Suburbanizing the City

Abstract

Urban planners and city officials have considered various strategies to lure the middle class back to the central city — including urban renewal programs and historic preservation. A neglected alternative is to build suburban style housing downtown. Residents of a ranch-style condominium development in downtown Indianapolis were asked about their backgrounds, reasons for moving, and reactions to their new neighborhood. The results were compared with similar data from two nearby historic districts. Suburban style housing seems to draw new types of people downtown — e.g., wealthier, less skilled at exterior repairs, previously living a little further out from the city center. It seems unsuccessful in attracting young couples with children, however, and the prospects for duplicating this type of project on a large scale seem limited Recent buyers of historic homes expressed less initial satisfaction with their neighborhoods, but the presence of restoration activity was important in stimulating the townhouse buyers' interest in downtown living.