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Location: Austin, TX/Chicago, IL/Houston, TX/Washington, DC
10,138 posts, read 16,043,145 times
Reputation: 4047
Quote:
Originally Posted by BPerone201
I tried to relate cities to sister cities outside of their own state. "Little sister cities" meaning an obvious population difference. (according to the OP)
I didn't intend to make it seem Houston and Mobile seem so identical, but they have a few things in common.
-Both are port cities along the Gulf
-Their infrastructure aren't polar opposites- They're more so similar actually (If you could get offer the fact that Houston is a lot bigger)
I don't know how much more in depth you can get in any comparison where one city is far larger than the other.
Mobile is more country and less bustling than Houston- But any "little sister city" would lack the impact the "bigger sister" do.
You can disagree.
I do disagree.
Houston's style of housing Mediterranean and everything in between is not available there. Mobile doesn't specialize in any of Houston's industries.
Everything in the sunbelt has the same layout. Houston has beaches, prairies, hills, marshes, large lakes. Houston has different style architecture, has different culture ENTIRELY. Is more cosmopolitan in which there are representatives from many nations there has embassies for 90 countries. Mobile does not touch upon any of the following.
Tampa is closer to Houston than Mobile. Mobile's downtown is on the coast, Houston's is not. Mobile is not a interway for freight rail service, Houston is. Mobile is not foreign tonnage shipping to Latin America & Asia, Houston is.
San Antonio is the closest layout to Houston based off sprawl that I have ever seen for any city smaller than it. The street grid system to Mobile and Houston aren't even roughly similar...
Besides the two points that you said about layout and port there is little to no similarity between them. Two similarities don't make places a sister city.
That is like me saying Detroit & Newark, because of some areas of the city look similar. When both are constrastingly different.
That's just my perception though. Mobile has more in common with New Orleans, in my opinion. Both have similar shipping destinations, both have downtowns on the water, both have similar street grids, both have similar architecture for tall buildings.
I live in Houston I know it inside out, I have been to Mobile, it reminds me of New Orleans more than anything, it doesn't even remotely remind me of Houston. Maybe Texas City but thats about as far as it goes.
Houston's style of housing Mediterranean and everything in between is not available there. Mobile doesn't specialize in any of Houston's industries.
Everything in the sunbelt has the same layout. Houston has beaches, prairies, hills, marshes, large lakes. Houston has different style architecture, has different culture ENTIRELY. Is more cosmopolitan in which there are representatives from many nations there has embassies for 90 countries.
Tampa is closer to Houston than Mobile. Mobile's downtown is on the coast, Houston's is not. Mobile is not a interway for freight rail service, Houston is. Mobile is not foreign tonnage shipping to Latin America & Asia, Houston is.
San Antonio is the closest layout to Houston based off sprawl that I have ever seen for any city smaller than it. The street grid system to Mobile and Houston aren't even roughly similar...
Besides the two points that you said about layout and port there is little to no similarity between them.
That is like me saying Detroit & Newark, because of some areas of the city look similar. When both are constrastingly different.
That's why I'm mentioning it as the Little Sister City.. The little engine that could, but couldn't do it to the same extent.
You're comparing Houston's big cities attributes (i.e diversity of housing stock, the significance of its shipping port, and so on) to Mobile's small city attributes (which is going against what this thread is all about)
Houston's in much better shape, yeah- I'm sure if Mobile experienced the same type of Growth Houston is and has- It wouldn't be a complete and utter difference.
Detroit is wide open spaces compared to Newark- If you're referring to the rundown areas, they're in no way similar.
Location: Austin, TX/Chicago, IL/Houston, TX/Washington, DC
10,138 posts, read 16,043,145 times
Reputation: 4047
Quote:
Originally Posted by BPerone201
That's why I'm mentioning it as the Little Sister City.. The little engine that could, but couldn't do it to the same extent.
You're comparing Houston's big cities attributes (i.e diversity of housing stock, the significance of its shipping port, and so on) to Mobile's small city attributes (which is going against what this thread is all about)
Houston's in much better shape, yeah- I'm sure if Mobile experienced the same type of Growth Houston is and has- It wouldn't be a complete and utter difference.
Detroit is wide open spaces compared to Newark- If you're referring to the rundown areas, they're in no way similar.
Mobile's growth has seen decline at various points in its existence and has stagnated for the longest time now. Houston has never in its life seen a decline.
Culturally if you were to make a connection like Boston- Providence in which New England culture is present you can. Mobile culturally has nothing in common with Houston not even a smaller version of it. Demographically it doesn't either. It doesn't even match a mini Houston in that regard.
Mobile wasn't even the little engine that could in its history and its not a knock on Mobile but even in the late 1800's it went through a decline then.
By growth patterns has not resembled Houston even the slightest bit.
Newark & Detroit, you can make connection that they both get beat for reps they don't deserve because they are misunderstood, you can make the connection of how both went through decline and are focusing right now on reversing it. You can say both of them had a decline in their major industry.
But like i said though even then its a stretch to compare them just as Houston and Mobile are.
But you're claiming a city that has its heart resting directly on the coast with no barrier and in way to getting hit and hurt from major storms if given the opportunity to grow like Houston would resemble Houston a city that comfortably grows inland while still accessing its waterways for port activity? That would make Mobile more like New Orleans to be honest.
^^ Mobile architecturally resembles New Orleans, its history with stagnating population does too, its growth cycles does too, its location of the Gulf Coast is more linear with New Orleans. Its latest involvements with BP Oil Spill and how it affected those two areas does too, the type of industries they had is another one. Being at risk for hurricanes directly to the core of the city does too. Even historically Mobile is more tied to New Orleans than it is to Houston, which it has little to no tie to at all.. culturally Houston & Mobile don't even have anything in common, one is deep South Southern the other is Texas Southern with international presence being the most nationality diverse city in the American South.
Houston demographically say has 1,500,000 Mexican people, which it does, you would expect Mobile to have a similar percentage of demographical data to draw cultural connections, in ANY regard which it doesn't even the slightest.
Like demographically it doesn't even look like a mini mini Houston. And I'm not really trying to sound harsh about this either, but this claim doesn't hold much besides the fact that they are on the Gulf and are sprawling which doesn't say much as everything in sunbelt sprawls and Tampa, New Orleans, Corpus Christi, among others are on the Gulf as well.
Interesting...I wonder if this has something to do with my move from Rochester to SF that I'll be doing this October. I will really miss Roc (although, not so much in the winter! )...
Come back to visit often. Winter's my least favorite season, but somehow over the years I've learned to deal with it. Skiing, catching up on househld chores, indoor hobbies, etc. I really enjoy a nice fire in the fireplace on a cold winter night. Sure makes you appreciate the summers though.
^^ Mobile architecturally resembles New Orleans, its history with stagnating population does too, its growth cycles does too, its location of the Gulf Coast is more linear with New Orleans. Its latest involvements with BP Oil Spill and how it affected those two areas does too, the type of industries they had is another one. Being at risk for hurricanes directly to the core of the city does too. Even historically Mobile is more tied to New Orleans than it is to Houston, which it has little to no tie to at all.. culturally Houston & Mobile don't even have anything in common, one is deep South Southern the other is Texas Southern with international presence being the most nationality diverse city in the American South.
I seriously urge you to visit Mobile then visit New Orleans (if you haven't been) and try to make that comparison. The only thing New Orleans and Mobile really share are history and being on the I-10. Even historically, Mobile had British influence, while N.O. never did. The two don't even have the same topography or vegetation. One is even much cooler than the other.
Architecture in the New Orleans area is much more like Houston or Tampa than anything in Alabama with the exception of New Orleans proper, which Mobile is only similar too in a very small area. Galveston is much more similar to New Orleans than Mobile is. Also, people tend to base much of New Orleans architecture off of the Quarter when most of the city does not look like that. The rest of the city resembles a much denser version of Galveston with a larger variety of architecture. Not to mention New Orleans is the only place where I've seen Spanish/French Colonial, Caribbeanish, and Spanish Revival architecture evenly mixed throughout the city.
The industries in New Orleans are much more in line with the industries along the Texas Coast vs the eastern Gulf Coast. Also, the hurricane risk for Mobile is nowhere close to the risk of New Orleans since Mobile is inland and rising up on bluffs. Wind would be the biggest factor there. The BP spill also had a very minimal effect on either city.
I can't say that Houston and Mobile don't have anything in common culturally although it may be minor. You can't say that something is common with N.O. and have it not be common at all with Houston. You just can't. Houston isn't as much of a Texas Southern city as it is a Western Gulf city just like Beaumont, Lake Charles, and New Orleans.
As far as similar looking cities that are different sizes I have to say Pittsburgh ( downtown) is Manhattan's baby sister. And Uncle Carnegie left both of us libraries, music halls and other gifts. How nice of him!
Why would anyone want to visit New Orleans the place seems like a crimeridden dump
Not since White folks took control of the city again. The people (Black & White) overwhelmingly voted out their "Chocolate" mayor.
I visited NO back in July for the first time & was VERY impressed with the city. It has cleaning up A LOT from what it was pre Katrina.
Now if only our country as a whole could see the same way & vote out our current president come next election.
Last edited by Metro Matt; 09-13-2010 at 08:04 PM..
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