A Suburban Growth Model - Jo Kim

I stumbled upon an article suggesting a five-stage model of suburban growth:

1. Bedroom community, which refers to the development of residential communities in the suburbs, motivated by the availability of cheap land and financing, as well as the location independence brought by the car and high-speed highways
2. The stage of independence, which refers to the development of suburban regional malls, as well as office and industrial parks, which brought jobs close to suburban communities, reducing or eliminating the dependence of suburban residents on central city employment
3. The stage of catalytic growth, during which housing and commercial development intensifies and becomes more diversified in terms of quality and price
4. The high-rise/high-technology stage, which was marked by the emergence of high-rise office towers housing the growing middle and upper-middle management functions and corporate headquarters, as well as the emergence of high-tech research and development activities, located in selected suburban corridors.
5. The mature town center stage, during which cultural, social, and recreational facilities are developed, completing the full spectrum of land uses found in mature urban areas

"Path of Suburban Growth." Property Investing. Web. 24 Nov. 2009. <http://www.property-investing.org/suburban-growth.html>.

This seems to be the ideal model for suburban growth the "way it should be". However, the authors of Suburban Nation argue that this ideal model is rarely carried out to its complete and mature stage. I can definitely agree that my home neighborhood, Olde Savannah Square, as well as the neighborhood I evaluated, Braxton Square, both did not (yet) complete all five steps of this ideal model.

Basically, the model is like this:

First, the availability of cheap land leads to the development of suburban residential communities. Because of the availability of cars and highways, these communities are often placed independent of a major city.

Second, businesses and commerce develop near the suburban communities, eliminating suburban residents to have to travel far (perhaps the city) to get to or find work.

The third stage is the continued diversification and growth in commerce around the suburban community.

The fourth stage is where the higher-value buildings come in. These include high-rise corporate buildings, high-technology research facilities, etc. This increases the community's value and appeal to the upper-middle class.

The last, final stage is the mature stage, in which a community "center" is established with "cultural, social, and recreational facilities are developed, completing the full spectrum of land uses found in mature urban areas".

That final stage is probably absent in most suburban communities. It seems to be the true hallmark of a successful suburban community. Unfortunately, my experience has shown me that most suburban communities I've visited lack a town center, and thus fail to mature into final stage.

If every suburban community matured into the final stage, with a town center that provides cultural, social, and recreational life for the community, suburban sprawl probably wouldn't get such a bad reputation. But it is the consistent lack of a town center that gives sprawl its bad name (so the authors of Suburban Nation claim).

But on a brighter side, perhaps those suburban communities that lack a center are slowly advancing toward that goal. Perhaps their plans are still yet to be completed. If so, I wait eagerly...