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It's a larger city in every sense imaginable. But if we're talking urban cores specifically, I'd say they are pretty even, barring tower counts.
It's hard to beat some of these older, NE cities.
Yeah I dont know how much "more urban" Boston can be lol
I mean, Toronto covers a much larger area but that doesnt mean it's therefore more urban as well.
It's a larger city in every sense imaginable. But if we're talking urban cores specifically, I'd say they are pretty even, barring tower counts.
It's hard to beat some of these older, NE cities.
People discount Toronto's non-tower urbanity. Yes Toronto has significantly more towers than Boston, but in the areas immediately east and west and even north of the core there is still significant continuous urbanity and density at a much larger scale than Boston.
Toronto's downtown area just feels a lot larger than Boston. It feels a much bigger city. It is the alpha city of Canada. Boston is not even among the Big 5 in America in terms of importance.
Boston's core is more aesthetically beautiful and pleasing to look at and walk through though.
Toronto, as a city, is significantly larger. As an MSA, it's still considerably larger at 6.4M vs. Boston's 4.9M.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ant131531
Toronto's downtown area just feels a lot larger than Boston. It feels a much bigger city. It is the alpha city of Canada. Boston is not even among the Big 5 in America in terms of importance.
Did you know: in the same land area as Greater Toronto (~2750 square miles), Greater Boston has 89.9% the amount of people (or 5.77mil)? I thought the difference would be larger.
Toronto's downtown area just feels a lot larger than Boston. It feels a much bigger city. It is the alpha city of Canada. Boston is not even among the Big 5 in America in terms of importance.
If Boston is not top 5, it's 6, and has a legitimate case of being as important/powerful of a Global city as Toronto (despite being smaller).
Nonetheless, I still think Toronto feels more urban.. Can't ignore size in this particular comparison. Feels every bit as urban as Chicago, and most will agree Chicago feels more urban than Boston.
you can’t ignore size. The fact a 5.5 mile walk from the Chicago Loop gets you to Wrigleyville and the same walk from DTX in Boston gets you to Chestnut Hill tells you all you need to know about those cities.
Same with Line 1 in Toronto vs the Red Line in Boston.
Mexico City
New York
Chicago
Toronto
Then it gets messy. LA, SF, Boston, Montreal and Philly could all be the next 3. I don’t know enough about Mexico but there is probably a Mexican City or two that has an argument
What city centers/central neighborhoods/downtowns in North America do you think are most urban?
What definition of urban should we be using? It’s impossible to rank cities accurately with so many definitions of what constitutes urban. We need a criteria to use so it’s apples to apples.
Toronto, as a city, is significantly larger. As an MSA, it's still considerably larger at 6.4M vs. Boston's 4.9M.
I mean both metros are in the 6-8 million range. They're more similar in size than different. City limits are irrelevent.
Boston has around 5 million by MSA and around 8 million by CSA. Toronto has 6-8 million using equivalent standards. They're in the same general ballpark.
But Boston is also historically a much bigger and important city, with better urban bones. So when we're talking about relative urbanity, I think most would agree Boston is at least as urban.
you can’t ignore size. The fact a 5.5 mile walk from the Chicago Loop gets you to Wrigleyville and the same walk from DTX in Boston gets you to Chestnut Hill tells you all you need to know about those cities.
Not really. You can walk from Reforma in Mexico City to SFH neighborhoods a few blocks away. That means Mexico City is small? You can walk from Yonge/Bloor in Toronto to suburban homes a few blocks away. That means Toronto is small?
Also, you can walk from the middle of downtown Chicago to suburban-style shopping centers and townhouses a few blocks away. That means Chicago is small? For all these cities, depends on your directional.
Even for NYC, a few miles west of Times Square, you can find semi-suburban neighborhoods. And a mile or two further, you're in uninhabited swampland.
Not really. You can walk from Reforma in Mexico City to SFH neighborhoods a few blocks away. That means Mexico City is small? You can walk from Yonge/Bloor in Toronto to suburban homes a few blocks away. That means Toronto is small?
Also, you can walk from the middle of downtown Chicago to suburban-style shopping centers and townhouses a few blocks away. That means Chicago is small? For all these cities, depends on your directional.
Even for NYC, a few miles west of Times Square, you can find semi-suburban neighborhoods. And a mile or two further, you're in uninhabited swampland.
Chestnut hill is pretty representative of what 5.5 miles from Boston is. 5.5 miles north is Medford, 5.5 miles southwest of the Loop in Much more urban than that.
Cicero IL is 7 miles away from Chicago and has a density of 14,000 posm. Whether you go 7 miles west to Watertown, north to Melrose, or South to Quincy it’s far less developed than that.
Evanston has almost 10,000 ppsm about 12 miles from Chicago. That’s far more than Peabody, Needham or Weymouth.
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