If you could design your town what would you include?

[Frugalifec]

In a few years I'll be in a spot where I can downsize again. I want to get back to living in a 500 square foot cabin in a wooded area with some kind of view and sunlight. Also, I got to thinking about what kinds of things I would look for in the area so here is my dream list so far:

Extensive bike trails that would allow for no car
Public transportation
Parks
Good library or group of libraries that work together as a system
Sunny weather with mild winters
Near the mountains for hiking/skiing
Near water for kayak/canoeing
Low crime rate
Maybe a college town... I just like feel and optimism they seem to bring
Volunteer opportunities... I like the people I meet in those situations
A sustainable minded community


So what would you add to the list and where have you found the best balance of these things? And what things would you avoid?

[iris lily]

In a few years I'll be in a spot where I can downsize again. I want to get back to living in a 500 square foot cabin in a wooded area with some kind of view and sunlight. Also, I got to thinking about what kinds of things I would look for in the area so here is my dream list so far:

Extensive bike trails that would allow for no car
Public transportation
Parks
Good library or group of libraries that work together as a system
Sunny weather with mild winters
Near the mountains for hiking/skiing
Near water for kayak/canoeing
Low crime rate
Maybe a college town... I just like feel and optimism they seem to bring
Volunteer opportunities... I like the people I meet in those situations
A sustainable minded community

So what would you add to the list and where have you found the best balance of these things? And what things would you avoid?

Midwestern college towns are great in that there's a lot going on for the size of the city. Iowa city and Lawrence come to mind as pretty nice. Real estate is higher there though than in other towns that don't have the big colleges.

[martha]

So what would you add to the list . . .

Sidewalks.

[Rosemary]

I would model it after the small towns in Germany where my relatives live. Some of the features:
- space between towns, no running together like our large metro areas
- public transit, easy to walk everywhere including the train station to get to other towns
- small shops that supply needs (e.g. bakery, butcher, hardware, etc), as opposed to the kitschy shops that tend to line our walkable areas.
- natural areas included within the town - not just ball fields and playgrounds in the parks, but beautiful landscaped and natural areas.

[ToomuchStuff]

Years back I read about someone designing a suburb to a major town. They were doing some different things, like having all the houses face each other and the garages were only accessible via the back sides, where the streets were. The front of the houses would face one another and the lawns would then be more park like with sidewalks and the like so the neighbors actually got to know one another. I always thought that was a good idea. I would also put in the right to put up clotheslines and a few other things that tend to get disallowed by HOA's. (while disallowing some things like fences in the front yards to not screw up the park like setting)

[JaneV2.0]

My suburb has most of what was listed, save separate bike paths--though the Burke-Gilman trail is not far away. Like martha, I'd add sidewalks on the major arterial. But what I really want is the extensive development long promised to us, where the waterfront would be transformed with a big park and trails and a multi-use installation (condos, shops) with tax abatement would take over several blocks currently occupied by parking lots and empty storefronts bought up in anticipation of this wonderful new neighborhood. After fifteen years or so of promises, the whole plan ended with a whimper. There's development all over the place in surrounding towns, so I don't buy the "lousy economy" excuse. This is already an exceptionally nice place to live, but the development--as originally promised--would have made it idyllic.

[pinkytoe]

Your list is my list. In many ways, the neighborhood I currently live in has all those things and feels like a village. However, if one leaves and enters the rest of the city, there is a lot of missed opportunities. DH and I just returned from a trip to several towns in the west as I want to move back to the mountains within a few years. We were impressed with some of the smaller towns because they actually had veloways/walkways separated from the streets and highways. They wove through the side streets of town (usually along rivers) so that one could get places easily by bike or foot. The bummer was that in all towns they had let the big box chains take over edges which turned those areas into ugly spots with crazy traffic. I guess the tax revenue justifies that sort of thing to city leaders

[decemberlov]

Our neighborhood has most of what's listed as well. Part of why well fell in love with the area. There are side walks on every street which makes it wonderful for the kids riding their bikes. All within a short biking distance is a park with a lake (the kids in our town ice skate here in the winter), a small corner store, a library, Broad Street is a few blocks away with a few little restaurants, a church and a bunch of little shops, an antique store etc. It's a cute historical little town with lots a gorgeous Victorian homes and older houses and a great sense of community. They have lots of art festivals and parades throughout the year on Broad St. and it's always fun to ride our bikes up and spend an afternoon there with the kids. What I would love to see there is a coffee shop / used book store and a theatre...which we may get..there is some talk of turning the old opera house into a movie theatre so we'll see

[Spartana]

I'd take everything the OP has but add in close to the ocean and sandy beaches (I play beach volleyball and sail) as well as lakes and rivers. 4 seasons with snow in winter, crisp blustery weather and foliage colors in fall, and rainy spring with lots of wild flowers, and hot humid summers with giant thunderstorms. A small city environment too (less than 100K people - maybe more if it was an isolated city like Anchorage Alaska with it's limited sprawl) as I wouldn't want to be out in the boonies far from everything. I tiny house/cabin/condo/apt (prefer a condo as I don't like maintence and want a place I can just lock and leave for months at a time) within walking and biking distance to all the small city stuff. I also like very old historic sites and buildings so would most likely prefer Europe or the east coast or mid-atlantic parts of the US.

[awakenedsoul]

I have everything on your list. It's just not a very good neighborhood. I love the old cities in Europe, too. Hopefully this neighborhood will improve someday.

I'd like to live in an area that is drug free. I'd like to be around people who are fit, financially secure, positive, and healthy.