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They tend to think of exciting as a place where you can easily dine well at 1 am in the morning on a Wednesday, and find hordes of hipsters walking the sidewalks and in dive bars in multiple bustling parts of town. They want to be able to go out at 11 p.m. on a Thursday and feel like the night is still young and city is alive. They also tend to be cities with a very bohemian, hipster, and culturally progressive activist ethos. The "exciting places" tend to be places with huge numbers of visible single adults, college students, gays, foreign-born people, artists, intellectuals, and technies, the much-studied "creative class."
I think this is really the best way to explain about why the forum seems to keep debating this issue without ever coming to a resolution. The "Charlotte is boring" crowd is looking for a different kind of city than the one that currently exists as Charlotte. It's not really about size or demographics as much as it is about the predominant lifestyle and cultural direction of the community. I don't think anyone would confuse me with a hipster; I'm probably more of a yuppie or maybe one of those "creative class" members. But I also prefer the culture described above and that's why I didn't really stick with Charlotte, even though my work took me there for a couple years. I would advise those "creative class" types who get a job offer with a big bank or whatever in Charlotte, and who salivate over the cost of living in what they think is a "mini-New York," to maybe visit the city first and see if it's the right fit for them.
It all depends upon your personal taste and prior experience. People who think Charlotte is boring tend to have grown up or lived in densely populated megacities with 24/7 entertainment and amenities. They tend to think of exciting as a place where you can easily dine well at 1 am in the morning on a Wednesday, and find hordes of hipsters walking the sidewalks and in dive bars in multiple bustling parts of town. They want to be able to go out at 11 p.m. on a Thursday and feel like the night is still young and city is alive. They also tend to be cities with a very bohemian, hipster, and culturally progressive activist ethos. The "exciting places" tend to be places with huge numbers of visible single adults, college students, gays, foreign-born people, artists, intellectuals, and technies, the much-studied "creative class." Of course, many, many people do not need this type of environment to be fulfilled, but for a certain type of person, it is necessary.
I think this is really the best way to explain about why the forum seems to keep debating this issue without ever coming to a resolution. The "Charlotte is boring" crowd is looking for a different kind of city than the one that currently exists as Charlotte. It's not really about size or demographics as much as it is about the predominant lifestyle and cultural direction of the community. I don't think anyone would confuse me with a hipster; I'm probably more of a yuppie or maybe one of those "creative class" members. But I also prefer the culture described above and that's why I didn't really stick with Charlotte, even though my work took me there for a couple years. I would advise those "creative class" types who get a job offer with a big bank or whatever in Charlotte, and who salivate over the cost of living in what they think is a "mini-New York," to maybe visit the city first and see if it's the right fit for them.
OMFG....when u say mini New York, thats funny....there is no mini New York. Folks from New York think DC is country....and spare me the creative class crap. As previously stated, most of America is more like Charlotte than New York or DC. Just have a good time and blend instead of expecting places to adjust to you.....then move on. Charlotte isnt boring nor is it Vegas....its everyday USA.
OMFG....when u say mini New York, thats funny....there is no mini New York. Folks from New York think DC is country....and spare me the creative class crap. As previously stated, most of America is more like Charlotte than New York or DC. Just have a good time and blend instead of expecting places to adjust to you.....then move on. Charlotte isnt boring nor is it Vegas....its everyday USA.
Maybe to you but not for 90% of sensible America. I guess the poor soles and singles that live in Omaha, OKC, Louisville, Jacksonville, etc etc might as well call it quits. Only a few cities in America come close to meeting the standards Tarheelhombre describes with respect to urbanity, hustle bustle...especially on a large scale...the only place down south I can think of down south that meets such criteria of 24/7 is maybe Miami.
The other large metros (Atlanta, Dallas and Houston) in the south are simply larger versions of Charlotte. So big and busy they pretend to be urban....but they really aren't compared to cities like Philly, DC and New York. To boot, most people in the large urban corridors still live in sprawl-ville and vary rarely need city life - the idea of that accessibility keeps them there. Don't get me wrong, I prefer down south...that's why I am here but DC and Atlanta are extremely different places.
New Orleans, Richmond and Charleston are urban but are small compared to the northeastern behemoths.
Maybe to you but not for 90% of sensible America. I guess the poor soles and singles that live in Omaha, OKC, Louisville, Jacksonville, etc etc might as well call it quits. Only a few cities in America come close to meeting the standards Tarheelhombre describes with respect to urbanity, hustle bustle...especially on a large scale...the only place down south I can think of down south that meets such criteria of 24/7 is maybe Miami.
The other large metros (Atlanta, Dallas and Houston) in the south are simply larger versions of Charlotte. So big and busy they pretend to be urban....but they really aren't compared to cities like Philly, DC and New York. To boot, most people in the large urban corridors still live in sprawl-ville and vary rarely need city life - the idea of that accessibility keeps them there. Don't get me wrong, I prefer down south...that's why I am here but DC and Atlanta are extremely different places.
New Orleans, Richmond and Charleston are urban but are small compared to the northeastern behemoths.
You hit the nail on the head for this one. People fantasize about living in places like New York but don't realize the things you have to give up. When I was 25 I lived in East Villlage, I was paying around $1,500 a month for a one bedroom apartment, I made six figures but that was at the expense of a social life because of how hard I had to work to keep my job. I could have rented a smaller apartment but I had to be close to work so I could get at least 5 hours of sleep a night. New York is not a great place to live unless you are making above $300k a year.
Charlotte is increasing their urban development drastically with the noda emerging and South End being transformed, but there needs to be some sort of urban shopping/dining district. It is currently all scattered, and with South Park's proximity to downtown it would be a hard sell.
You hit the nail on the head for this one. People fantasize about living in places like New York but don't realize the things you have to give up. When I was 25 I lived in East Villlage, I was paying around $1,500 a month for a one bedroom apartment, I made six figures but that was at the expense of a social life because of how hard I had to work to keep my job. I could have rented a smaller apartment but I had to be close to work so I could get at least 5 hours of sleep a night. New York is not a great place to live unless you are making above $300k a year.
Charlotte is increasing their urban development drastically with the noda emerging and South End being transformed, but there needs to be some sort of urban shopping/dining district. It is currently all scattered, and with South Park's proximity to downtown it would be a hard sell.
Lol, I meant poor "souls" not soles in the previous post. Absolutely, there is a certain faction of people who think people are expecting the NYC vibe in Charlotte so it's "boring". In that case Atlanta is "boring" and probably is to a lot of large urban city enthusiast, especially the Atlanta of 30 years ago or essentially what Charlotte is today.
Those of us who have experienced living in large dense urban cities understand the pros and cons (and there a lot of cons). It's a great experience but comes at a "high" price and doesn't a guarantee a great social experience, a lot of factors including type of personality will dictate that piece.
As you stated, there a few elements missing from Charlotte's current urban experience, a retail district and/or cohesive entertainment/dining area that emits such a vibe. It is scattered and has decent smaller pockets in the city. Atlanta, Houston, etc have matured and fabricated such a vibe due to shear size. Smaller cities like New Orleans and Nashville have a music scene that creates a lively city vibe coupled with solid tourism numbers making them seem a bit bigger than they are. In reality, the social scene in those cities is still relatively small for everyday folk compared to a larger urban city like DC. Although Charlotte may have strong tourism numbers (business conventions, etc), it isn't a tourist city and doesn't do a great job of magnifying the tourist experience. It could, but not sure city leadership is all that interested since the city continues to grow and seems comfortable with promoting it as a great place to live versus a great place to visit.
Charlotte is in a transitional phase and on the cusp of entering a new era of urban/entertainment and tourism experience. Akin to Atlanta, due to it's shear size it will ultimately create that vibe.
Last edited by Big Aristotle; 05-25-2014 at 08:31 AM..
Yep, I think it's boring and while I understand housing is cheap compared to NYC (if you live in a suburb like Matthews and have a family) I think it's pretty expensive myself.
It seems to me that the only things people who live here enjoy is when they leave Charlotte. Eg. the beach, College Football and so forth. Or sitting on a flotation device whist drinking beer on a body of water, which is not my idea of fun.
I think it is the people personally, it offers what people want and the people here don't generally want diversity or to meet people. They want to drive to work in ever increasing traffic and drive home to their family. With a bit of grocery store and mall thrown in. As people have said, to be fair, that's American life, it's not for me.
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