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> The main set of interests keeping things like this is the American consumers I concur to a degree, but American consumers have also been so captive to the na
by danans 7y ago
> The main set of interests keeping things like this is the American consumers
I concur to a degree, but American consumers have also been so captive to the narrative of large houses that they are mostly unaware of other ways of living. Their only image of denser living is slums and tenements, or Park Avenue penthouses, not middle class townhouses.
However, Americans have increasingly travelled to places that have higher density and transit and seen that those can offer a high quality of life.
Many then seek a different balance of space to transit by moving to areas where they can make a different trade-off than the standard American model, hence the recent urbanization of suburbs and growth of previously sparse cities like Austin and Salt Lake City.
- kortilla 7y ago> Their only image of denser living is slums and tenements, or Park Avenue penthouses, not middle class townhouses. Maybe that was true before the internet became widespread, but it’s not the case anymore. The American Midwest is aware of the walkable streets of Rome, Paris, and Tokyo. It’s still a big sacrifice to those used to yards, sparse commerce, and the scheduling freedom that comes with vehicles. > hence the recent urbanization of suburbs and growth of previously sparse cities like Austin and Salt Lake City. Yep, and I personally wish there were walkable options like in Europe. As someone who has lived in Austin for the past 7 years, getting around without a car is a joke and you’re going to take a big quality of life hit if you limit to yourself to one walkable area. Its density certainly is increasing (see east side), but it’s just turning into the Bay Area with worse highways.