suburban slum

A few months back (March to be precise) I read an article in the Atlantic about suburban neighborhoods in the United States that are quite literally turning into the “slums”. Graffiti is becoming rampant, vacancy is skyrocketing and homeless drug users are moving in. Thanks in large part to the sub-prime mortgage crisis, banks are foreclosing on people’s homes and the properties are remaining vacant. With the economic boom developers all over North America have greatly exceeded demand, and with the bust that seems to be following few will be in the position to purchase new real estate. The same individuals that are lacking the extra cash to purchase over-priced homes are also feeling the strain on their wallets from rising gas costs; hour long commutes are simply no longer justifiable.

Having lived central all my life I have never quite understood the magnetic attraction people have to the suburbs. The only sense that I have been able to make out of the whole situation is the stability and security that suburban communities offer. After reading this article I can only imagine what might happen if the drug users that call Main Street their home took up shop in Linden Woods… mayhem would ensue. The article suggests that the ladder may not be as far-fetched a notion as some may think, and frankly it makes sense. Like everything in life things can only be pushed so far, and cities have allowed developers to go too far in creating these suburban ‘Pleasantville’s’.

However, some developers are taking this notion quite seriously and switching their focus from designing suburban communities to creating life-style centers. Life-style centers encompass important elements of a capitalist society while at the same time focusing on pedestrian usage. Malls are no longer being built; instead commercial development is going in the direction of mixed-use walk able lifestyle centers that often include housing, office space and retail space.

The future of the suburb is very bleak. Although this is a positive for the urban context it does raise concerns about what will happen to houses that already stand. If more and more affluent individuals and families re-locate to city centers will they push out the vagabonds and drug users who call downtown streets home, forcing them into the suburbs? Or will the cheaply mass-produced houses simply decay over time? Both options guarantee a whole new slew of problems and issues that city planners and designers will have to deal with in the coming years.