I live in a medium-sized suburban town (technically called a village) in Bergen County, New Jersey called Ridgewood. There is an east side and a west side of town (which has a lot to do with school districts) but the two parts are united in the middle with the "center of town". The center of town is a big long street called E. Ridgewood Ave which is physically wider than the other streets of town, similar to how Broadway was in the city. This is where all the cute boutique shops and all sorts of gorgeous restaurants are. There is also a large, open park and a train station at the top of the street. This is where all of Ridgewood's couples and families go at night on the weekends, and where teenagers hang out after school. A large volume of out-of-towners also flock to the restaurants for a nice night out.
I don't know much about the history of Ridgewood, but I assume that E. Ridgewood Ave. has always been the same. Ridgewood is a very family-oriented and community-oriented town so I think that Ridgewood is set up with this center of town to provide a communal spot for everyone to "meet up" and convene. It is a great way for the residents of Ridgewood to identify themselves and their town.