Suburban Sprawl

I need to go back to Sociology class and relearn about Suburban Sprawl - where everyone leaves the city and moves to the outskirts to start new and afresh.

I found an article today that I found disturbing: http://www.thestar.com/living/Religion/article/447409.

It is from Toronto, but hey, who doesn't love Canada?

The point of the article is this:  not only do churches often leave the city to reach the "Sprawlers", but churches actually are a "kick-starter" of Suburban Sprawl.

That's right, churches leave their property in the city to pursue greener pastures, with more (cheap) land to build on, paveable parking space, and more capable tithers.  When churches move out of the community, it leads to those in the community moving out as well.  

CHURCHES ACTUALLY ARE CAUSING PEOPLE TO LEAVE THE CITY!

And the result:  neighborhoods left behind without the influence of the church, and many neighborhs, left to deal with their growing crime, poverty, educational, and family collapse on their own.

Can't churches be like the tree huggers and agree to not leave a neighborhood without planting another church to replace it on their way out?

Let's start a movement to reverse this trend!  Let's see people leaving behind the land of prosperity to engage the land of poverty.

Seems like something Jesus would probably approve of...