Thompson general increases, with scale, virtually without limit. To these more objective variations in consumer welfare with city size, we must, of course, add the more subjective variations in life style that go along with different city size. Even so, the platitude that we need a wide range of city sizes in which to express a wide variety of life styles seems to miss the main public policy issue. The normal market process has given us this. The problem is, apparently, that the number of lower income and/or less-educated households that prefer or are indifferent to large city living is less than the number of such households that are "needed there --

DOI link for Thompson general increases, with scale, virtually without limit. To these more objective variations in consumer welfare with city size, we must, of course, add the more subjective variations in life style that go along with different city size. Even so, the platitude that we need a wide range of city sizes in which to express a wide variety of life styles seems to miss the main public policy issue. The normal market process has given us this. The problem is, apparently, that the number of lower income and/or less-educated households that prefer or are indifferent to large city living is less than the number of such households that are "needed there --

Thompson general increases, with scale, virtually without limit. To these more objective variations in consumer welfare with city size, we must, of course, add the more subjective variations in life style that go along with different city size. Even so, the platitude that we need a wide range of city sizes in which to express a wide variety of life styles seems to miss the main public policy issue. The normal market process has given us this. The problem is, apparently, that the number of lower income and/or less-educated households that prefer or are indifferent to large city living is less than the number of such households that are "needed there --