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My prediction is COVID will precipitate a decline in major urban areas that will last at least ten years. The bargain urban cities made was that the residents
by eric_b 6y ago
My prediction is COVID will precipitate a decline in major urban areas that will last at least ten years.
The bargain urban cities made was that the residents got easy access to their workplace, restaurants, bars, theaters, events etc, in exchange for living in exorbitantly expensive tiny cramped apartments.
COVID has upended this deal and most pragmatic folks are thinking hard about moving out. What is the point of living in a small box if you can't do anything and you work from home? And if the government can shut it all down any old time they want anyways? Add on top of that the increase in violent crime/unrest and only the true believers will stay.
- leetcrew 6y agoI think it's much too early to say. my lease is up in 60 days and I don't have any intention of moving. if things are still not back to normal a year after that, I would probably consider leaving the city. FWIW, most bars and restaurants in my area have been open for outdoor dining for quite some time now, so it's really not a huge inconvenience. in any case, the ability to walk home drunk is not my main reason for living in a city. I can still walk to several lovely parks any time I want, and several of my friends live close enough that they can walk to meet me there. in my experience, these casual meetups are much more likely to happen when everyone can walk to the location, but YMMV. I don't think the fact that the government has temporarily closed a lot of businesses during the worst pandemic in several decades implies this will be a regular occurrence. to change one's entire lifestyle over temporary restrictions during a rare crisis seems like the opposite of "pragmatic" to me.