The Book
My Town
How investing in where you're from creates the future you want to see — a love letter to Mobile, Alabama, and a challenge to anyone doing similar work somewhere else.
Where to Buy
About the Book
The through-line was never the buildings.
My Town is Mike Rogers' account of thirty-five years spent investing in Mobile, Alabama — the building sites, the neighborhood meetings, the phone calls at dawn, and the projects nobody else wanted. It's a love letter to the city that raised him and a challenge to anyone doing similar work somewhere else: your town is worth it, and one person can still make a difference.
Along the way, Mike shares the Conversations he had with clients, mayors, and himself — the ones about preservation, about profit, about what a building really owes the block it sits on. If you've ever wondered whether investing in where you're from is a worthwhile bet, this book is Mike's careful, honest answer.
About the Author
A builder who couldn't stop taking notes.
Mike Rogers is the co-founder of Rogers & Willard and Porchlight, based in Mobile, Alabama. Over thirty-five years, he's built a reputation for projects nobody else would touch — and for treating everyone on the jobsite like a co-author of the finished project.
My Town is his first book. It's the argument he's been making, one conversation at a time, for most of his career.
Chapters
- Ch. 1 — My Town, Mobile: Growing lean and smart in the Port City
- Ch. 2 — Coming of Age: Auburn's "Animal House" and Nashville
- Ch. 3 — Return to Mobile: Working with and for others
- Ch. 4 — Taking Wing: One person's power to make an impact
- Ch. 5 — It's Beautiful: The art of seeing the unseen
- Ch. 6 — Roots and Reach: Rogers & Willard, one project at a time
- Ch. 7 — Porchlight: A different kind of practice
- Ch. 8 — Your Town: A blueprint for making a difference where you are
- Ch. 9 — What Comes Next: The future of place, and why it's local
Want more of the story?
Hear the conversations behind the book on the My Town podcast — coming soon.