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Federal Way? Not really, it's strip mally built around the automobile with not much of a downtown area.
Kirkland, Bellevue, and Tacoma are probably the most walkable suburbs with sizable downtown areas in the Seattle area.
First off, Tacoma is not a suburb. And secondly I would have agreed with you about Federal Way if it were a year or three ago but it has drastically improved, I would know. I'm there almost everyday.
Usually when the term walkability comes up, it is in regards to cities, but what are some suburbs that offer a good degree of walkability? When I say suburb, I mean a community or area that is outside of the central city of a metro.
My town has no central downtown area but it has plenty of greenways (paved park and green trails) and blueways (paved trail along the lake) for walking or running or rollerblading or biking. Does that count?
Location: northern Vermont - previously NM, WA, & MA
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Originally Posted by blaserbrad
First off, Tacoma is not a suburb. And secondly I would have agreed with you about Federal Way if it were a year or three ago but it has drastically improved, I would know. I'm there almost everyday.
Yes Tacoma is one of the larger and one of the older cities in the metro area, I know . Though Seattle is still top dog and the primary anchor city of the metro area. I knew a lot of commuters from Tacoma that worked in Seattle when I lived there. What has happened in Federal Way that has so drastically changed the urban planning there? It has a downtown now with walkable areas? Got links?
Last edited by Champ le monstre du lac; 12-31-2013 at 07:26 AM..
City of Hyattsville, MD
Mount Rainier, MD
Downtown Silver Spring, MD
Rockville, MD (Somewhat)
Takoma Park, MD
College Park, MD (Somewhat)
Riverdale Park, MD
University Park, MD
Clarendon-Courthouse, VA
Rosslyn, VA
Alexandria, VA
Pentagon City, VA
North Rosslyn, VA
Ballston-Virginia Square, VA
Charlottesville, VA
Culpepper, VA
My town has no central downtown area but it has plenty of greenways (paved park and green trails) and blueways (paved trail along the lake) for walking or running or rollerblading or biking. Does that count?
If they lead to something like a business area/district or some establishments.
Other suburbs - that are definitively suburbs (I think) - that stand out to me are:
Lakewood, OH
Royal Oak, MI
Davis, CA Newport Beach, CA
Berkeley, CA
Columbia Heights, MN
Many Orange County cites have walkable districts or neighborhoods that have that "Mayberry" ambiance. Downtown Huntington Beach, Seal Beach, Brea, Fullerton, Old Town Orange, even Irvine.
I can walk to almost everything I need in my neighborhood (huntington Harbour), but it doesn't really look like a traditional neighborhood.
Yes Tacoma is one of the larger and one of the older cities in the metro area, I know . Though Seattle is still top dog and the primary anchor city of the metro area. I knew a lot of commuters from Tacoma that worked in Seattle when I lived there. What has happened in Federal Way that has so drastically changed the urban planning there? It has a downtown now with walkable areas? Got links?
I wouldn't say its downtown is much of a downtown but the neighborhoods in Fed, as well as Pac Highway have become very walkable. I have seen a lot of pedestrian activity within the past year and there is a lot of construction to make areas more walkable. I don't have links.
Federal Way? Not really, it's strip mally built around the automobile with not much of a downtown area.
Kirkland, Bellevue, and Tacoma are probably the most walkable suburbs with sizable downtown areas in the Seattle area.
Kirkland, Bellevue, and Definitely Tacoma aren't suburbs of Seattle...When was the last time you have been to Federal Way? Its trying to shake the Strip main rep and become a functioning community. With that said alot of areas are pretty walk-able, lots of Main streets, Not extremely hilly fot the most part, and the major parks and attractions are pretty close together.
Would Cambridge, MA; Arlington, VA; West Hollywood, CA; Hoboken, NJ; and Yonkers, NY fall into this category? They are outside the central city, but they're more dense and urban than most central cities in this country.
What about suburbs that used to be free-standing cities, but got swallowed by the larger metro area, like Joliet, IL; Franklin, TN; and Ann Arbor, MI? These all have very walkable core areas, but quickly fizzle out to suburban wasteland.
Other suburbs - that are definitively suburbs (I think) - that stand out to me are:
Lakewood, OH
Royal Oak, MI
Davis, CA
Newport Beach, CA
Berkeley, CA
Columbia Heights, MN
Perhaps a few more or so have walkable main streets, but that is pretty much it.
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