“[Many] definitions emphasize the outer areas economic dependency on the central city and, additionally, suggest political separation from the central city. The definition gives the basic image of suburbs being areas of urban spillover across city boundaries. This image first many...suburbs...However, as we move toward the new century, the assumption of suburban economic and social dependency on the central city becomes increasingly questionable.” (9)

(Palen, J. John. The Suburbs. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1995. Print.)