The only time I ever play the townies is to torture them a bit. In one save, I gave the Pancakes so many bushes in their back yard that they can barely get out of their back door and down the walkway to use the grill.
In another save, I levelled their house and replaced every room with separate rooms scattered across the property. For example; if they're in the bedroom, they have to walk across their property to use the bathroom, and then walk to another part of the property to use the kitchen