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Not overly concerned with crime but then again, I never said I was. Just making the correlation between blighted areas and crime. I assumed since DC had more crime that it might also have more blight. Not to say the assumption was correct but it was my assumption nonetheless. If DC in fact as clean as most are making it out to be, that’s a HUGE nod in its favor in my book. It’s why I would never live in a city like LA, SF or NY.
DC is pretty clean. I think Charlotte is cleaner, but if we're also not concerned with optimum cleanliness, DC isn't a problem...
Go with your got, that's how I've approached moves. If your instinct is leaning DC, go for it!
I'm actually surprised that your're surprised Boston is not running away with this. I may have voted that way (love it as a city, checks your other boxes), but your explicit callout for a place that does not get much snow in the winter immediately ruled it out in my mind. If not for the snow, would have been a tossup honestly.
I almost didn’t list the snow thing. It’s not necessarily a dealbreaker but I prefer as little snow as reasonably possible considering the circumstances. Grew up in Connecticut and just spent a few years in Florida so I’m not thrilled to have to shovel snow again. But if a city checked all the other boxes to a T, snowball wouldn’t be a deterrent. Of course, if a city also met all the prerequisites but didn’t have snow, then I’d choose it. Sounds like DC is it
Not overly concerned with crime but then again, I never said I was. Just making the correlation between blighted areas and crime. I assumed since DC had more crime that it might also have more blight. Not to say the assumption was correct but it was my assumption nonetheless. If DC in fact as clean as most are making it out to be, that’s a HUGE nod in its favor in my book. It’s why I would never live in a city like LA, SF or NY.
I'm going to backtrack just a little because the association you make with blight and crime certainly was true at one time in DC. Although it was never an industrial city that experienced a significant economic decline which resulted in widespread blight, the riots of '68 in the aftermath of MLK's assassination combined with widespread white/black middle class flight in the following decades did cause some extensive and visible blight in the city. A big reason why you don't see as much of it anymore is because of the rampant gentrification and redevelopment of the city since the turn of the century.
It's walkable at a basic level, meaning it has enough amenities to walk to without having to rely on a car or transit (e.g. pharmacies, small grocery stores such as Royal Blue, etc). The northern end of Downtown is within reasonable walking distance to the amenities found in neighboring Victory Park and Uptown (e.g. bigger grocery stores such as Tom Thumb in VP & Whole Foods in UT). In addition, it's also the transit hub for the metro including DART rail and two free street car lines (Downtown through Uptown & Downtown to Bishop Arts).
As far as vibrancy, certain areas of Downtown are during the day and evening such as the very center (Main St. District), Farmers Market, West End, and Arts District/ Klyde Warren Park area. The most vibrant nightlife areas are actually Downtown-adjacent as opposed to downtown proper (Deep Ellum & Uptown). Deep Ellum is arguably the most vibrant and walkable nightlife area behind 6th St. Austin in the state of TX.
Part of my issue is I can’t go visit these cities and make my determination. And I don’t have a lot of time to choose. Unfortunately my lease is up in July. So as bad as it sounds, this thread is one of the most important factors in my decision, which sounds absolutely absurd to say out loud.
If I had to rank my criterion, racial/cultural diversity, cleanliness, downtown vibrancy, not a lot of in-your-face-homelessness, and little to no graffiti are at the very top. These are non-negotiables.
The rest are important factors but not at all dealbreakers.
There have been plenty of representation from Boston, DC, and Charlotte and a sprinkle of some very informative discussions about Sacramento and Dallas. I appreciate all the information!
I’ve probably scratched off Charleston from the list. Someone who has visited or lived in KC, Indianapolis, San Antonio, or Nashville, why doesn’t it make the cut over the other cities?
Part of my issue is I can’t go visit these cities and make my determination. And I don’t have a lot of time to choose. Unfortunately my lease is up in July. So as bad as it sounds, this thread is one of the most important factors in my decision, which sounds absolutely absurd to say out loud.
If I had to rank my criterion, racial/cultural diversity, cleanliness, downtown vibrancy, not a lot of in-your-face-homelessness, and little to no graffiti are at the very top. These are non-negotiables.
The rest are important factors but not at all dealbreakers.
There have been plenty of representation from Boston, DC, and Charlotte and a sprinkle of some very informative discussions about Sacramento and Dallas. I appreciate all the information!
I’ve probably scratched off Charleston from the list. Someone who has visited or lived in KC, Indianapolis, San Antonio, or Nashville, why doesn’t it make the cut over the other cities?
Charleston is a much smaller city than the others. I chose Boston for its amenities, education, and generally progressive feel. Cost of living is high, but assuming your job comps out, then your salary would increase compared to the rest (save for DC which is even more expensive). Nashville and Charlotte provide clean environments, excellent economic performance, and a lower cost of living. Charlotte is less blue collar and more corporate feeling while Nashville is more lively, artsy, and hospitality/service oriented. Charlotte puts you closer to east coast cities while Nashville puts you just outside the Midwest. Both cities are diverse, but could use better mass transit options, especially Nashville.
Just curious-whats the big deal with graffiti and does it include street art/murals?
Always been a pet peeve of mine, not sure why. I hate graffiti. Most graffiti tags are simply ugly, probably gang-related, demonstrate a huge lack of respect or concern for property, contribute to blight, and imo is very similar to the broken window theory. Like I said in the OP, I realize it’s very picky.
And no, I don’t consider street art the kind of graffiti I don’t like. I love street art! Mostly because it’s usually professionals who have been given permission by whoever to beautify their property and create a mural. Wynwood in Miami for example is very cool. But graffiti like in the LA River or the random tags all over the highways in Atlanta would depress me if I had to see it or drive by it every day.
Part of my issue is I can’t go visit these cities and make my determination. And I don’t have a lot of time to choose. Unfortunately my lease is up in July. So as bad as it sounds, this thread is one of the most important factors in my decision, which sounds absolutely absurd to say out loud.
If I had to rank my criterion, racial/cultural diversity, cleanliness, downtown vibrancy, not a lot of in-your-face-homelessness, and little to no graffiti are at the very top. These are non-negotiables.
The rest are important factors but not at all dealbreakers.
There have been plenty of representation from Boston, DC, and Charlotte and a sprinkle of some very informative discussions about Sacramento and Dallas. I appreciate all the information!
I’ve probably scratched off Charleston from the list. Someone who has visited or lived in KC, Indianapolis, San Antonio, or Nashville, why doesn’t it make the cut over the other cities?
Those Midwest cities on your list have very little, in comparison, racial and cultural diversity, are among the least vibrant downtown's on your list, and aren't among the cleanest...
Haven't been to SA but my belief is it's closer to the Midwest cities per your criteria, than it is to the others...
Personally I don't find Nashville to be all that clean and it has a good amount of graffiti, but it excels in core vibrancy and there isn't a lot of homelessness...
Also, I don't find DC to be quite as clean as others here believe. It isn't hopeless or nasty on that front, and it certainly isn't something that would keep me from choosing it, but I don't find it cleaner than any of these southern cities listed. Maybe its cleanliness is being a little overstated but it isn't exactly a dirtbag city (but most of these cities aren't, to be honest)...
Charlotte in my opinion, is remaining at the top per your non-negotiables: top half diversity, most clean, top half core vibrancy, least homeless problem of all the cities, least street graffiti of all the cities...
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