You Can Take It With You

After all, cities are where people are supposed to have serendipitous encounters—as the writer and critic Jane Jacobs said, “The metropolis provides what otherwise could be given only by traveling; namely, the strange.” By comparison, the cliché goes, people become more atomized the farther they move from urban environments into the clinical, safe,... See more

“The ultimate question that I have: how can we create cities that are big enough to give people economic opportunity, but small enough to give people love and others in their lives that touch their hearts?”

Cities are predicated on a set of trade-offs that no longer make sense. Middle-class people tolerate density, pollution, disease, crime, high taxes, and expensive housing to access superior employment opportunities. If comparable opportunities can be accessed without the above costs, many people will opt-out of the current arrangement.

That said: “Cities, while they’re good for economic opportunity, are not good for community. I have felt, at times, especially during my first two years in NY, tremendous bouts of loneliness. It was really hard for me to meet people. In order to go hang out with friends tonight, I have to take a 40-minute subway ride. It’s bizarre how you can walk ... See more