Skip to Content
Streetsblog California home
Streetsblog California home
Log In
Streetsblog USA

You Can’t Have Family-Friendly Cities Without Kid-Friendly Streets

Playing road hockey in Vancouver. Photo: Pete/Flickr

More American cities are making room for people to live in downtown areas -- even smaller cities like Tucson, Cleveland and Fort Wayne, Indiana. But generally the target demographics are young singles and empty nesters. A lot of cities assume that all parents who can move to the suburbs will do so.

Writer Darin Givens, who lives with his wife and young children in downtown Atlanta, says it doesn't need to be that way. There are now between 5,600 and 7,000 kids living in downtown Vancouver, he writes in a post at Medium. He explains how the city went about making a downtown that works for parents and kids:

Vancouver’s Chief Planner from 2006 to 2012 says there are three elements of family-friendly city design that helped out: bigger housing, amenities for families, and a safe, welcoming public realm (emphasis ours).

As a Downtown Atlanta father of a school-aged kid, I can vouch for those ideas.

We picked the one spot where we could find one of the precious few spacious (by Downtown standards, not by suburban standards) apartments near public space and greenery. The neighborhood could use a lot more of those.

Safe and welcoming? Downtown Atlanta can stand to make some big improvements there.

The advice comes from a Brent Toderian interview at Vox that's worth reading in full. In addition to the design of housing and the provision of services like daycares, Toderian stressed the importance of making streets safe enough for older children to navigate on their own.

More recommended reading today: TransitCenter has an update on Denver's renewed attention to improving bus service and walking access to transit. And Green Caltrain reports that Palo Alto is planning to hike commuter parking fees to fund transit and other service to reduce driving, but the price would still be far less than the price for equivalent transit passes.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog California

Wednesday’s Headlines

A larger than usual headlines stack as we careen towards the 4th of July.

July 2, 2025

Inner Richmond Parents Fed Up with SFMTA Watering Down Safety

Mother of a child hit by a driver furious with city excuses for not taking daylighting and other safety measures seriously.

July 2, 2025

Governor Signs Major Changes to CEQA to Cheers from YIMBYs, Jeers from Environmental Groups

Newsom fast tracked changes to CEQA to fast track development and housing. But what do the changes to the law actually do?

July 1, 2025

Santa Monica and West Hollywood Bus Lane/Stop Enforcement Programs Start Today

Don't block the bus! Parking in a bus lane or at a bus stop will result in a $293 ticket.

July 1, 2025

Tuesday’s Headlines

Gov Signs CEQA Bill to Increase Housing, Higher Fees on Parking and Tolls, Opposition to Road Widenings, ICE

July 1, 2025
See all posts