Quote:
Originally Posted by Acajack
In a sense, the inner areas of many American cities will be more like Paris and many other major European cities, where the city proper tends to be a fairly exclusive reserve for the rich, and the middle and lower classes are relegated outside the "city walls".
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European cities do have a higher % of wealth near the core, but they aren't that radically different from successful U.S. cities. Also, keep in mind there aren't as many rich households in Western European metros. There are more wealthy households in, say, Metro Detroit than in all but a handful of European metros.
The wealthiest areas in France are actually rail commuter towns in Paris' western suburbs. If you've ever taken the train out to Versailles, you've passed through the wealth belt. Kinda the Westchester/CT of France. And Paris proper has plenty of poverty, mostly in its eastern half. Paris is more of a "favored quarter" type metro (West is best) rather than one where the wealth is centralized.