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I'm kind of figuring Cleveland will win, because there are probably more Cleveland backers on this forum than most cities have. BUT, I imagine each city brings something to the table. As far as someone mentioning Milwaukee's global research, etc., I think it's something that will grow as Milwaukee establishes itself as a global water center. Only two cities in the US have this distinction, the other being San Francisco. This is kind of a big deal, and will be be even a bigger deal with the water issues our country will eventually face.
For a city the size of Milwaukee, it scores well with seven Fortune 500 companies within the MSA, and it's probably as cosmopolitan as many of the cities on the list.
I won't go on and on, because I get sick of reading the same things over and over about some cities...I don't want to be that person. I'm probably about the only Milwaukee booster on this forum, so Milwaukee probably won't get many votes. I don't think it should win this little "contest", but it shouldn't lag like it probably will, either.
Milwaukee is definitely more diverse than expected....but that study...using the "HHI" which is a business formula to compare cities??? I am not buying it.
My main experience with Milwaukee is going up almost every summer for Summer Fest, usually staying about a week. Haven't been doing it recently, but I certainly did for a good 15 years. Very neat town. This reminds me I need to get back up there next Chicago trip.
Milwaukee is definitely more diverse than expected....but that study...using the "HHI" which is a business formula to compare cities??? I am not buying it.
My main experience with Milwaukee is going up almost every summer for Summer Fest, usually staying about a week. Haven't been doing it recently, but I certainly did for a good 15 years. Very neat town. This reminds me I need to get back up there next Chicago trip.
Do go back, and make sure you get to the Third Ward.
From a Western perspective, I definitely think this title goes to Cleveland, the museums, food, bars, and art scene are very impressive, St. Louis would be my next vote. Also, interesting you chose to include Louisville, I feel that it does not belong on this poll, it is a southern city. If we are counting Lousiville as a midwestern city then we might as well count Phoenix and Las Vegas as Southern California cities while we are at it lol.
From a Western perspective, I definitely think this title goes to Cleveland, the museums, food, bars, and art scene are very impressive, St. Louis would be my next vote. Also, interesting you chose to include Louisville, I feel that it does not belong on this poll, it is a southern city. If we are counting Lousiville as a midwestern city then we might as well count Phoenix and Las Vegas as Southern California cities while we are at it lol.
Louisville IS southern but Phoenix, Vegas, and SoCal cities don't straddle the Ohio River with suburbs in both the Midwest and South.
I get what you're trying to say with your hyperbole but it misses the mark. I could see you deciding to make this exaggeration if Louisville were even 50 miles further south. Not when the only thing that separates Louisville's downtown from the Midwest is 2500ft of water. The OP included it for discussion sake due to the blending of regions.
It's between STL and CLE. I vote STL because it's more recognizable than CLE, is larger and has a higher metro GDP. STL is also more industrial and has a higher foreign born population.
Last edited by joeyg2014; 05-30-2016 at 06:38 AM..
It's tough to describe or say which, because how exactly is the cosmopolitan/global/international being measured? Because of that, I'm not certain what information I would need to answer. Diversity statistics however can be more objective, if someone were to find those for city, MSA, CSA, etc., but then that only tells you so much also because if it's a smaller metro area, percentages mean something, and, I think another important thing to note is that there are SO many characteristics influencing diversity than just race. That's why just saying "a city isn't diverse" because it's mostly white is so inaccurate. The flaw in that is that many in the Hispanic population (those not from Mexico, esp.) are also Caucasian (my wife included), and so it makes it even more difficult to gauge.
This is according to GaWC most recent listings which are by no means infallible and I'm not positive about criteria, but I would assume would include knowledge of (history), international trade and business relationships, public transit, and who knows what else.
Cleveland-Beta-
Pittsburgh-H.S.
Saint Louis-Gamma +
Milwaukee-Gamma
Cincinnati-Gamma
Indianapolis-H.S.
Columbus-Gamma-
Kansas City-Gamma-
Buffalo-Unlisted
Rochester-Suff.
Grand Rapids-Unlisted
Des Moines-Suff.
Omaha-Unlisted
Madison-Suff.
Louisville-Unlisted
Chicago-Alpha
Minneapolis-Beta-
Detroit-Beta-
Diversity: dubious metric, as others have pointed out. There is racial diversity, in which the cities with the highest Hispanic populations probably win, political diversity, in which the cities that are least monolithic ally Democrat probably win, ethnic diversity, in which legacy cities have a strong advantage, cultural diversity, in which an argument might be made for many of those cities, etc.
Global/International: non of the cities listed are global or international cities. Neither are Minneapolis or Detroit, for that matter. There's maybe only 4 or 5 even marginally "global" cities in America.
Cosmopolitan: None of the cities listed is particularly cosmopolitan (and again, neither are Detroit or Minneapolis). These cities are basically provincial/regional hubs.
Debating the 4th place city in the Midwest is like picking your favorite "sport" in the Winter Olympics. You might have a favorite, but who gives a ****.
It's between STL and CLE. I vote STL because it's more recognizable than CLE, is larger and has a higher metro GDP. STL is also more industrial and has a higher foreign born population.
True, but STL's MSA is also 8.5K sq. mi., which is larger even than Cleveland's would be if merged with Akron's (which by all means it should). And when that is done, I believe Cleveland's GDP is closer to 170B, but I'm not sure.
As for your other metrics (more industrial/higher foreign born), not sure if true or not, but I'll take your word for it anyways as it doesn't really matter, both are great cities with a lot to be proud of. Recognizability is very subjective also. I won't begin to take a stab at that.
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