This is a concept that many Americans just don't like. But it is one that government, and their legions of "planners" wish to force upon you. According to them, the whole idea of living in a single-family home, with a yard and all that - that's really bad. In fact, it's terrible. You and your family need to live in an urban, high-rise development. You need to get rid of your car and take subsidized transit to...well, those places your government and "planners" believe that you should go.
This paradigm is referred to currently as "Smart Growth". There is, however, nothing "smart" about it. It's simply a concerted effort to limit your freedoms; the latest of many attempts to impose governmental controls on your living conditions and upon your available options.