Liberal Talk Radio

Every once in a while, group conversations with my 20- and 30-something urban tribe of friends will turn to this fashionable idea that people are leaving the suburbs and flocking back to the cities. Since most of us have lived in cities our whole adult lives, watching condos sprout like weeds, it seems like a plausible assumption.

Unfortunately, it’s also total rubbish. New home construction in urban cores is positively dwarfed by the massive developments rising in the suburbs and exurbs, as anyone who’s driven outside of Atlanta, Las Vegas, or Phoenix can tell you. The re-development and re-population of America’s downtowns is an amusing sideshow by comparison.

Nevertheless, there IS increased residential development in many cities. Some folks are realizing that maybe spending 2-3 hours a day in your car is not the most fulfilling way to live. Urban condos are giving people a sense of community that their suburban dwellings lacked:

To some longtime residents, the glassy high-rises being added to Seattle’s skyline can seem like exclusive islands. But for those who can afford them, they’re also blank slates for networks of family members or friends interested in creating their own community.

“People do kind of like picking their neighbors,” said marketing executive Leslie Williams, who has specialized in selling Seattle condos for 23 years.

“It’s a fairly new thing, but condominium living has become way more acceptable. In the past, people were buying condos because it was the only thing they could afford. Now the reasons are so expanded.”

I’m all for density and tighter communities, so needless to say I find this encouraging. Nevertheless, it is kind of silly to hear someone who just shelled out a half-million or more for a shiny condo say something like this:

Since they both moved into the high-rise at Second and Lenora, they exercise together three times a week and explore new restaurants. It’s not uncommon for one to run downstairs to evaluate a new haircut, offer up a candy cane or have a glass of wine.

“Sometimes we talk about the fact that it’s almost like a dorm,” Matthias said.

Mmm… candy canes. Jane Jacobs would be proud.