A scan through the survey results showcases a shocking cognitive dissonance. Nearly 70 percent of respondents agree that “residential development should support vibrant, diverse, pedestrian-friendly and accessible commercial centers,” while 56 percent of that same sample say they do not agree that “missing middle housing, provided through small-scale residential development, should be provided within all neighborhoods for all family sizes, incomes and stages of life.”
Let’s be clear, those two positions are wholly incompatible. You cannot have diverse, vibrant and accessible commercial centers while you block young and lower-income people from being able to live in your college town. And you cannot have pedestrian-friendly, walkable neighborhoods, as a majority of respondents say they want, while only supporting low-density, large-scale housing.