Also, the sprawl and government structure is such that "suburbs" are both larger, and better able to plan/direct and fund their own growth. (And yes, these incentives also further promote the idea of growth/expansion vs density and reinvestment into an existing geographic core)
Texas truly is its own thing.
For example, there was a grocery store literally down the street from my first apartment, but it was still about a twenty minute walk each way, and the next closest store was a lot farther.
One thing I do recall is being astonished at just how far you could drive and still be in the suburbs.
The suburban schools, for example, are funded almost entirely by local taxes, while the city schools get a large chunk of their funding from the state (which of course is tax money in large part from the rich counties.). Even things like the area transportation network (SEPTA) derive a significant portion of their revenue from the suburban to city train lines (because the fares are much more expensive than intracity routes)
I find this typical argument relies on counting 'suburbs' as the poorer and less dense exurb/rural communities that are an hour+ outside the city. For the census purposes, they are considered part of the metro, but nobody would consider them what is typically considered a 'suburban area'
> many area businesses are located in those surrounding suburban counties, with only small offices in the city
I understand why you'd have this impression and in some very exceptional cases it can be true. But look at the gross product of the different counties in your area, not personal income. I doubt this assessment holds up.
I imagine most suburbanites NIMBY precisely against that, it probably won't happen.
I did a deep dive once to see what the government considers "urban" and found that the place I used to live was considered "urban."
This is the main "town." The rest of the town/county is just houses, apartments and a "town center" which is just a ton of stores, restaurants, entertainment, etc.
https://www.spotsylvania.va.us/718/Public-Works
I suppose though, because its not truly "rural" its counted as "urban."
That catch is the reason that it is cheaper - it’s built in to the price
All of those parameters are combined into desirability. Everyone has different needs (at different times)
Kids ? Suburbs: Larger house and schools
Young adults ? density and night life
Young adults having kids ? Suburbs
Urban living doesn't often give much space for kids.
Also have you ever been in a suburb? They usually have parks and playgrounds everywhere. Especially at the school that the kids attend, which is likely easy to walk or bike to for the kid.
Some suburbs have community centers.
Some suburbs in Calgary have private lakes with parks and playgrounds that kids can go to whenever they want. They can go skating on the frozen lake in winter, swimming in summer, in walking distance to home and without their parents.
Also in the suburbs houses have yards, which are even better than parks and playgrounds in some ways. My friends and I dug up a huge trench network in his parents yard one year. His parents were chill about it, we were allowed to go out with shovels and pickaxes and dig as much as we wanted really. Why not? They weren't using the yard for anything else and we had fun with it
Or they can hop on the bike trails and head to the library or recreation center or the gymnastics center.
If they're old enough there's also bus lines right outside my door that connect them to the largest light rail deployment in the hemisphere.
There's also all the space for indoor activities if they'd like, they don't need to go anywhere to partake in a lot of different activities at home. Because, we've got space for crafts and a garage and yard.