There are pros and cons to both options. High rises bring exploding population, lack of green areas and noise, congestion and different set of limitations and high prices.
But high home prices in a tech center can bring medium to long term system level benefits, too. They help distribute work options and wealth generation to other cities. If one builds monster high rises to house 20M people in urban SF it might still suck in young smart engineers two decades from today. But if instead you price them out, they might gravitate to other, cheaper cities and help those thrive. It is painful to be priced out of the city where ones job is, but with jobs plentiful it is also an opportunity to look elsewhere. One might end up happier in the end. My 2c.
High rises can actually extend green areas, presuming the city planning isn't completely dumb or bought out.
Unfortunately developers is live to fill every space in with small flats to sell more of them and with high rises likewise. As long as pricing holds up.
The thing that cannot be provided with single homes is services availability, since they cannot be built close at all.
This necessitates big road infrastructure and pedestrian hostile design.
> High rises can actually extend green areas, presuming the city planning isn't completely dumb or bought out. Unfortunately developers is live to fill every space in with small flats to sell more of them and with high rises likewise.
Agreed on both points. And IMO, the second part quickly negates the advantages. What I have seen is that once you start on high rises sooner or later (usually during property price peaks) we have most green areas built over and what is left is either far far away or feels like an overcrowded zoo between concrete walls.
On pedestrian hostile design -- the small city I live in has sidewalks practically everywhere and while I do drive to the store from my condo I can walk to my work. And if I drive, the short, non-congested, <2 mile trip is still a pretty efficient commute. And my kids can still play outside with other kids with no playdates arranged weeks in advance.
Urban life can be pleasant and good for society, too; but small towns and suburbs are not an evil it is often portrayed to be.
Surburbs are what drive the need for everyone to have a car, which has an enormous impact on the environment and society. As a result, we have global warming, high pollution, insanely-long commute times, and massive sprawl.
But high home prices in a tech center can bring medium to long term system level benefits, too. They help distribute work options and wealth generation to other cities. If one builds monster high rises to house 20M people in urban SF it might still suck in young smart engineers two decades from today. But if instead you price them out, they might gravitate to other, cheaper cities and help those thrive. It is painful to be priced out of the city where ones job is, but with jobs plentiful it is also an opportunity to look elsewhere. One might end up happier in the end. My 2c.