Neighbor Guy

City People. Urban Living. Other Stuff.

In Praise of City Life!

An appreciation for urban neighborhoods and the benefits of city living might well begin by examining the concept of the city itself.

Clearly, the originators of the city model were onto something big. Mexico City big. Today, more than half the world’s populations reside in cities. In just the past three decades, the number of city inhabitants has more than doubled to 3.3 billion.

How, you might ask yourself, can 3.3 billion urban dwellers be wrong?

What attracts people to a city, exactly? To begin with, cities capture our imaginations. They tap into our sense of life’s possibilities. Cities are rich repositories for ideas and culture, industry and industriousness.

Not to mention, they are home to state-of-the-art sports stadiums with enough seating capacity to hold the population of a small city!

Occasionally, our preoccupation with cities can spiral out of control. India currently has no fewer than 40 cities with more than a million inhabitants. A number of cities in China are growing 10 percent or more a year. In the past 20 years, the developing world’s urban population has skyrocketed by three million people a week. (You think you grew up fast!) The world’s largest city, Tokyo, currently has a population – 35 million – that is greater than all of Canada.

Pretty impressive, eh?

And yet, with apologies to Japan’s behemoth metropolis, a great city isn’t defined by its size. It’s defined, in many ways, by its neighborhoods. Neighborhoods, after all, help to personalize a city. Each has its own DNA, its own set of intrinsic characteristics that attract like-minded residents.

Combined, these close-knit, densely populated communities give a city its identity. Neighborhoods make a megapolis feel more manageable. They make it feel like home.

Conversely, cities that grow too quickly run the risk of not allowing neighborhoods to take root. The result is a city that lacks cityness. Ready-made mega cities like Shenzhen and Dubai have all of the character of a bowl of ramen noodles. Deeply rooted cities like London or Istanbul are more akin to a rich, long-simmering stew.

(If there’s one thing Neighbor Guy loves, it’s a good food metaphor.)

Demographers say that by the end of this year urban dwellers will outnumber their rural counterparts for the first time in history. By 2030, two-thirds of the world will call cities home.

Unquestionably, the golden age of the city is upon us. And unlike the golden ages of, say, the beehive hairdo or parachute pants, this one isn’t going away any time soon.

Disciplined planning, intelligent land-use and a commitment to neighborhood revitalization are just a few of the keys to making sure our cities remain vital centers of innovation, commerce, diversity and discovery.

A winning sports franchise to go with that mammoth stadium would be cool, too.

The views expressed by Neighbor Guy are not necessarily those expressed by Unsung Indy or its supporters.