Whither after Somerville?

[beinneighe.livejournal.com]

Hi all,

It's been clear for a while that I can't afford Somerville anymore, but I'm at a loss as to where to move next.

I've lived in Camberville for eight years, having moved here directly after college. I absolutely love this area--I love that I don't need a car, I love all our festivals, I love the concentration of artists/creatives and scientists/techies, and I love that Somerville is an actual community, not just a city. As a single, childless freelancer, I need those things to avoid going all Jack Torrence.

Does anyone have any suggestions for cities (local, national, international) that would suit someone who loves Somerville but can't swing $1500/mo for a one-bedroom, $18 for a sandwich/latte at a cafe, etc.?  

Comments

[secretlyironic.livejournal.com]

Also everyone write your city and regional authorities and demand zoning reform that allows for more construction of multifamily housing. There is still a real shortage of moderately priced market rate housing!

[somergirl80.livejournal.com]

Seeing this post about fighting back kind of irks me a bit. Mostly because what you're suggesting people do is exactly what those of us who grew up here in Somerville did and nobody did anything about it. Barney's still moved here knowing what was happening and they didn't care less it was happening. The mayor who brought all of the wealthy people in to push us out did nothing. I sort of see this as a kind of karma. I mean really? It doesn't feel good to be pushed out does it? Imagine if you had generations of family who lived here, imagine growing up here, imagine seeing families be forced to sell and move far away most often separating those families. Imagine seeing those nice comfortable homes get torn down and built into ugly over priced condos. I'm not trying to be mean but it's an awful thing to have happen that most who weren't apart of it couldn't imagine. I'm one of few who are still here and it definitely doesn't feel like the close community it once was. The people here are so different from those of us who grew up here. I'm not wishing bad upon anyone but I don't feel bad that this is happening to the very people who did it to us the last 10-15 years when gentrification really flooded in.