…they’ve fallen apart because the outside world has almost no places left where people can freely gather.
I’m sorry that has been your experience; it has not been mine. I can walk to several wonderful parks, I can bike (or take a $3 bus) to the beach, and I have world-class cycling destinations out my door.
Alternately, I have three or four libraries within about a 20m walking distance.
That said, yes, I do live in a high CoL area, so perhaps that was the point you were making.