It’s been an interesting year real estate-wise. Even Madison has not been immune to the downturn. But it has been interesting to watch what areas have been hit the hardest. Just a casual perusal of the legal notices in the Wisconsin State Journal will reveal a strong geographic disparity —  a doughnut pattern of foreclosures.

The ‘burbs got hammered.

The transit-connected, grid patterned, walkable, bikeable isthmus did just fine. For the most part, older, more sustainably designed neighborhoods maintained their value, and, in some cases, continued to gain.

Here’s an article that goes a long way toward explaining why the ‘burbs got so hammered.

Key quote:

These are car-dependent sprawling urban areas, unconnected to core cities by public transportation and beset by unsustainable costs for infrastructure, services and resources. As highly leveraged places now ravaged by foreclosures and falling property values, they will suffer the most in coming years.

You’ve heard it all here, and the warning signs have been there all along. Yet even ‘enlightened’ cities like Madison continue to plan according to this economically — and environmentally — unsustainable model.

Too bad we’ve got a pack of pliant alders and a mayor who is more concerned with projecting pleasing images than our city’s long term viability….