Chart of the Day

The Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland looks at population density in urban cores of large cities, with Cleveland, Detroit, Chicago and Atlanta as the focus.  There are very nice population density maps of each city in the report, along with this chart (h/t Ritholtz):

Suburbanization has been detrimental to the economic health of the country, but it is strange how some inner cores have thrived while others have nearly collapsed.  Even in Detroit and Cleveland, the downtowns are showing some signs of rebounding.  Unfortunately, the movement of people and business into the suburbs has wasted money on new infrastructure in widely spread out areas, while neglecting existing infrastructure in areas where density could have been an advantage.  Damn cars.