Right, but the problem is it's VERY expensive to change the amount of infrastructure. Widening roads is expensive, sometimes impossible. Parking lots can't be resized later. When you put down a grid of streets you can't just readjust that grid later.

Pittsburgh is one of the cities mentioned as obese. Homes are cheap, the cost of living is cheap, and generally I find it a pleasant place to live. Owning a home is a possibility, even relatively easy for the middle class, without major sacrifices/crushing debt. The public schools are pretty good, crime is relatively low, libraries are pretty good, there's quite a variety in bars, restaurants, concerts, etc.

Currently I live in California where the rent is sky high, and it makes me generally sad. People who don't focus on making money are generally ejected from the communities because they can't afford to stay. Similarly businesses that don't have high profit margins or at least really pack in the customers generally die pretty quickly.

In Pittsburgh you get tons of small businesses, often have an acre or two of land (usually from the road back to the treeline) and it's easy for them to break even because the rent is so low. Wander into a hardware store and the person has been working there for 10 years, actually understands what he sells, and can break even on a few customers an hour.

Contrary to the story, my non-obese city (with no parking, high rents, a shortage of houses, high traffic) requires more driving than the obese Pittsburgh. The main issue is that low margin businesses can't afford to be here. People that make $10 an hour can't afford to live here. The public transportation is still terrible. So Costco ... drive to a different city. Windshield repair... different city. Buy a pair of socks... different city. If you have an entry level job in any profession... you have to live elsewhere and generally drive to work. To make matters worse that entry level job ends up paying a fair amount just to park.