Leaving aside the general point that it doesn't make a whole lot of sense to compare "not having a car in a (somewhat) car-oriented city" to "changing car policy in general, with the attendant changes to the city structure down the line":

> I assuaged my claustrophobia by burning either money (Uber) or time to go downtown every few weekends

I don't actually take a lot of Ubers because my area is so well-connected by transit (and dense with commerce), but at least in my case, the idea that Uber is "expensive" as a transport option pales in comparison to the massive cost of owning a car (and paying for parking, maintenance, insurance, etc). Is this not the case for you?

Even with how walkable and transit-friendly my situation is, Uber and car rentals are still a necessary (though occasional) component of my overall transportation budget. Relative to living in a car-oriented area and owning a car, I still end up paying volumes less (as well as having a far, far better transport experience overall in terms of time, convenience, and health).