Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Atlanta is horrible. There is too much urban sprawl, worse than most cities and possiblyas bad as in LA. Pollution is very bad during summer. Because of it's sprawl nature, Atlanta is hardly walkable in most places(it is summer now so walking anywhere is a nightmare). The public transit system (MARTA) is a joke. It's rail line only covers two small counties(I don't live in either one). Some of the other counties have formed their own bus systems, which are also very bad in a sense. Most of the metro Atlanta counties have rejected MARTA, believing that it brings in "crime". If you live in metro Atlanta and you don't have a car, life will be very difficult at best.
<snip>
The problems are even more complex. Plenty of theories and opinions.
As a native I understand how the city developed and I know that considerable expertise was utilized.
People certainly will express opinions and vote according to their interests--unless they have no other choice. I don't want that sort of government.
I found Atlanta interesting. SUBURBAN sprawl is out of control. People say they live in Atlanta but I find they live 30 miles outside of the city in some horrible cookie cutter housing community. Inside the city I found nice charming areas but downtown lacks the big city feel. No department stores or major shopping, not many people in the streets and just sort of quiet. I still can't see what all the hype is about. Nice aquarium though.
I found Atlanta interesting. SUBURBAN sprawl is out of control. People say they live in Atlanta but I find they live 30 miles outside of the city in some horrible cookie cutter housing community. Inside the city I found nice charming areas but downtown lacks the big city feel. No department stores or major shopping, not many people in the streets and just sort of quiet. I still can't see what all the hype is about. Nice aquarium though.
That is an accurate description.
Atlanta is a 'work in progress'. It was not a 'Big City'. The largest city in the SE which for years was a good area for agriculture etc
I hope some solutions can be found and quickly, too.
Houston is one of the BEST cities I have lived in. Here is my rank order:
Houston (Great inner city neighborhoods of River Oaks, Montrose, Heights, MidTown, Museum District, and nations best suburbs including Sugar Land, The Woodlands, Kingwood)
Seattle
San Francisco
Berkeley
Phoenix
Fresno
Oakland
Fresno's getting bigger and bigger. We're constantly developing in the north end of town. There are so many more things to do here in town because of it. My favorite part is more shops and cool new restaurants!
Now it isn't. Even NYC has more in the suburbs than the city.
I haven't been to NYC, but in Detroit it seems you have to go OUT of the city to have to do basic things (eat at a restaurant, shop, etc). The only things in the city are downtown, and that's mostly sports IMO.
In NYC you have 5th avenue, madison avenue, well-known restaurants, etc.
1. Detroit - definitely a Third World city. The economic and racial divide is as stark as apartheid-era South Africa. The city feels more like Sarajevo and other Eastern Bloc cities than an American city. Not even Baghdad....at least Baghdad is bright and sunny.
2. Buffalo, New York - 7 feet snow is normal??????????????????? Also just a typical decayed Rust Belt/Snow Belt city.
3. Philadelphia-Camden - see reasons for Detroit. Philly is a dump as is Camden. If you extend it east you get to Atlantic City which is also a dump. If you next it north you get to even more decayed PA towns.
4. Los Angeles - crime, earthquakes, fires, mudslides, illegal aliens, gangs, drugs
5. Miami-Dade County - is already a Third World banana republic filled with illegals. Also hurricanes.
6. Washington, D.C. - Baltimore: Baltimore is ghetto and filled with crime, drugs, and gangs. So bad that even illegals don't move theer. DC has the worst traffic outside of LA, overpriced housing. Half the area is ghetto (and crawling with illegals) and other half is pretentious, snobby, and arrogant. The worst of Detroit and Long Island mixed together.
7. New Orleans - until the reconstruction is complete and the levees fixed, then it will be a great city and region again.
8. Twin Cities - consistently ranked a very livable place, but they must not take the weather into account. I have a friend from there and she says elementary school have recess unless its -15 degrees Fahrenheight.....
9. El Paso - would be a bad place, even if it was in Mexico. Honestly, I'd rather live in Mexico City or Guadalajara than there.
Orlando is far from the worst in the country, but it does suck in many ways...transient envrionment=rude people and SKY high crime, every other person is a sex offender, horrific traffic,$****y schools (But not as bad as Miami), no culture, nothing but crappy chain restaurants and sprawl sprawl sprawl. Some people like the theme parks, though!
I don't think Orlando is that bad, there's a pleasant downtown area in addition to the theme parks that are good. As for chain restaurants....well Orlando is home to the headquarters of Durden Restaurants which owns both Olive Garden and Red Lobster. But I think this is happening all voer the nation, to get some nice family-owned mom and pop stores you probably have to go to small towns, especially in the South and the Midwest.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
