the downtown lifestyle -- sans jobs

This article from Governing magazine, aimed largely at American city and state government officials, provides a somewhat interesting take on the pros and cons of "going Vancouver" with the planning of your local CBD. The author writes about the sharp increase in downtown residents over the last 20 years, the decrease in corporate headquarters (down nearly a third in the past 5 years), and most apparent, the sprouting-up of "hundreds" of residential towers.

"These are all striking changes, but are they really problems? After all, cities have changed their function repeatedly over time. If, 20 years from now, historic downtowns are mostly places to live, with diverse entertainment choices and a vibrant street life, and the offices and jobs exist somewhere else, who will really suffer?"

Who will suffer, the article goes on to claim, are those who rely on downtown jobs for their livelihood, as corporations will choose to move to friendlier suburbs, or even to other provinces entirely. Trevor Boddy, of course, claims that we will all suffer as our city becomes a resort, losing its diversity, its status as the province's major economic centre, and its claim to being a "real" metropolis. But wasn't one of the major attractions to living downtown supposed to be living close to where you work? I wonder if living downtown would hold the same appeal for the same demographic of young, working couples if they had to commute to work for 45 minutes each way - into Burnaby or Richmond. How long would it take them to relocate closer to work once they realized that the same amount of money they had spent on a downtown condo would buy them a house with a piece of lawn to mow in New Westminster? Doesn't that negate a large portion of the environmental benefit of an urban densification strategy, as well as a lot of the appeal? It seems to me that if a much larger portion of the downtown jobs were to relocate to other places, the only people
for whom living downtown would be really appealing are those only interested in the lifestyle, opening the door to it becoming even more of a resort atmosphere.