This doesn't describe me or most of my friends. Sure, I know a couple of people who have moved to the city, but most of us have chosen to stay in the suburbs.
Most of the people I went to college with and still keep in contact with either a) rent or own a house in the suburbs or b) live in a suburban apartment complex (i.e. sprawling fields of 2-story buildings).
I personally split the difference and rent a townhouse in the suburbs.
I have one friend who lives in one of those suburban mixed-use developments that's becoming popular now, but that's only because he's legally blind and can't drive. He's told me multiple times that if his retinas worked right, he'd own a car and drive everywhere.
I love the suburbs, I love sprawl, and the same goes for most of my friends. I also hate noise and hate crowds. We don't want to live somewhere that has a "soul": we just want a place that's safe to live and have lots of space. My friends who have kids also want a place that has good schools. We're pretty bourgeois and proud of it. We're not hipsters, and in fact we're more likely to make fun of hipsters than anything.
The opposite describes me and most of my friends. ;) I suppose it makes sense that suburban people meet suburban friends and urban people meet urban friends.
That said, I don't think people in urban areas would say they love crowds or noise (and I really don't think I encounter much of either in central Austin). I'm curious what you do with all of the space. The idea of loving sprawl is odd to me.
I grew up in the burbs and hate the idea of raising my kid in a place where so much of your time is spent in a car. The idea of getting a car to go anywhere or do anything crushes my soul. I think if I moved out of the city I'd mostly miss being able to walk/bike (or bus) to so many things.
> I suppose it makes sense that suburban people meet suburban friends and urban people meet urban friends.
That's true.
And it also helps that I work in the suburbs (at both my current job and my last job): all my coworkers live in the burbs too, even the ones who are the same age as me (32) or younger.
Of course, I live in the Dallas area, where 90% of the tech industry is in the northern suburbs, and so are all the ethnic enclaves. You want to work in the tech industry? If you live in the city, you'll have to commute to the suburbs, so living in the burbs means you have a shorter commute. You want authentic {insert Asian ethnicity here} food? You have to go to the suburbs for it.
> I'm curious what you do with all of the space. The idea of loving sprawl is odd to me.
I have a lot of stuff. Also, I just like to have room to breathe; I'm slightly claustrophobic.
And I just really like the look and feel of the way the northern suburbs of Dallas are laid out. I don't know if I can put it into words; it's just aesthetically pleasing to me.
I've recently been toying around with the idea of moving out of state (because a. political reasons, and b. after my cat died last week, I kinda want to disappear and start over where I don't know anyone), and for aesthetic reasons the only other parts of the country that appeals to me are parts of SoCal, specifically Torrance and Orange County. They're the only places that have the same kind of aesthetics I like about the Dallas burbs.
> I grew up in the burbs and hate the idea of raising my kid in a place where so much of your time is spent in a car. The idea of getting a car to go anywhere or do anything crushes my soul. I think if I moved out of the city I'd mostly miss being able to walk/bike (or bus) to so many things.
I'm actually childfree, so I have no intention of raising a kid, but if I did, I'd like to raise my kid in an environment like the one I grew up in. I had a front yard and a back yard to play in, trees to climb, a large neighborhood to walk and ride my bike around. I still have fond memories walking or riding my bike down the winding alleyways and residential streets of Far North Dallas. I feel sorry for my friends' kids who are growing up in apartments (suburban apartments, yes, but still apartments). Apartment complexes just aren't conducive to that kind of atmosphere.
There was no crime, no homeless people shouting things at me on the street. I went to highly-rated public schools... my family didn't have to worry about burning $$$$ on a private school just to get me a good education.
Oh, and speaking of homeless people shouting things at me on the street... that regularly happened to me when I worked downtown from 2012 to 2014. I constantly had homeless people demanding I give them money or cigarettes, and they'd call me a liar when I told them I don't carry cash or that I quit smoking. I wouldn't want to subject a kid to that. During that time, I fervently wished I had a car so I could just roll up the windows and not have to deal with them. I'll always equate "not taking a car to go somewhere or do something" with "being subject to street harassment". Oh yeah, and when I worked downtown, I was too early in my transition for me to really get catcalls; if I worked there now, I'd probably be catcalled to hell and back. No thank you. I'd rather have the safety and the security of a car when I go places.
Also, your name sounds really, really familiar. I think we may have gone to high school together. Did you go to HS in Richardson, TX in the early 00s?
(no, you won't recognize my name... I changed my whole name -- first, middle, and last -- a few years ago)
Plano and then UTD in that timeframe, my contact is in my profile.
I'm glad you like North Dallas, I enjoyed it as a kid, but hated it once I moved to uptown Dallas and saw what a walkable life could be like. (To be clear: uptown was just an intro, I don't find the area that appealing anymore)
And also to clarify, I'm not in a downtown highrise, and don't think I would enjoy one at my age. I have a house with a yard but it's about a mile from downtown and walking distance to a lot of great (and not so great?) stuff. I hope my kid(s) will have the best of both worlds. I also want them to see more socioeconomic and racial diversity than I did. This is definitely a privilege, but I did have to make tradeoffs (I could have a much larger home further out, or could have already paid off one of the same size elsewhere, etc).
+1. I'm 29. I moved to Dallas from NYC in May and absolutely love it (when I'm there! I travel more now).
Wouldn't trade it back for anything.
Our apartment (in the suburbs!) is great, driving everywhere is great, trees on trees on trees are great, the food is great and we manage to find something to do every weekend. Ironically enough, everything I need is about 5-10 minutes away from my apartment now. Walmart is 2 minutes away. TWO MINUTES!
Everyone's different! I also grew up in NYC so I can see how living there might be attractive. I always recommend to folks that haven't to give it a try. It wasn't for me, but it might be for themB
This doesn't describe me or most of my friends. Sure, I know a couple of people who have moved to the city, but most of us have chosen to stay in the suburbs.
Most of the people I went to college with and still keep in contact with either a) rent or own a house in the suburbs or b) live in a suburban apartment complex (i.e. sprawling fields of 2-story buildings).
I personally split the difference and rent a townhouse in the suburbs.
I have one friend who lives in one of those suburban mixed-use developments that's becoming popular now, but that's only because he's legally blind and can't drive. He's told me multiple times that if his retinas worked right, he'd own a car and drive everywhere.
I love the suburbs, I love sprawl, and the same goes for most of my friends. I also hate noise and hate crowds. We don't want to live somewhere that has a "soul": we just want a place that's safe to live and have lots of space. My friends who have kids also want a place that has good schools. We're pretty bourgeois and proud of it. We're not hipsters, and in fact we're more likely to make fun of hipsters than anything.