Works out best if "near home" = "the actual office of my company".
Less noise, less crowding, less violence and crime, more space, more peace, and more friendliness.
For many people however "City Life" was for economic reality, that is where the work is, so that is where they were. They did not care about "night life", hated having to shop daily for groceries, etc etc
"Boring" suburban life is appealing to ALOT of people, boring life where the most exciting thing that happens is old bob hit something with the mower...
As to "one of them", this is true for many communities including the city, when "country folk" come into the city they are often treated with hostility and disdain. In fact I would say poor treatment of "outsiders" is MORE common and MORE pronounced in cities than in suburbs. This however could be my personal experience showing through as I grew up in the country around farmers, and conservative (not political but in the reserved traditional sense of the word) so I was an outsider in the city.
This idea that only white people treat minorities badly is insane and not fit with actual realty (and is actually racist )
Of course, this varies by stage of life; I don't have kids, so I'd prefer the city to a suburb.
I'm uncertain to what degree life will go back to how it was before, but even in the best case scenario I'd probably be better off living in a cheaper area and using the money I save to get an uber to the bar. I'm a lot easier to move than my residence.