Observations from a native and former resident after first visit since '07 (LONG)...

[netdragon]

tony, who cares about those? Atlanta won't be different until the South end and Northwest end is cleaned up more. Until the extreme poverty there is gone. It's these issues that give Atlanta a bad name, not the lack of yet another mixed use skyscraper development. It's the lack of mobility as well. People need to get their priorities straight.

[tonygeorgia]

Originally Posted by netdragon

tony, who cares about those? Atlanta won't be different until the South end and Northwest end is cleaned up more. Until the extreme poverty there is gone. It's these issues that give Atlanta a bad name, not the lack of yet another mixed use skyscraper development. It's the lack of mobility as well. People need to get their priorities straight.

U

[jsvh]

Originally Posted by netdragon

tony, who cares about those? Atlanta won't be different until the South end and Northwest end is cleaned up more. Until the extreme poverty there is gone. It's these issues that give Atlanta a bad name, not the lack of yet another mixed use skyscraper development. It's the lack of mobility as well. People need to get their priorities straight.

Yes, nothing else we do counts as long as there are still areas of poverty because Atlanta is the only city that has poverty. [/Sarcasm]

[waronxmas]

Has the city really changed that much in 5 years? Maybe you just didn't get around as much back when you lived here before. For instance, your example of what the corridor from Duluth to Chamblee/Doraville was like has been that way for a lot longer than five years.

[rebeldor]

Originally Posted by waronxmas

Has the city really changed that much in 5 years? Maybe you just didn't get around as much back when you lived here before. For instance, your example of what the corridor from Duluth to Chamblee/Doraville was like has been that way for a lot longer than five years.

It's been 6 years, not 5.

But yeah, in 2007 I was too busy with my HS reunion and hanging out with old friends to really get around as much as I would've liked. I know Chamblee/Doraville has been like that for years; I was talking about the area around Pleasant Hill from the river to 85 and all over John's Creek--THAT is what surprised me the most.

[Iconographer]

I thought the OPs comments were spot on.
And yes, there are a lot of misconceptions out there about weather on the Front Range. We have good friends out there that live in the University of Denver area, and the neighborhoods there are very reminiscent of Virginia-Highland, Decatur or Candler Park. In fact my DH was offered a job out there not long ago, and I told him I had no problem with it. At my age the list of cities I'd be willing to relocate to is pretty short, so I guess you can infer that it speaks well of Denver.