One city in Virginia has gone from suburban to (quasi-)urban in just a few years.
"In terms of physical form and character the City of Falls Church is now much closer to 'urban' than 'suburban.' As ground floor retail spaces fill in and mid-rise residential units become fully occupied, that evolution from suburban to urban will become more pronounced. Residents in the single-family detached homes and newly minted McMansions lining the neighborhood streets on both sides of Route 7 also will benefit from having many more things to see and do within walking distance of their homes.
The small-town origins of the city can still play out in somewhat nostalgic events like the Annual Memorial Day Parade (and who doesn't love to see Shriners in their fezzes and tiny race cars). Neighbors will continue their weekly chats at the Saturday morning Farmers' Market at City Hall. However, the train has clearly left the station on the question of whether the City of Falls Church is still a classic suburb: The only question remaining may be 'What the heck do we call this thing?'"
FULL STORY: Neither fish nor fowl: Emerging urban enclaves in inner-ring suburbia
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