‘People are happier in a walkable neighborhood’: the US community that banned cars
theguardian.com
In the environs of Phoenix, Arizona, on a 17-acre site that once contained a car body shop and some largely derelict buildings, an unusual experiment has emerged that invites Americans to live in a way that is rare outside of fleeting experiences of college, Disneyland or trips to Europe: a walkable, human-scale community devoid of cars.
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That's not a neighborhood that banned cars. That's a neighborhood that was literally constructed to not accept cars inside it, which is a much bigger victory IMO. If the red tape the US has can be cut through like this more often in more places, we could reverse car-centrism in very big ways.
Somehow I expected this to be outside of the Phoenix area; like, on its own. It looks more like an excuse for a high-density living concept, and going "no cars" means not having to set aside any space for parking; you just pack more people into the same area to make more money (~$27,000/yr for a 950SF, 2 BR apartment, if you're curious; you can't buy here). It's literally an apartment complex that takes up a single "block" in Tempe. I guess it will depend on how happy you are with the shops they can attract to a community with only 1500-2000 people and no parking for outside customers.
That's a very good observation I overlooked: if no useful business opens up nearby then it's gonna potentially suck living there. From what I've heard, though. There is public transit located nearby, which hopefully widens that area of utility more for those trying out the space.
Here, though there's more than just public transit - there's a huge shopping mall/complex just half a mile north of this area. That's a very reasonable walking distance for nearly everyone, especially given how flat this area is. Of course, you still have to navigate 3-4 multi-lane highway crossings, but at least it's close.
Out of curiosity, I googled how many people it takes to support a single grocery store, and the top 5-6 links appeared to suggest between 3500 and 5000 people are needed. That sounds pretty close to my town, though we have a couple of monster stores so we may be closer to 8000:1. Restaurants and bars are going to be similarly constrained, though, so the diversity of options in such a small apartment complex will probably stay on the lean side (again, given little or no on-site parking and a generally car-centric city surrounding the area).