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I don't think Chicago should be worried, fluctuations by tech and government GDP of SF and DC, if you follow history, are only temporary fluxes. There have been several tech booms and busts. DC has gone up and down, an election could change it in a heart beat. Besides, what does Silicon Valley *really* add to SF proper? Some tech jobs have moved into the city, but it would be better for SF financial and biotech to get better. It would be better for them to do things like the recent film incentives to stop places like Vancouver from taking films away. The film industry in SF took a hit over the last 10 years for instance, which robs the area of culture IMO. I'm all for SF getting better, I'm all for Oakland getting better, but don't really care if Silicon Valley gets better, it is clear they want nice clean suburban development and to avoid getting taxed heavy. It's also a cultural void in comparison to San Francisco. Most people I know in the Bay would rather have jobs in SF or Oakland than to have to commute to SV.
Also, besides the last Census, Chicago grew from 1990-2000... It's metro area is also still growing. There was a big real estate boom including the tallest building in the U.S. that decade.2008,= unemployment in Chicago around 2005 was around 3%. Millenium Park was built in 2000-2010 and now one of the top 5 visited parks in the country.
Chicago isn't going anywhere, in fact it is becoming more global, acquisitions of the New York Mercantile Exchange as well as companies such as Boeing choosing Chicago to relocate are huge.
Chicago has the most well rounded economy of any of those big cities, it will be the slowest to move, but also the least like to take hits when the economy gets bad.
The city proper while some areas are hurting, the best areas are getting better, more gentrification more people moving into DT, and although it already has subway lines, Chicago has also added new ones in the last 10 years also.
I certainly don't think the Bay Area or DC are surging past it, it's more of them coming even with it and it's only in the last few years it has done so. Chicago has an over 100 year track record of being a top city and reinventing itself, I'm sure it will be fine.
It also easily has the lowest cost of living of the top 5. That can affect the numbers when you look at them all on the same level. Houses cost less, transportation costs less, food, clothes, salaries are a bit less. Standard of living doesn't have to change, but the GDP that's put into it is lower than if you jack up the prices of everything by 20%.
I don't think Chicago should be worried, fluctuations by tech and government GDP of SF and DC, if you follow history, are only temporary fluxes. There have been several tech booms and busts. DC has gone up and down, an election could change it in a heart beat. Besides, what does Silicon Valley *really* add to SF proper? Some tech jobs have moved into the city, but it would be better for SF financial and biotech to get better. It would be better for them to do things like the recent film incentives to stop places like Vancouver from taking films away. The film industry in SF took a hit over the last 10 years for instance, which robs the area of culture IMO. I'm all for SF getting better, I'm all for Oakland getting better, but don't really care if Silicon Valley gets better, it is clear they want nice clean suburban development and to avoid getting taxed heavy. It's also a cultural void in comparison to San Francisco. Most people I know in the Bay would rather have jobs in SF or Oakland than to have to commute to SV.
Also, besides the last Census, Chicago grew from 1990-2000... It's metro area is also still growing. There was a big real estate boom including the tallest building in the U.S. that decade.2008,= unemployment in Chicago around 2005 was around 3%. Millenium Park was built in 2000-2010 and now one of the top 5 visited parks in the country.
Chicago isn't going anywhere, in fact it is becoming more global, acquisitions of the New York Mercantile Exchange as well as companies such as Boeing choosing Chicago to relocate are huge.
Chicago has the most well rounded economy of any of those big cities, it will be the slowest to move, but also the least like to take hits when the economy gets bad.
The city proper while some areas are hurting, the best areas are getting better, more gentrification more people moving into DT, and although it already has subway lines, Chicago has also added new ones in the last 10 years also.
I certainly don't think the Bay Area or DC are surging past it, it's more of them coming even with it and it's only in the last few years it has done so. Chicago has an over 100 year track record of being a top city and reinventing itself, I'm sure it will be fine.
This may be the most reasonable post I have read here in a long time. I would rep you, but City-Data is getting all Socialist on me, and saying I need to spread it out a bit.
I don't think Chicago should be worried, fluctuations by tech and government GDP of SF and DC, if you follow history, are only temporary fluxes. There have been several tech booms and busts. DC has gone up and down, an election could change it in a heart beat. Besides, what does Silicon Valley *really* add to SF proper? Some tech jobs have moved into the city, but it would be better for SF financial and biotech to get better. It would be better for them to do things like the recent film incentives to stop places like Vancouver from taking films away. The film industry in SF took a hit over the last 10 years for instance, which robs the area of culture IMO. I'm all for SF getting better, I'm all for Oakland getting better, but don't really care if Silicon Valley gets better, it is clear they want nice clean suburban development and to avoid getting taxed heavy. It's also a cultural void in comparison to San Francisco. Most people I know in the Bay would rather have jobs in SF or Oakland than to have to commute to SV.
Also, besides the last Census, Chicago grew from 1990-2000... It's metro area is also still growing. There was a big real estate boom including the tallest building in the U.S. that decade.2008,= unemployment in Chicago around 2005 was around 3%. Millenium Park was built in 2000-2010 and now one of the top 5 visited parks in the country.
Chicago isn't going anywhere, in fact it is becoming more global, acquisitions of the New York Mercantile Exchange as well as companies such as Boeing choosing Chicago to relocate are huge.
Chicago has the most well rounded economy of any of those big cities, it will be the slowest to move, but also the least like to take hits when the economy gets bad.
The city proper while some areas are hurting, the best areas are getting better, more gentrification more people moving into DT, and although it already has subway lines, Chicago has also added new ones in the last 10 years also.
I certainly don't think the Bay Area or DC are surging past it, it's more of them coming even with it and it's only in the last few years it has done so. Chicago has an over 100 year track record of being a top city and reinventing itself, I'm sure it will be fine.
So far the most overrated cities as voted by users are:
1. Atlanta, GA
2. New York, NY
3. Los Angeles, CA
4. Austin, TX
5. Las Vegas, NV
6. Orlando, FL
7. Miami, FL
8. San Francisco, CA
9. Chicago, IL
10. Washington, DC
11. Honolulu, HI
I would agree with most.
NYC, LA, Miami, Orlando and SF I do find to be overrated. Chicago, DC and Honolulu are underrated IMO.
Media focus plays a big factor, so its no surprise NYC and LA are among the leaders.
Miami is overrated in the real world, but severely underrated on C-D.
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