JumboBuc
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I've got news for you - that is part of the economics of development. We live in a society.
fattony, I agree with you 100% on 99% of your posts, but you have to admit that political forces and economic forces are not the same thing.
There are plenty of things in life that "make economic sense" but are not given regulatory or political approval. They are not one in the same.
Your post logically makes sense, and until I started working with university seniors, would have completely agreed with your logic. But what you outline naively assumes that all students are motivated by the same rational economic considerations. Some do, sure, but that's not how the mind of all 22y.o.'s work.
I cannot count the number of times I have engaged with students who have "already made up their mind" that they "need to get out of Boston" or "want to experience NYC" before they even know what their exact job prospects / salary options are. That is what 22 y.o.'s do, especially those who have no loan debt / have a sense they should go explore.
I totally agree that a city's "culture" is indeed a major consideration when someone is deciding where to live, and this consideration is relevant even outside of employment prospects. I do not agree that building height plays any significant role in that "culture" consideration, however, for just about anybody.
All employment opportunities being equal, some grads are going to want to live in NY, some are going to want to live in TX, some are going to want to live in Boston, etc. But plopping a few taller office buildings down in Boston won't change that cultural distinction. Nobody is going to think -- consciously or unconsciously -- "well, I wanted to move to Manhattan, but because Boston now has a building taller than the Hancock I'll stay." Things like bars, restaurants, weather, ease-of-transportation, etc. do WAY more to shape "culture" to a college grad than building height. It's also hard to understate the importance of a city's dating market; that is a HUGE consideration of twenty-somethings, especially as young (and especially educated) people are increasingly finding partners later in life.
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