Bitcoin Urbanism: Architecture, Cities, and Sound Money w/ Kelly Lannan
Think Bitcoin Podcast Ep. #16
In this week’s episode of the Think Bitcoin Podcast, I sat down with Kelly Lannan, author of Bitcoin Urbanism, to talk about the built environment, the economics of architecture, how modern planning reshaped the places we live, and why a return to beauty requires a return to real wealth. We explored how our cities became what they are, why so much feels fragile or disposable, and how Bitcoin might help us rebuild places that are human, durable, and worth caring about.
🎧 Listen to the full episode:
[Spotify] | [Apple Podcasts] | [YouTube] | [Fountain]
Kelly’s work sits at the intersection of urban design, classical architecture, finance, and Bitcoin. He has a rare ability to explain why neighborhoods look the way they do and why many new developments feel cheap. Early in our conversation, he traced the origins of the zoning regime that shaped the modern American landscape. As he put it:
“The real case that allowed the most rapid expansion of all of this is Ambler Realty versus Euclid, Ohio. The Supreme Court pretty much ignored the lower court’s ruling and basically said cities or local jurisdictions have the power to limit the use of land for public health and services.”
From there, he explained how this broad interpretation expanded continuously over decades:
“Everything gets ruled in favor of the local jurisdictions because of how broad the Supreme Court case was. You kind of just keep going and going until somebody tries to stop you.”
How We Ended Up With Disposable Cities
One of the most striking parts of our conversation was Kelly’s description of why so much new construction feels fake or hollow. He spelled out the economics clearly:
“All of the things that you think are architectural elements were made in the driveway and then literally just nailed to the house. A lot of times they are made of stucco and then they are just painted a different color.”
Developers keep cutting until there is nothing left to cut:
“The substitutions that are required in order to afford to do something happen because your purchasing power gets absolutely demolished the longer the fiat credit stuff goes along. We have reached a point where there are no further diminishing returns. How do you make the last shutter cheaper? Other than removing the material, then you do not have a shutter at all.”
In other words, the built environment reflects the money environment.
Human Scale and the Suburban Experiment
We talked about how modern planning diverged from centuries of accumulated knowledge about human scale. I noted during the conversation that the suburban experiment is historically brand new, nothing like the older, more organic ways of building together.
Kelly agreed:
“We are building up these best practices based on humans and human biology and human scale. We have centuries of proof that this way of organizing ourselves works.”
Then the mid 20th century ushered in something entirely different:
“Once you get into the mid 20th century you start getting the central planning and now we get this big experiment.”
The downstream effects are still unfolding: social isolation, car dependency, diminished civic life, and cities that feel less like places and more like products.
Is Anyone Doing This Right
I asked Kelly whether any other countries or jurisdictions have better systems. He pointed to a few examples, with reservations:
“The free private cities group has an idea and a grip of what they are doing. They use a lot of standard building codes. For me it is more of a private real estate development than it is trying to build a city.”
He also gave a global perspective:
“In China they tell you exactly what you can build. In Africa somewhere nobody is going to come and tell you that you cannot build your building that way. But if you are trying to be in a city you are going to have a really hard time.”
Despite the challenges, he emphasized progress:
“The small arguments are being made and they are more successful than they used to be 10 years ago.”
Bitcoin, Wealth, and Building Beautiful Things
One of the deepest resonances between urbanism and Bitcoin lies in the relationship between money and culture. As I said during the episode, “We need to build beautiful things,” and to do that we need “a real world based on real wealth and not a fantasy land.”
Kelly articulated that tension, especially around home values:
“Hopefully we do not go through the doom where everybody’s value has to be destroyed in their home before they can transfer it to a better store of value named Bitcoin.”
But he remained optimistic throughout:
“There is always a way to solve a problem. It may look difficult now, but there is always a way. We will figure it out.”
Where to Learn More
I asked Kelly for book recommendations for listeners who want to go deeper. He suggested starting with the fundamentals:
“Definitely Strong Towns. There is another book called Cognitive Architecture, which goes into a lot of the evolutionary kind of stuff about how humans behave in certain environments.”
He also recommended works by Ann Sussman and Justin Hollander:
“They have both written multiple books. I recommend all of them.”
And of course, Christopher Alexander:
“Timeless Way of Building. Christopher Alexander. All of his books are fantastic.”
Why This Conversation Matters
Urbanism is not just about policy or technical codes. It is about culture, identity, community, and the way we relate to one another. Kelly’s work shows that the built environment does not happen by accident. It reflects our incentives, our worldviews, our economics, and our sense of time.
Bitcoin cannot fix every problem in our cities, but it can fix the foundation on which good cities depend. As Kelly reminded us, we can build beautiful things again. But it will require clarity, intention, and real work.
🎧 Listen: Think Bitcoin Podcast – Kelly Lannan on Architecture, Cities, and Bitcoin Urbanism
📚 Read: Kelly’s Substack, Bitcoin Urbanism
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See you next time,
Logan