Do these pictures give you the impression that Atlanta is a big city? (Savannah: luxury, living in)

[Atlanta_BD]

Originally Posted by DTL3000

I think the visual impact of Atlanta's skyline from certain angles is one of the best features of the city. It can be really impressive although I think it loses a lot of that impact when viewed from the side and the huge 1.5-2 mile gap between the skyscrapers of downtown and midtown is factored in. NYC has a gap between its downtown and midtown skyscrapers as well(due to geology) but it has plenty of mid-rise infill. Hopefully Atlanta's skyline is going through an awkward, lanky teenager phase before it fills out into an "adult" skyline. A lot of that "empty" space between midtown and downtown consists of parking lots, and parking garages so there is hope that it will fill out eventually.

As far as the feel of the city, I would definitely say that looks are deceiving in Atlanta's case. I think a lot of those skyscapers Atlanta boosters like to brag about have a lot to do with it. The are like architectural supermodels, tall and beautiful to behold but boring, difficult to approach, and with little if any use to the average man on the street. Only the buildings built in the past decade or so have anything interesting going on at ground level. I am more and more of the opinion that John Portman effed the poor city of Atlanta with his huge phallic symbols and gerbil tubes.

I was just in Midtown a couple of weekends ago for a performance and I thought the exact same thing. I love walking along Peachtree in Midtown at night. It's very pretty. But then I got thinking. I see all of these skyscrapers here but I don't know what any of them are except for a couple, or what they have going on in them. I wondered what businesses are situated in them. That was the exact feeling I got--a feeling of inaccessibility. Still, they are nice to look at.

I've always said that Atlanta has three separate downtown areas, causing the skyline to lack a certain cohesion when viewed from various angles.

[waronxmas]

I'll agree with the general sentiment that playing the "Atlanta is the next..." game is a bit silly. No city ever develops that way not matter people say. It's like saying Rome is the new Athens, Yokohama is the new Tokyo, Barcelona is the new Madrid, Chicago is the New York (seriously, Chicago is nothing like NYC). Sure all American cities will have something in common, but just like everywhere else these cities will grow and develop around their own model which fits them. Sitting around saying City X needs to be more like City Y is just a waste of time. It ain't gonna happen.

With that said, who in world comes to Atlanta and comes away thinking it's not a big city? If you're only frame of reference is other big cities, "get some culture" and visit a medium sized or real small town. You won't be saying Atlanta is small. Who cares and why does it matter it's not like whatever place people bring up.

[erick295]

I think Atlanta feels plenty big, it just doesn't feel dense. Its skyline is enormous when you add Downtown, Midtown, and Buckhead together, and even more so when you include Perimeter and Cumberland. The problem is this stuff is miles apart and/or built in one long line instead of in a grid, so you can pretty much count on one hand the number of streets that are like a "real city" (whatever that is).

One thing I can say for sure is that the demographic this forum attracts has some serious self image issues, which is made clear every day by threads like these.

Originally Posted by bryantm3

atlanta is not a complete city like nyc and chicago are— we're still working on building it!

NYC and Chicago are far from "complete." I believe you're thinking of Detroit

[Newsboy]

Originally Posted by DaBurgh

Sunrise or sunset?

edit

If you look closely, you'll see that Midtown is on the left (north) and Downtown on the right (south). Thus, the photographer is facing east (actually southeast).

LOGICAL ANSWER: Sunrise!

[WanderingImport]

The pictures originally posted do make Atlanta look like a big city.

Is it a big city? Yes.

Does it feel like a big city? Depends on who you ask. I think the mindset is that of a small city and there are areas of the city that make it feel like a small town (Eg: Virginia-Highland or Druid Hills). Then again, downtown, midtown and Buckhead make Atlanta feel like a big city.

[Newsboy]

Originally Posted by tikigod311

My favorite view of Atlanta is going north on 75/85, it is probably the Grady curve. You already have a view of downtown, which is impressive in its own right, and then you round the corner and then there's midtown, with it's sleek modern buildings. Its like you think you have seen it all, then you make a turn, then... BAM. Love it.

I have this very same experience every time I drive north through the city. It was burned into my mind on a bright spring day in 2010, when I made my first trip into Atlanta in more than three years. I moved to the coast in early 2007, and over the next three years never had a reason to venture north when visiting my family on the Southside.

I knew that Atlanta had seen a building boom, and subsequent bust, in those 3 years. But nothing prepared me for the jaw-dropping density of Midtown that rose up ahead of me as I rounded the Grady Curve. I am not lying when I say it took my breath away -- and made it very difficult to maintain my lane. I was shocked -- what city is this?! Where did all these buildings come from?! I felt like a tourist seeing Atlanta for the first time - all the way through Midtown to the Brookwood Split.

And when I exited the Buford Hwy Connector and caught my first glimpse of Buckhead -- OH MY GOD! Could have been Dubai for all I knew! NOTHING was familiar -- and every bit of it was erected in just 3 years.

Even today it boggles my mind. Not witnessing such huge transformation in a city you know so well is VERY strange, like waking from a coma and realizing its way in the future.

[SEAandATL]

Originally Posted by WanderingImport

The pictures originally posted do make Atlanta look like a big city.

Is it a big city? Yes.

Does it feel like a big city? Depends on who you ask. I think the mindset is that of a small city and there are areas of the city that make it feel like a small town (Eg: Virginia-Highland or Druid Hills). Then again, downtown, midtown and Buckhead make Atlanta feel like a big city.

That's a good point. There are even neighborhoods of London and Tokyo where you don't feel like you're in the worlds largest cities. Those cities are more like clusters of small towns and cities rather than one large city. Not feeling like a big city isn't necessarily a bad thing. It could mean that people are polite, friendly, and more relaxed for a city that size.

[bryantm3]

Originally Posted by erick295

NYC and Chicago are far from "complete." I believe you're thinking of Detroit

by "complete" i don't mean "in the past". i mean that they have reached their maximum density and are well-established cities. manhattan has spots that have 150,000 people per square mile— you can't get any more city-fied than that. sure, manhattan has changed a lot over the last 60-70 years but through it all it's been a bustling metropolis. atlanta's top number is 22,000 per square mile in midtown, which is better than dallas or anywhere else in the south, but pales in comparison to new york, chicago, etc., in being an established city, especially when you consider population densities even to that degree are a very recent development in atlanta. atlanta has a long way to go in terms of infill and development in the core of the city. we're still working on it.

[DaBurgh]

Originally Posted by Newsboy

If you look closely, you'll see that Midtown is on the left (north) and Downtown on the right (south). Thus, the photographer is facing east (actually southeast).

LOGICAL ANSWER: Sunrise!

THANKS

[FlyiMetro]

Originally Posted by branh0913

I like how Chicago always come up in an Atlanta thread. Hey Chicago is a 2 hour plane ride or an 11 hour drive away. So do yourself and us a favor. Odd how people can't leave Chicago for Atlanta fast enough. I know tons of Chicagoans in Atlanta who couldn't wait to leave and Chi town, and have no intention of going back.

What's your beef with Chicago? Seems like great city to me once they remove all the gang bangers.