It’s March Madness for towns.
Flossmoor is facing off with South Bend, Indiana, in the first round bracket of the Strongest Town Contest, with voters from across the continent deciding which will advance to the Elite Eight round of the tournament.
The deadline for voting in the Sweet Sixteen round is noon on March 23.
The Strongest Town Contest spotlights and celebrates communities that are continuously becoming more resilient and prosperous through bottom-up action.
According to the contest website: “We’re not necessarily looking for those communities that somehow already have it made; we’re more interested in highlighting towns and cities who are doing the hard work of becoming stronger, putting in place the processes, systems and commitments that build enduring resilience and long-term prosperity.”
The winner of this year’s Strongest Town Contest will receive accommodations for a representative to attend the Strong Towns National Gathering in Charlotte, North Carolina, where they will receive an award and serve as an honored guest.
Strong Towns also will produce a special video about the winning community for a national audience, holding them out as an example of how cities can build their economic resilience from the bottom-up.
The contest is modeled after the NCAA March Madness tournament, with communities advancing in single-elimination match-ups each week throughout March and April. The winner will be announced Friday, April 14.
For more information, visit strongtowns.org/strongesttown