Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
How do you define a "suburb" and how do you define "downtown?"
I mean, to give an example, Coolidge Corner in Brookline, Ma is great traditional commercial area. But Brookline is nearly surrounded by Boston, and functionally speaking is a city neighborhood. Many other walkable "suburbs" are pretty similar, insofar as their core was built out before the automobile. They either were functionally part of the city, were nearby independent cities, or were large railroad suburbs.
On the other hand, there's a handful of "suburban CBDs" which have been built in certain parts of the country, such as Bellvue, WA and areas of Arlington, VA along the Metro roughly to Ballston. These are basically CBDs which have sprung up in the postwar era (mostly over the last 20-30 years). They can have impressive skylines, but they probably have less street activity at night on each block than the typical medium-sized traditional downtown.
West Chester, PA in the running for best main street in America. West Chester is about as walkable and lively as you can get for a suburban downtown without the skyscrapers.
How do you define a "suburb" and how do you define "downtown?"
I mean, to give an example, Coolidge Corner in Brookline, Ma is great traditional commercial area. But Brookline is nearly surrounded by Boston, and functionally speaking is a city neighborhood. Many other walkable "suburbs" are pretty similar, insofar as their core was built out before the automobile. They either were functionally part of the city, were nearby independent cities, or were large railroad suburbs.
On the other hand, there's a handful of "suburban CBDs" which have been built in certain parts of the country, such as Bellvue, WA and areas of Arlington, VA along the Metro roughly to Ballston. These are basically CBDs which have sprung up in the postwar era (mostly over the last 20-30 years). They can have impressive skylines, but they probably have less street activity at night on each block than the typical medium-sized traditional downtown.
Great points here. Your second point is referencing large edge cities.
Chicago has some great suburbs. Evanston. Naperville. Libertyville. Oak Park.
Technically Old Town Alexandria, but it really just functions as a DC neighborhood on the other side of the Potomac. But places like Bethesda and Silver Spring would definitely count.
For LA, Pasadena and Long Beach come to mind first.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
