Atlanta vs Charlotte for 'King of the South' (Washington: real estate, construction)

[koko339]

Originally Posted by koko339

How can you say there aren't very many old buildings in FP? With the exception of the GSU classroom building all the structures there are 50+ years old.

Ok, there are a handful of late 20th century buildings. But the vast majority are pre-1950. Not that this has anything to do with the original topic lol.

The Fairlie--Poplar Historic District is Atlanta's historic central business district and includes the largest concentrated collection of commercial and office buildings in Atlanta from the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Fairlie--Poplar Historic District--Atlanta: A National Register of Historic Places Travel Itinerary

[Mutiny77]

Very old article, but it is basically reflective of the general growth of the Southeast. At one point, whenever a notable company wanted to move South, it was going to be Atlanta without question. That's not the case anymore. While Atlanta still occupies the top tier in the Southeast (Miami excluded), other cities in the region have matured to the point where they can economically compete with Atlanta and offer many of the same amenities, just on a smaller scale. It's a good thing for the Southeast in general.

[architect77]

Originally Posted by cabasse

i like to think of charlotte as the queen city to atlanta the king, (of the SE/piedmont) as it lacks our history, economic and cultural diversity, institutions of higher learning and size. yet like atlanta (some might say like we used to be) it strives to be something much more than it currently is - and as such, is pretty impressive. name me another city of 2M with 25M square feet in its downtown, a 10mi light rail line, and that has such a major role as a center of finance, anywhere in this country. the civic leadership in charlotte is always pushing to improve the city and where it stands in the rank.

Well Said. I feel the same way.

[neil0311]

I am in Charlotte several times per month on business and have traveled all over that city and its metro, and I can say, as objectively as I can, that Charlotte is not half what Atlanta is in all the meaningful measures that one could use.

Charlotte has a somewhat "urban core" in what they call "Uptown" but it gets rapidly more suburban and only 20 to 30 miles out it's the sticks. The roads are not to the same standards as Atlanta, nor is their transit (despite having one small light rail line), nor is their airport. They can barely keep one sports franchise in town, and it's a perennial loser.

Their previous status as the southern leader in financial services has gone since Wachovia is no more and Bank of America has been under fire and is shedding employees.

[brent6969]

Originally Posted by neil0311

I am in Charlotte several times per month on business and have traveled all over that city and its metro, and I can say, as objectively as I can, that Charlotte is not half what Atlanta is in all the meaningful measures that one could use.

Charlotte has a somewhat "urban core" in what they call "Uptown" but it gets rapidly more suburban and only 20 to 30 miles out it's the sticks. The roads are not to the same standards as Atlanta, nor is their transit (despite having one small light rail line), nor is their airport. They can barely keep one sports franchise in town, and it's a perennial loser.

Their previous status as the southern leader in financial services has gone since Wachovia is no more and Bank of America has been under fire and is shedding employees.

I agree, but not even 20-30 miles more like 5..........

[Mirabella]

5 or 20 to the "sticks" I think is a positive not a negative. Or is urban sprawl more desirous?

[neil0311]

Originally Posted by Mirabella

5 or 20 to the "sticks" I think is a positive not a negative. Or is urban sprawl more desirous?

Well I guess it's a matter of perspective. I personally prefer to live in what you call "sprawl" but that's another topic. I do not want to live in a rural area.

As an example, I drove up to Mooresville, NC (which is about 25 miles north of Charlotte on I-77) one night to get up there for an early meeting the next day. The place was a ghost town at 10pm. You couldn't even get gas, except from one gas station about 3 miles down a lonely and dark road, heading away from the Interstate. That's not where I want to live.

[Peachcity]

Originally Posted by neil0311

Well I guess it's a matter of perspective. I personally prefer to live in what you call "sprawl" but that's another topic. I do not want to live in a rural area.

As an example, I drove up to Mooresville, NC (which is about 25 miles north of Charlotte on I-77) one night to get up there for an early meeting the next day. The place was a ghost town at 10pm. You couldn't even get gas, except from one gas station about 3 miles down a lonely and dark road, heading away from the Interstate. That's not where I want to live.

You know that is an exaggeration. Look at it on google maps.

Mooresville, NC - Google Maps

[cwkimbro]

hmm... afterall this bashing on Charlotte... I thought I would just point out one good thing about it (and one of it's best selling features to competing companies).

It is still small enough you can live in relative close proximity of Uptown and live in a relatively affordable, new, and suburban area.

Whereas we are past that. We are at the point of long commutes and multiple very large business districts. However, we have a downside in this... a company can't locate here and expect to reach the whole population of metro Atlanta as potential employee and be located in a single location. (The biggest argument for commuter rail is to make it so a high-value... and high paying company... can locate here and reach potential workers from all over without worrying about workers becoming stressed and turned away from working there.) In other words... we need a single point (if not more) that is easily reached from all over.

Anyways that aside... a few comments have been made about the airport.

I discovered something flying around alot.
Charlotte's airport is built almost exactly like Atlanta's 1961 terminal was! We built a new one from 1977-80, which is the current one.

Charlotte: Charlotte Douglas International Airport, Charlotte, NC - Google Maps

Atlanta 1961-1980: Aerial view of ATL in the early 1960s
Atlanta Airport - 1969 aerial photo

I just found that interesting. In some ways they are developing very similar to how we did (and very quickly), but just 3 decades behind us or so.

[neil0311]

Originally Posted by cwkimbro

hmm... afterall this bashing on Charlotte

Not bashing. Just stating the facts as I see them, through the lens of my own opinion about what makes a city better. You may disagree.