Game Over For Atlanta? This guy thinks so... (Nashville, Louisville: living, gangs)

[DennyCrane]

Originally Posted by jurban8

Is It Game Over for Atlanta? | Newgeography.com

"With growth slowing, a lack of infrastructure investment catching up with it, and rising competition in the neighborhood, the Capital of the New South is looking vulnerable

Bad traffic congestion and other infrastructure ills didn't matter much when Atlanta was the only game in town. For a long time, anyone who needed a presence in the Southeast found Atlanta the easy default answer. In many cases it was the only real possibility.
That's no longer true. Atlanta is now surrounded by upstart, much faster growing cities such as Charlotte and Raleigh-Durham in North Carolina, Nashville, Tennessee and Charleston, South Carolina – all in many ways now have the ambitions once characteristic of Atlanta.

Atlanta's problem lies in its insufficient differentiation from these other places. Other than the airport, a clear major asset to Atlanta, what do you actually lose by moving to Charlotte or Nashville? Your commute is likely to be less. Except for certain groups – African Americans or gays – the city seems to be losing allure.

Atlanta is left as a sort of “quarter way house” caught between its traditional sprawling self and a more upscale urban metropolis. It offers neither the low traffic quality of life of its upstart competition, nor the sophisticated urban living of a Chicago or Boston."

Overly pessimistic, or somewhat observant?

Wow. If this guy thinks people will opt for places like Charlotte, Raleigh, Nashville or Charleston over Atlanta, he's out of touch. Speaking as someone who doesn't live in Atlanta, but's seriously considering moving there, no way would I ever move to those other cities for one very simple reason. The job markets in those cities is absolutely terrible. I know it's bad all over, but Atlanta has a lot more jobs, at least in my field, than any of those other cities. I've been to Raleigh and except for the light traffic, I found nothing that would make me want to move there. I think Atlanta may have leveled off. It can't continue the rapid growth that it had in the past. In other words, it's maturing as a city whereas those other cities still have room to grow. What Atlanta can do now is improve what it has. I'm sure a lot of people may move to those other cities to find a more affordable place to raise a family and get away from the congestion of Atlanta. But those cities seriously lack in culture in nightlife, which is probably a big reason why they're still small.

[blondandfun]

I hate to break it to you Atlantans, but when the top 10 major intersections and roads have broken crosswalk lights and the sidewalks haven't been repaired in 75 years, then you have a problem. You'd think a city with the most traveled airport could afford a light bulb. How many Atlantans does it take to screw on a lightbulb?

EDIT: And if you don't live IN TOWN, then you shouldn't be posting on this thread. Because YOU are happy living your suburban life with your SUV's and drive 1.5 hours everyday commute, so YOU have no valid/sound argument to make here, because YOU don't care!! Obviously! Many people in Atlanta do care, I give you all credit for the beltline and such, however, that's 20 years away. Not everybody likes waiting 20 years on a construction site.

[johnatl]

Originally Posted by blondandfun

I hate to break it to you Atlantans, but when the top 10 major intersections and roads have broken crosswalk lights and the sidewalks haven't been repaired in 75 years, then you have a problem. You'd think a city with the most traveled airport could afford a light bulb. How many Atlantans does it take to screw on a lightbulb?

Any proof of this claim, or is this just another one of your "drive by" posts?

[David Alleyne]

Originally Posted by blondandfun

I hate to break it to you Atlantans, but when the top 10 major intersections and roads have broken crosswalk lights and the sidewalks haven't been repaired in 75 years, then you have a problem. You'd think a city with the most traveled airport could afford a light bulb. How many Atlantans does it take to screw on a lightbulb?

EDIT: And if you don't live IN TOWN, then you shouldn't be posting on this thread. Because YOU are happy living your suburban life with your SUV's and drive 1.5 hours everyday commute, so YOU have no valid/sound argument to make here, because YOU don't care!! Obviously! Many people in Atlanta do care, I give you all credit for the beltline and such, however, that's 20 years away. Not everybody likes waiting 20 years on a construction site.

Where are you from? Are you even from here?

[blondandfun]

Originally Posted by Scott Summers

Are you even from here?

I am, and I'm most certainly not blind.

[WilliamM]

Originally Posted by aries4118

I do like how the guy said this...

"As a Chicago city-dweller who did multiple consulting stints in Atlanta, I can tell you the city is much better than its reputation in urbanists circles suggests, and it is a place I could happily live."



So true. Atlanta gets this reputation for suburban sprawl, when many in this country don't really understand (or care to understand) how "urban" Atlanta really is.

Absolutely. What this guy is calling "urbanists circles", I call "city snobs", those who lack imagination as to different styles of urban living and an awareness of how each city is a fusion of universal and particular, at once both a member of the 'fraternity' of all cities that have existed over time and space as well as a unique statement on city-ness from the standpoint of one particular region and culture.

Was it Deacon above who mentioned that the writer failed to observe a very important aspect of Atlanta's makeup, which is its position as de facto capital of the Southern region? This is a crucial point, but one that doesn't appear to be anywhere near the author's radar screen. Then again, one reason he neglects it may be that he takes it for granted that in this age of globalization such questions as historical identities based on quasi-mythical sovereign units are obsolete and will simply disappear in the melting pot of global capital. But that, I would argue, is far from settled.

[blondandfun]

Originally Posted by WilliamM

Was it Deacon above who mentioned that the writer failed to observe a very important aspect of Atlanta's role, which is its position as de facto capital of the Southern region?

NOBODY CARES what the "capital of the south" is. Only Atlantans do. Nobody in nashville, etc etc. even has Atlanta anywhere on their mindset.

Chicago will always be the biggest city in the midwest, but NOBODY CARES. A LOT of people prefer Minneapolis.

[WilliamM]

Originally Posted by blondandfun

NOBODY CARES what the "capital of the south" is. Only Atlantans do. Nobody in nashville, etc etc. even has Atlanta anywhere on their mindset.

Chicago will always be the biggest city in the midwest, but NOBODY CARES. A LOT of people prefer Minneapolis.

Don't know if you've been following our discussions of this topic in other threads, but it has got nothing to do with what people actually care about on a conscious level. It's about the needs of a region. It's about a region needing a center, a capital, because it's just in the nature of these things.

But in any case, just on a simple factual level your statement about "nobody in Nashville" caring about Atlanta is flat wrong. I can guarantee you that there is one thing and one thing in particular that is front and center in the mind of ANY person in Nashville who's interested in the future of that city, its growth, status, etc., and that is A-T-L-A-N-T-A. What's Atlanta doing? Where will such and such put us in our quest to be the next Atlanta, not be the next Atlanta, outdo Atlanta, out-Atlanta Atlanta, and so forth. It doesn't even matter what. It's the fact that Atlanta is a point of reference for all up-and-coming cities in this region. And of course I'm certain the same can certainly be said about Charlotte, too.

[chiatldal]

Originally Posted by blondandfun

I hate to break it to you Atlantans, but when the top 10 major intersections and roads have broken crosswalk lights and the sidewalks haven't been repaired in 75 years, then you have a problem. You'd think a city with the most traveled airport could afford a light bulb. How many Atlantans does it take to screw on a lightbulb?

EDIT: And if you don't live IN TOWN, then you shouldn't be posting on this thread. Because YOU are happy living your suburban life with your SUV's and drive 1.5 hours everyday commute, so YOU have no valid/sound argument to make here, because YOU don't care!! Obviously! Many people in Atlanta do care, I give you all credit for the beltline and such, however, that's 20 years away. Not everybody likes waiting 20 years on a construction site.

You know dang well there's alot of gentrification and small New urbanism developments in many parts of the city. And 2) rome wasn't built in a day, the whole beltline project would be complete in 20 years but sections of it will be completed and open before than. The rail of course will be the last thing that's going to be put it place.

but speaking of rail it's a start. Good looking out Norton guy.
GA DOT lays out future statewide rail plan!!!

I saw this yesterday, Cross fingers
World Cup bid an investment in Atlanta sports future *| ajc.com

[DeaconJ]

Originally Posted by WilliamM

Don't know if you've been following our discussions of this topic in other threads, but it has got nothing to do with what people actually care about on a conscious level. It's about the needs of a region. It's about a region needing a center, a capital, because it's just in the nature of these things.

But in any case, just on a simple factual level your statement about "nobody in Nashville" caring about Atlanta is flat wrong. I can guarantee you that there is one thing and one thing in particular that is front and center in the mind of ANY person in Nashville who's interested in the future of that city, its growth, status, etc., and that is A-T-L-A-N-T-A. What's Atlanta doing? Where will such and such put us in our quest to be the next Atlanta, not be the next Atlanta, outdo Atlanta, out-Atlanta Atlanta, and so forth. It doesn't even matter what. It's the fact that Atlanta is a point of reference for all up-and-coming cities in this region. And of course I'm certain the same can certainly be said about Charlotte, too.