Residents, would you reccomend Columbus over Cincinnati or Cleveland (Kent: appointed, foreclosed)

[Losfrisco]

Originally Posted by 304eer

Alright. I've spent significant amount of time in all three and currently live in Columbus.

Very quick breakdown:

Columbus - newest and cleanest of the 3. Very midwest feel compared to the others. Growing very fast. Expensive real estate. State capital. Can be a very "trendy" city (can be a positive or negative).

Cincinnati - Fairly southern feel to an Ohio city. Slower paced. Has the largest downtown area. Older city that's starting to experience some growth.

Cleveland - Rust belt city (Detroit, Pittsburgh, Buffalo, etc). Smallest feel of the three although it has the highest metro population. Has many large suburbs. Dirtier, industrial city. The lake and Playhouse Square (arts and theatre district) are great assets that you can't get in the other cities.

These are ordered in my opinion from best to worst to live. And with Columbus, if you're only 2 hours to either city if you want access to something that Columbus doesn't have.

Would you be able to explain how Columbus is the newest of the three? In my understanding, it was incorporated around the same time or even before the others.

[motorman]

Originally Posted by Natural510

Since this is an opinion thread, Id choose Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati in order.

Not quite... I'd like to draw to everyone's attention that the OP made it clear - in both his thread title and first post - that he was interested in feedback specifically from Columbus residents. At this point, besides the OP himself, that would include only Panther79 and 304eer.

[304eer]

Originally Posted by Losfrisco

Would you be able to explain how Columbus is the newest of the three? In my understanding, it was incorporated around the same time or even before the others.

Columbus has been "affectionately" referred to as cowtown by Cincy and Cleveland residents for decades. Columbus was a smaller midwest city while Cleveland and Cincy were large industrial centers for the better part of the last 200 years. However, since the 70s, Columbus' population has exploded while Cleveland's population has dropped and Cincinnati's has increased but to a lesser extent. With that population explosion, Columbus has seen new suburbs continually pop up (New Albany, Powell, Lewis Center, etc), an influx of younger, more educated people, as well as massive interstate and downtown expansion (Short North, Arena District, Brewery District, Scioto Greenway, upcoming Franklinton development, etc). These downtown developments and redevelopments have refreshed the city and given it a "new" feel that the other two don't have.

Quick Comparison that may give you some additional insight to what I'm talking about:

Columbus
Median Age - 32.3
Poverty Rate - 21%
Household Income - $49,602
Property Value - $140,700
Crime Rate - 47.16 per 1,000 residents

Cincinnati
Median Age - 32.2
Poverty Rate - 26%
Household Income - $38,539
Property Value - $134,100
Crime Rate - 61.53

Cleveland
Median Age - 36.4
Poverty Rate - 35%
Household Income - $27,551
Property Value - $66,800
Crime Rate - 70.25

Columbus is a younger, safer, and significantly richer city than the other two. That helps it to have a nicer, newer city feel.

[1watertiger]

Originally Posted by 304eer

Columbus has been "affectionately" referred to as cowtown by Cincy and Cleveland residents for decades. Columbus was a smaller midwest city while Cleveland and Cincy were large industrial centers for the better part of the last 200 years. However, since the 70s, Columbus' population has exploded while Cleveland's population has dropped and Cincinnati's has increased but to a lesser extent. With that population explosion, Columbus has seen new suburbs continually pop up (New Albany, Powell, Lewis Center, etc), an influx of younger, more educated people, as well as massive interstate and downtown expansion (Short North, Arena District, Brewery District, Scioto Greenway, upcoming Franklinton development, etc). These downtown developments and redevelopments have refreshed the city and given it a "new" feel that the other two don't have.

Quick Comparison that may give you some additional insight to what I'm talking about:

Columbus
Median Age - 32.3
Poverty Rate - 21%
Household Income - $49,602
Property Value - $140,700
Crime Rate - 47.16 per 1,000 residents

Cincinnati
Median Age - 32.2
Poverty Rate - 26%
Household Income - $38,539
Property Value - $134,100
Crime Rate - 61.53

Cleveland
Median Age - 36.4
Poverty Rate - 35%
Household Income - $27,551
Property Value - $66,800
Crime Rate - 70.25

Columbus is a younger, safer, and significantly richer city than the other two. That helps it to have a nicer, newer city feel.

You think Cleveland and Cincinnati have not expanded freeways,suburbs and redeveloped inner city neighborhoods?
Yes Columbus metro has grown and city population has grown. but its metro is only about half the urban footprint that Cleveland and Cincinnati are. And there is no comparison to Cleveland as far as amenities, culture or outdoor activities.

[304eer]

Originally Posted by 1watertiger

You think Cleveland and Cincinnati have not expanded freeways,suburbs and redeveloped inner city neighborhoods?
Yes Columbus metro has grown and city population has grown. but its metro is only about half the urban footprint that Cleveland and Cincinnati are. And there is no comparison to Cleveland as far as amenities, culture or outdoor activities.

Did I say that they haven't expanded? And I literally said earlier in this thread and I quote "The lake and Playhouse Square (arts and theatre district) are great assets that you can't get in the other cities."

And he wanted an opinion, I gave my opinion. You can give yours

[Jbeechuk]

Born and raised in Cleveland, now living in Columbus, I can say this. Daily work/living during the week, Columbus over Cleveland. Better job market and economy. Now weekend/leisure time, Cleveland all the way. Lake Erie, real sports teams, better arts/museums. etc. I can't comment on Cincy.

[jbcmh81]

Originally Posted by Jbeechuk

Born and raised in Cleveland, now living in Columbus, I can say this. Daily work/living during the week, Columbus over Cleveland. Better job market and economy. Now weekend/leisure time, Cleveland all the way. Lake Erie, real sports teams, better arts/museums. etc. I can't comment on Cincy.

I think this hits on what most people miss when they bash Columbus on its supposed lack of amenities- How many times a year do people really visit a local city museum? How many times per year do they pay the exorbitant ticket prices to go to an NFL game? How many times per year do they go boating on the lake?
Then ask how many times per year does someone go to work? How many times a year does someone get paid? How many times a year does general quality of life affect someone?


The other 2 may have some amenities that Columbus doesn't have, but they're generally things that don't affect day-to-day life. Having a good job, a safe neighborhood and quality schools for kids does. This is why Columbus wins on things like population growth. People move to where the things most important to them are located. It's not an NFL team or a museum or scenery- it's the ability to pay bills and live comfortably and be confident that your quality of life is higher than where you came from.

[bjimmy24]

Originally Posted by jbcmh81

I think this hits on what most people miss when they bash Columbus on its supposed lack of amenities- How many times a year do people really visit a local city museum? How many times per year do they pay the exorbitant ticket prices to go to an NFL game? How many times per year do they go boating on the lake?
Then ask how many times per year does someone go to work? How many times a year does someone get paid? How many times a year does general quality of life affect someone?


The other 2 may have some amenities that Columbus doesn't have, but they're generally things that don't affect day-to-day life. Having a good job, a safe neighborhood and quality schools for kids does. This is why Columbus wins on things like population growth. People move to where the things most important to them are located. It's not an NFL team or a museum or scenery- it's the ability to pay bills and live comfortably and be confident that your quality of life is higher than where you came from.

I get what you're saying, but this is the same general line of reasoning people use to explain their move to far flung suburbs too.

[jbcmh81]

Originally Posted by bjimmy24

I get what you're saying, but this is the same general line of reasoning people use to explain their move to far flung suburbs too.

I think that's getting more into the local things like housing costs. I'm a city guy, always have been, but there were some years I lived in the suburbs because I didn't make enough to live where I really wanted. A lot of people have to make those types of choices. They balance the good with the bad and try to get as much as they can. Relatedly, I'm sure a lot of people living in Columbus would love to have more pro sports and museums and things like that, but priorities still call for a focus on other things like good schools and affordable housing. Columbus is not as flashy as some places, but it provides more than enough of the priority and secondary items to be attractive for many people. And the bigger it gets, the more likely that amenities increase- jerkoff sports owners notwithstanding.

[TheProf]

Originally Posted by jbcmh81

There are always exceptions, but the generality is still true. We have a good idea of what things people actually move for because the Census does surveys on that very question. Economic reasons are, by FAR, the primary motivation of a move, followed by schooling and family issues. Things like a change of weather, scenery, amenities, etc. tend to make up only a few percentage points of all moves combined.

So yes, Cleveland has some great amenities, and you can absolutely have a good life there. That's not the argument. The argument is does it provide that for as many people as Columbus? Given that Cleveland is Columbus' single largest supplier of domestic migration, and given what we know about why people move, the answer seems to be no. Ask why Clevelanders are moving there and you'll get a better understanding of the difference, I think.

As for the political stuff, you can both care about a good economy and the leader of the free world not being a total douchebag, criminal racist. They're not mutually exclusive.

Yes, Columbus has greater job opportunities; especially mid-level white collar ... at the moment. But Cleveland is at the beginning of a serious comeback. The health industry, and its spinoffs are a major factor.

Actually you are reading way more into the title of the thread: 'Would you recommend Columbus over Cleveland or Cincinnati.' There was no delineation as to why... Therefore your 'one size fits all' approach is an obfuscation. There are many factors that could go into such a recommendation: job opportunity, housing, schools, cultural assets/activities, access to high-quality natural areas, diversity, excitement, professional or college sports ... and on and on and on. Cleveland scores very high on many of those.

I don't place much stock on what 'the majority of people are doing' or that Columbus' major in-migration source is Cleveland. So what? The majority of states (in our goofy electoral college system) supported Trump. Does that mean Trump is a good thing? If a bunch of folks started jumping off the George Washington Bridge into the Hudson River, would you follow suit?

And its not that people "can" have a good life in Cleveland, many absolutely do. Many don't. Cleveland absolutely needs to focus on changing the latter.

Originally Posted by jbcmh81

As for the political stuff, you can both care about a good economy and the leader of the free world not being a total douchebag, criminal racist. They're not mutually exclusive.

They are not mutually exclusive, but at the very least, those backers of the "douchebag" are perpetrating the notion -- one I believe is false-- that they are; that a majority of Americans only care about the economy at the exclusion of everything else... Clearly that's propaganda and will be thoroughly exposed at the upcoming elections over the course of the next 3 years ... at least, I hope.