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If you read the original article you would realize that more than sharing problems, it was a whinefest.
I realize that suburbs is not for everybody just like cities are not for all. But there are enough people who like suburbs to make it worthwhile to live there; otherwise they would have emigrated to cities. So why put those people down with one personal dislike after another.
how is the original article putting people down? He criticizing a development style
I assure you, it gets just as hot in the city. As for the six lanes of traffic.... ladies and gentleman, I present to you the most walkable city in the nation, a neighborhood with a walk score of 99: https://goo.gl/maps/psERcoi1pQR2
That's EIGHT, count 'em, EIGHT lanes of divided highway. And three lanes in the cross street.
definitely one of the spots of Manhattan I like less for the above reason. Though I'd rather walk on that that with arterial with lots of parking lots by the sidewalk rather than buildings.
Usually when I read articles like this, I roll my eyes and the first impression I get is "These are kids talking"
I was young and single once. Walkability to museums, bars, art galleries and theater took preference.
Yeah, that was great when I was 25.
Now, I'm a father of 4. I'm not a 20 y/o making 40K a year working in a bar. I make over 20 times that amount. I work extremely hard. The last thing I want to do is wade through urban traffic on my way home. I don't want to have to fight for space or pay for parking just to grocery shop. Then I have to park in a large parking garage and then put all the groceries into a cart and then take an elevator.
Sorry, I love having garage. I love wide streets without potholes. I love my drive-thru Walgreens where I can pick up my prescriptions instantly instead of walking to some urban pharmacy and waiting for 30 minutes in a long line just to approach a pharmacist who then tells me that my prescription will be ready in 20 minutes.
I love being able to run 2 miles in my neighborhood at 10 PM on my street, and not worry about being robbed or held at gun point; sorry can't do that in an urban area...not even the nice parts.
I love having a large state of the art modern new gym with plenty of parking. I'm not forced to working out in the dumpy cramped urban gyms with old equipment and where you wait 30 minutes for a treadmill. But the urban gym has character because it has a boxing ring in the basement with a picture of Ali and the smell of mold
When I want to ride my bike, or throw the football around with my youngest, I like that I can do it my backyard or walk to a common area with a manicured soccer field. I'm not having to walk 5 miles to the nearest park only to compete with a million other people who want the same field. No thanks
Look, I'm a dad. I don't have time for your bohemian sense of European cool just so I can claim that I live in a place with soul. I don't need that bullshyte. I have actual responsibilities and need to get rest and want to relax. I'm not trying to impress anyone like our European friend. When I crave something fun and exciting, I'll fly to Paris or Prague for a week.
what does a "city living tradition" mean? In 1800, everywhere was mostly rural. Europe was somewhat less so but most people lived in rural areas. The US obviously couldn't have big cities in 1800 let alone 1700, there weren't enough people in total. Cities grew fast in both the US [excluding the south] and Europe in the 1800s, where in both places city living went from a small minority of the population to about half.
I realized that that post was poorly thought out, so I decided to delete it.
definitely one of the spots of Manhattan I like less for the above reason. Though I'd rather walk on that that with arterial with lots of parking lots by the sidewalk rather than buildings.
Yeah, I picked the nastiest spot I could think of. But really, all the avenues are pretty dire. And there's Times Square, where you could certainly walk... if it weren't for all the OTHER PEOPLE in the way. I take the subway to get from Penn Station to Port Authority Bus Terminal just because the crowds make walking it such a pain.
The other thing about the Park Avenue spot is it's listed by walkscore as having a bike score of "77: Very Bikeable". I've biked up and down Park Avenue, and I'm going to have to disagree with that. Strenuously. It's insane, and the parallel avenues aren't much better. Should be more like "15: You'll probably live."
Suburbs to me always seemed to be just bedroom communities where people just watch TV and sleep after a long work day and a couple of hour commute to that suburb. Then they wake up and do it all over again. One of the aspects of urban living is that you're not stuck in your home all the time. You don't have a couple of hour commute, and after work and on weekend you're out and about exploring everything the city has to offer.
I live in an urban area now and there is always something new to do on a daily basis. I'm single and child free, but if I did have kids I would not want them growing up in a boring suburb where they end up getting in trouble with the law or getting involved with substances out of boredom like we did growing up.
Suburbs to me always seemed to be just bedroom communities where people just watch TV and sleep after a long work day and a couple of hour commute to that suburb. Then they wake up and do it all over again. One of the aspects of urban living is that you're not stuck in your home all the time. You don't have a couple of hour commute, and after work and on weekend you're out and about exploring everything the city has to offer.
I live in an urban area now and there is always something new to do on a daily basis. I'm single and child free, but if I did have kids I would not want them growing up in a boring suburb where they end up getting in trouble with the law or getting involved with substances out of boredom like we did growing up.
Spoken like a naive young person without kids! A single person comes home from work and has no other responsibilities. You can call your friends and walk to the pub or watch a live music act.
When you are a parent, you come home from work and have a second job. It's called taking your kids to soccer, tutoring, music lessons, swim, the library etc. You are not sitting at home relaxing. You are working. You are out of the house doing things. When my kid needs something for school, Target is minutes away. The last thing you want to do is try all of this in an urban environment. I'm busy enough doing these tasks, I don't want to have to fight with crowds and pay for parking. I don't want to have to drive 40 minutes and sit through traffic to drive 10 blocks when I can drive 3 minutes and go to some strip mall down the street.
And the last thing I want is for my teenager to walk downstairs and have a bar or a marijuana bakery minutes from his place. Again, the whole "urban is better" is proclaimed by young hipsters with no real responsibilities and no clue what real life is about.
Spoken like a naive young person without kids! A single person comes home from work and has no other responsibilities. You can call your friends and walk to the pub or watch a live music act.
When you are a parent, you come home from work and have a second job. It's called taking your kids to soccer, tutoring, music lessons, swim, the library etc. You are not sitting at home relaxing. You are working. You are out of the house doing things. When my kid needs something for school, Target is minutes away. The last thing you want to do is try all of this in an urban environment. I'm busy enough doing these tasks, I don't want to have to fight with crowds and pay for parking. I don't want to have to drive 40 minutes and sit through traffic to drive 10 blocks when I can drive 3 minutes and go to some strip mall down the street.
And the last thing I want is for my teenager to walk downstairs and have a bar or a marijuana bakery minutes from his place. Again, the whole "urban is better" is proclaimed by young hipsters with no real responsibilities and no clue what real life is about.
That's true it all comes down to lifestyle. I'm not young anymore, but I'm childfree and polygamous, which is probably not at all the common demographic of a suburb.
Personally, I find this whole thread a little redundant. There is no "best" place to live. That is very much a personal decision.
That article sounds like a list of stuff I love about the suburbs. Especially the "no public transport part" so I do not have to worry about slow buses clogging the roads. The most insane part about the article is the quote about useless frontages. The are extremely useful,they isolate me from any noise my neighbor is making. Ideally a half acre lot is the minimum livable lot size for comfort.
I think living in an overcrowded city jammed with people is soul crushing!
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