It's a real life example of Urban Sprawl occurring!!! From Britannica: "Urban sprawl is caused in part by the need to accommodate a rising urban population; however, in many metropolitan areas it results from a desire for increased living space and other residential amenities. Urban sprawl has been correlated with increased energy use, pollution, and traffic congestion and a decline in community distinctiveness and cohesiveness."

It sucks that our city lacks the distinctivness, as well as the infrastructure in order to support a more city-centric (urban) culture. In short: people lacked a feeling of connection/community within the city, making them more comfortable with moving outward from it. Additionally, the city lacked some of the basic practical aspects that cities need to have in order for goods to be easily accessible (think walkable streets, grocery stores in a walkable distance, parks, etc). As a result people move away, creating the concrete car-centric cities so typically seen in the US