As with everything I think it boils down to your own local geography. The USA has endless identikit suburbs all built around the idea of commuting into the centre or to big-box retail whereas here in the UK cities organically grew to swallow up the surrounding villages. Indeed it is not uncommon to find the local library and park land were once the home of the past landowner!

It is for these reasons that it is easier to build village life in europe perhaps than the USA.