Urban-Suburban Discussion Hinges On An Outdated Classification

Both cities and suburbs are in flux: Cities are popular, but limits on housing has pushed up rents, forcing people to move to the suburbs, away from jobs. But this problem, along with the definitions of cities and suburbs, is oversimplified.

Noah Smith of BloombergView examined the future of cities and suburbs. Urban areas are important, as they promote the spread of ideas and knowledge and they allow companies and consumers to live in close proximity. As industry experts fear an upcoming exdodus from cities to the suburbs, Smith writes that we need to rethink what urban and suburban areas actually are.

The urban/suburban split is based on an old way of thinking. Back in the early 1900s, jobs were located in the core of a city, and people lived out in the suburbs and commuted. Now, jobs are dispersed throughout an entire metro area, and the line between urban and suburban is blurred.

But for the most part, Americans are now moving to cities like San Diego, Phoenix, San Antonio, Dallas and Houston that have a lot more low-density neighborhoods. … In other words, the great urban revival might not be ending, it might just be relocating. Instead of piling into existing cores, Americans might simply be creating new ones across the country.

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