I grew up in the burbs, and moved to the city three years ago. I never want to ever go back -- here's why:

1) You don't need to drive to go everywhere. You have other options such as walking, biking, and public transit. Does it make sense to drive your 4000 pound SUV to grab a quart of milk?

2) Cities have so much to offer, you simply can't go bored. Museums, great parks, shows, huge libraries, etc. There is always something interesting to do, and that makes it great for families.

3) That small apartment/condo on a noisy street uses considerably less energy than a suburban home. If we are going to be serious about fixing climate change, we have to do more than change our light bulbs.

4) Cities have greater economic opportunities.

5) If you enjoy eating out you will find much better options in the city. The suburbs offers Chillies and McDonald's.

6) Cities are more interesting to look at. Esthetics and architecture are important. Cookie cutter homes are, well, ugly.

7) Are the suburbs really that quiet? I seem to remember the constant noise of people mowing their lawns and the constant drone of pool pumps.

8) I actually feel safer in the city. There is something about living near lots of other people that provides a sense of security compared to the relative isolation of suburban single-family homes.

1) You don't need to drive to go everywhere. You have other options such as walking, biking, and public transit. Does it make sense to drive your 4000 pound SUV to grab a quart of milk?

The sad thing is that this is only really true of American suburbs - back in Germany, all those options were available in the suburbs as well...

Allow me to play devil's advocate here:

"1) You don't need to drive to go everywhere. You have other options such as walking, biking, and public transit. Does it make sense to drive your 4000 pound SUV to grab a quart of milk? "

I assume you don't have kids? If you did you would realize that you can't walk home from the store with all your groceries. Plus, buying overpriced goods at the corner market in the city gets old real quickly. Personally I drive my Prius to the grocery store once a week to get all my groceries....I use less than one gallon of fuel both ways.

"2) Cities have so much to offer, you simply can't go bored. Museums, great parks, shows, huge libraries, etc. There is always something interesting to do, and that makes it great for families. "

True, but my community also has a great library, community pool, parks without homeless people and discarded needles etc. Don't even try to tell me you think those activites are better for families than the same things in the burbs.

"3) That small apartment/condo on a noisy street uses considerably less energy than a suburban home. If we are going to be serious about fixing climate change, we have to do more than change our light bulbs. "

Better than McMansions yes, but that doesn't have to be the model for the suburbs.

"4) Cities have greater economic opportunities."

For working, not living.

"5) If you enjoy eating out you will find much better options in the city. The suburbs offers Chillies and McDonald's. "

True, cities have better four star options but most suburbs have great options beyond the chains as well. My city doesn't even allow chains. We have a cute downtown about four blocks long filled with great independent restaurants. I don't think you get out of the city enough.

"6) Cities are more interesting to look at. Esthetics and architecture are important. Cookie cutter homes are, well, ugly. "

True. I would argue that the green of the burbs can be very nice too. My street is lined with stunning mature trees that create a green tunnel year round.

7) Are the suburbs really that quiet? I seem to remember the constant noise of people mowing their lawns and the constant drone of pool pumps.

"8) I actually feel safer in the city. There is something about living near lots of other people that provides a sense of security compared to the relative isolation of suburban single-family homes. "

That is absurd. You could scream yourself horse in the middle of the street and no one would even look out of their window in most big cities. If I hear a scream from next door I actually know who it is. Bottom line, FBI crime statistics show the city is less safe.

TJA,

It sounds like the place you live is built around the traditional neighborhood design model, not a suburban model. The fact that you have a downtown area with independent restaurants and streets lined with mature trees tells me you live in a well designed community.

It's not fair to tell me that I don't get out of the city enough. I actually travel a lot for work, and I lived in various suburbs for many years.

I am not advocating "big" cities, but rather cities and towns that are designed with people in mind, not cars. The German suburbs that were mentioned sound great. Traditional suburbs were serviced with light rail and the houses where closer together and more than one story. People should have options to get around. Drive when it is appropriate (such as buying a week's worth of groceries) and use other means when appropriate (such as going to the bank, post office, book store, buying a quart of milk, etc.)

Excellent response, JPPerry!

I wish most of this debate could be reframed as "human-scale design" vs "car scale design" ... city per se and suburb per se are often only relevant as municipal categories.

Municipal categories are still important when it comes to equitable distribution of tax base, etc, but when talking about quality of life and sustainability, we're really talking about design -- the way things are built -- not what legal boundary a house or business lies within.

Some suburbs have excellent urban design, esp the 1920s streetcar suburbs, while there are also some post-war neighborhoods within large-city boundaries that have wholly car-dependent design.