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I agree that we should acknowledge that effect more, but I don’t think that will inevitably “take over” the good things about Raleigh.
A lot of the corporate nature of big cities, sprawl etc. happen because of America’s historical habits. If it was inherent in cities in general, Tokyo wouldn’t have its nooks and crannies filled with local restaurants, Barcelona’s “superblock” experiment would have failed, and cities as a concept wouldn’t be as sustainable as a hub of the public imagination. But none of those cities have single-purpose zoning, a historic addiction to cars and single-family homes, and a tendency to not appreciate shared spaces as much as other cultures; that’s a result of intentional behaviors, and we can change that if we gave a damn.
For our purposes, I think it means there are ways Raleigh can avoid those traps -things we are already doing. Denser, walkable developments and overlay districts, more robust affordable housing policies, more purposeful and deliberate city and small area plans, community outreach that actually brings people together in the built environment… there are very concrete things that we’re doing that will hopefully fight back against that trend of soullessness, things that could make us unique in America if done right.