When Anders Osborne and Theresa Andersson traded their small Decatur Street apartment for a roomier place near the City Park end of Esplanade, they were pleased to discover that they had moved, quite literally, into a community of local musicians.

Rod Hodges from the Iguanas lives just up the street. Rockabilly artist Johnny J is around the corner, and Beth McKee, from Evangeline, is nearby.

But they are much more satisfied with their figurative, more subtle move over the past y...