Glady, the person you are quoting is likely referring to the suburban flight that began after WW2. In the 1950's and 1960's many cities, Savannah included, built up it's infrastructure that made getting out of the downtown easier. The common American dream of a picket fence and a yard for your children to play in gained traction and stayed prevalent until the dot.com era; where at that time it became chic to live downtown. The people who kept downtowns inhabited all across America were lower-income populations; a number of them artists (who add to the modern attraction and glamor of "downtown living"). Fewer residents, more crime, add to the likely-hood of locals not investing in it's historic districts. Look at Savannah's own history during that time period and you'll see our downtown suffered due to the same pattern of internal migration that inflicted other cities.
The difference in Savannah is that in the 1950's there was a grass-roots preservation movement that saved most of downtown from wrecking balls and keep this city from turning into something like Jacksonville. Over the years preservation grew and the industry of "historic tourism" flowered. This helps make downtown attractive and also raises property taxes in the area.
The Gap buying the Kress Building didn't cause downtown to be a desirable place to live. Making the area safe for local business to invest, for people to want to shop and eat, having festivals and a thriving nightlife, and the obvious desire of living in a historic property (there is a thing called "supply and demand") drive the prices up and keep downtown from being affordable to the middle class.
There is a correction to be made. Beverly and Charles (Shepard and Cooper, respectively) are not brothers. Their wives, Violet and Mattie Fae are. The film does address this.
As for Wells not exploring other locations, I think you are missing the point of this particular 'mise en scene.' Setting everything at the Weston house is completely metaphorical (a little obviously so, in my opinion) and the few film scenes that take place in the film are actually some of the weakest. The stage play's set was mostly focused on the interior of the Weston's house, but there was a little front yard area where some character interactions took place, and, because of this proximity to the house itself, it created extra tensions that likely would not have been felt elsewhere. The further you get away from the house, the less stress there is.
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The difference in Savannah is that in the 1950's there was a grass-roots preservation movement that saved most of downtown from wrecking balls and keep this city from turning into something like Jacksonville. Over the years preservation grew and the industry of "historic tourism" flowered. This helps make downtown attractive and also raises property taxes in the area.
The Gap buying the Kress Building didn't cause downtown to be a desirable place to live. Making the area safe for local business to invest, for people to want to shop and eat, having festivals and a thriving nightlife, and the obvious desire of living in a historic property (there is a thing called "supply and demand") drive the prices up and keep downtown from being affordable to the middle class.
Really, you're going to call someone ignorant?
As for Wells not exploring other locations, I think you are missing the point of this particular 'mise en scene.' Setting everything at the Weston house is completely metaphorical (a little obviously so, in my opinion) and the few film scenes that take place in the film are actually some of the weakest. The stage play's set was mostly focused on the interior of the Weston's house, but there was a little front yard area where some character interactions took place, and, because of this proximity to the house itself, it created extra tensions that likely would not have been felt elsewhere. The further you get away from the house, the less stress there is.