (March 31-April 3).

Show the world how strong we are.

We Are Strong. We Are MarionMade! #MarionStrong #StrongestTown #OhioVersusTheWorld

How did Marion get nominated?

James Walker from the Marion County Regional Planning Commission nominated Marion. Read more here: Strongest Town Contest

What is Strong Towns?

Strong Towns is a 501c(3) non-profit and media advocacy organization that shifts conversations around the North American development pattern. Through reports, articles, podcasts, videos, live events and professional coaching, it provides knowledge and tools to help cities transform their communities. Learn more at strongesttown.com.

MarionMade! is a program of Marion Technical College.

The Forge
The Forge Heats Up New Local Businesses It started with a goal: how to spark more start-ups in Marion? A study, done by the Marion Area Chamber of Commerce, showed Marion was below average in small business start-ups compared to neighboring counties and the state. Local leaders taking part in the 2016-2017 Leadership Marion class […]Read More »
G&R Tavern
1,200-1,500LBS OF BOLOGNA A WEEK! If you’ve ever driven the stretch of U.S. 23 between Marion and Delaware, you’ve finally answered the question, “Where’s Waldo?” What you maybe didn’t know, is that some of the best food you can find is located here. The G&R Tavern, named after founders George Yake and Roy Klingel and […]Read More »
Back to School with Dr. Ron Iarussi
During the month of September, we will be featuring each of the school superintendents in Marion County, asking them each the same set of questions. We are using this as an opportunity to show their passion for education and their schools as well as a little glimpse about them. Today, we visit with Ron Iarussi, […]Read More »
Buckeye Optical
TENACITY AND GOOD CUSTOMER SERVICE FUELS DREAM. . Over 10 years ago, Jeramy Donelson was a licensed optician at a big box store in Marion. Terrible hours, lack of control, and the corporate push to see as many customers as possible pushed Jeramy to the realization that it was time for him to leave his […]Read More »