Could a Neighborhood Become Friendlier Without Any New Residents?
Relationships can change faster than populations.
A neighborhood adds benches, a weekend market, and a small public gathering space.
The hidden mechanism is encounter accumulation. Repeated low-stakes interactions gradually transform strangers into familiar faces.
Communities often strengthen through exposure before friendship develops.
Neighborhoods do not become friendlier only because different people arrive. They can become friendlier because existing people meet more often.
