There are even high levels of NIMBYism in downtown Manhattan neighborhoods like the East Village. My understanding of the problem is some people really dislike

There are even high levels of NIMBYism in downtown Manhattan neighborhoods like the East Village. My understanding of the problem is some people really dislike change, and those same people disproportionately vote in local elections and attend city planning meetings. Because planning decisions are hyper-local in America, there's no "regional growth" advocate at these meetings, and nobody is going to attend planning meetings to fight for some developer to build their high-rise, so the opposition wins.