Also, metro area balkanization is sometimes the point; a wealthy area of Atlanta recently tried to secede. Merging them is out of the question too as a politica

Also, metro area balkanization is sometimes the point; a wealthy area of Atlanta recently tried to secede. Merging them is out of the question too as a political third rail. Regional balkanization has a lot of issues; not only are poor areas left with few resources and projects lack coordination and get expensively duplicated, but also they tend to compete with each other to offer tax breaks to companies, and in the end the region gives a big tax break to a company that most likely would’ve located somewhere in the region anyways.