After two decades of robust population growth, America’s cities are no longer booming. According to a recent New York Times article, growth in major metropolitan areas is half what it was about ten years ago. And people are understandably wondering what the COVID-19 crisis will mean for the future of cities. From that article:
Mayors are already warning of precipitous drops in tax revenue from joblessness. Public spaces like parks and buses, the central arteries of urban life, have become danger zones. And with vast numbers of professionals now working remotely, some may reconsider whether they need to live in the middle of a big city after all.
Have big cities lost their allure, as the title of the Times article says? And will the pandemic accelerate a rush to smaller cities, the suburbs, and exurbs?
These are some of the questions Abby Kinney and Chuck Marohn explore on this week’s episode of the Upzoned podcast. They also discuss why the places likely to take the biggest economic hit from the pandemic are those with the most debt, the most long-term liabilities, and the least amount of flexibility—i.e., places built according to the suburban development pattern. And they describe the type of cities most likely to experience a renaissance in the post-coronavirus future. (Hint: It’s not the suburbs, but it’s not necessarily New York and San Francisco either.)
Then in the Downzone, Chuck recommends two very different books — a crime thriller set in Minnesota, and a book on the future of the American worker — and Abby describes the experience of mushroom hunting.
Additional Shownotes“America’s Biggest Cities Were Already Losing Their Allure. What Happens Next?” by Sabrina Tavernise and Sarah Mervosh
“Is COVID-19 the End of Cities?” by Joe Cortright
“Not So Fast: Density Isn’t Plague-Inducing,” by Joe Minicozzi
When Will Your City Feel the Fiscal Impact of COVID-19? (Podcast)
“This is the End of the Suburban Experiment,” by Chuck Marohn
Abby Kinney (Twitter)
Charles Marohn (Twitter)
Gould Evans Studio for City Design
Theme Music by Kemet the Phantom (Soundcloud)
This Man Overcame Homelessness by Building His Own Tiny Home…on Hollywood Boulevard!
What Does the ”Airbnbust” Mean for the Housing Market?
This Seattle Highway Is Facing a $29 Million Financial Crisis
We Need More Housing—But Also More People Who Can Build More Housing
Yes, Getting Rid of Parking Minimums Is Good for the Climate—But That’s Just the Tip of the Iceberg
We Have Plenty of Land in the United States. But Can All of It Support Housing?
The Paris of the Plains Can’t Afford Its Fountains Anymore
E-Bikes: The Frankenstein’s Monster of Transportation?
Professional Engineers: Speak Up. The Stakes Are Life and Death.
New York’s New Experiment in Fighting Gridlock
The ”Other Story” of Buffalo
Water Wars in the Modern Wild West
TxDOT Proposes to Dig a $1 Billion Infrastructure Grave in Downtown Dallas
State Preemption: A Means To Reform Zoning, or a Threat to Localism?
Looking for an Affordable Starter Home? HUD Suggests Trying a Manufactured Home.
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Inflation or Lower Housing Values: Pick Your Cleanest Dirty Shirt?
Uber’s Bull Run Is Over, Says CEO
Corporate Investors Own Nearly Half of This City’s Residential Property
Philadelphia Is Launching the First Public Bank Owned by a City
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