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When speaking in terms of metros, Cleveland, Cincinnati, and St. Louis are all significantly larger than Indy. And it is only common sense that the downtown area is not the only significant concentration of business and activity in any city. Very good picture of downtown Indy though...Downtown Columbus is pretty much identically laid out like this. The other similarity is the way the interstate highways converge in the downtown areas of these two metros. In Indy, I-70 and I-65 merge together for a few miles, and in Columbus, I-70 and I-71 merge together for a couple of miles. Similarly, in St. Louis, I-55, I-70, and I-64 all merge together for a few miles, I-64 splits, then I-55 and I-70 split a few miles later. In Cincinnati, I-75 and I-71 are merged together for a few miles. I-55 and I-44 also merge together for a few miles in St. Louis.
It's an enigma to me as well. I was just researching the city, and I found that it was actually MUCH larger than I ever thought it was. Indianapolis is the 13th-largest city in our nation, with a population of around 800,000 in the city proper.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/1/16/Downtown_indy_from_parking_garage_zoom.JPG (broken link)
(Photo Courtesy of member Jasssmit at Wikipedia)
The metropolitan area has a population of 2,000,000, which means that about 40% of the MSA resides in the city limits---that's VERY impressive in a nation where suburbs tend to rule supreme!
I suppose one thing I dislike about the city (from what I've researched) is its generally flat and unappealing topography. I'm spoiled living in a city in a valley floor surrounded by lush, rolling green mountains, and I could never envision living in such a bland landscape. I also find the architecture in much of the city to be more "modern" in nature, which is a drag considering I've grown fond of the historic Victorians, Tudors, Gothics, Greek Revivals, etc. here in the Northeast.
To those who claimed that Indianapolis is "dwarfed" by other neighboring cities, it is actually the third-largest city in the U.S. behind Chicago and Detroit (which it may soon eclipse if Detroit continues its steep decline as Indy continues its massive boom). Columbus, OH is two notches down the list as being the 15th-largest city in the nation, and the aforementioned Cleveland and Cincinnati are only 40th and 56th respectively nationwide in terms of population. I fail to see how Cincinnati, which only has 330,000 residents, which is less than half that of Indianapolis, can "dwarf" Indy.
Also, looking at that image of Downtown Indy, it seems much smaller than Downtown St. Louis, Downtown Cincinnati, and Downtown Cleveland. It's not a small downtown, but the three cities I mentioned have noticeably larger downtowns.
And Phoenix's downtown is even smaller still, but its population is larger. A good downtown doesnt mean the city is good/bad. I love a great downtown and all, but sometimes a small skyline doesnt mean the city is bad per se.
And Phoenix's downtown is even smaller still, but its population is larger. A good downtown doesnt mean the city is good/bad. I love a great downtown and all, but sometimes a small skyline doesnt mean the city is bad per se.
Wow, that's the first nice thing I've heard you say about Phoenix all week, Steve-o!
It's an enigma to me as well. I was just researching the city, and I found that it was actually MUCH larger than I ever thought it was. Indianapolis is the 13th-largest city in our nation, with a population of around 800,000 in the city proper.
The metropolitan area has a population of 2,000,000, which means that about 40% of the MSA resides in the city limits---that's VERY impressive in a nation where suburbs tend to rule supreme!
I suppose one thing I dislike about the city (from what I've researched) is its generally flat and unappealing topography. I'm spoiled living in a city in a valley floor surrounded by lush, rolling green mountains, and I could never envision living in such a bland landscape. I also find the architecture in much of the city to be more "modern" in nature, which is a drag considering I've grown fond of the historic Victorians, Tudors, Gothics, Greek Revivals, etc. here in the Northeast.
To those who claimed that Indianapolis is "dwarfed" by other neighboring cities, it is actually the third-largest city in the U.S. behind Chicago and Detroit (which it may soon eclipse if Detroit continues its steep decline as Indy continues its massive boom). Columbus, OH is two notches down the list as being the 15th-largest city in the nation, and the aforementioned Cleveland and Cincinnati are only 40th and 56th respectively nationwide in terms of population. I fail to see how Cincinnati, which only has 330,000 residents, which is less than half that of Indianapolis, can "dwarf" Indy.
Yeah, THAT'S what confuses me. People make it out to be some hick city with a couple of larger than average buildings. I've spent quite a bit of time in Tokyo, and yes I will say Indy is dwarfed compared to Tokyo. But I've also been to many other cities, and Indy is hardly as bad as some people here are making it out to be. It's clean, not too crowded, not overpriced. It's like a big city without the hassel. I'm a young woman without children, but I still find plenty to do without having to blow my whole months rent. I grew up in Honolulu HI, so naturally I would prefer it over anywhere else. However, if I was to look at Indy and Honolulu with bias, Indy is a lot more fun IMO.
Plus, the "shady" areas in Indy are what people in NYC and Chicago call the suburbs! Plus...I mean...if you run out of things to do in Indy, Chicago is about 3 hours away. NYC is less than half a day away by car. I would hardly say Indy is crap and "out in the middle of no where." YEESH!
The reason Indy's city-proper population is almost 800,000 is because the city limits encompass the entire county. So all of Marion County is counted for the population of Indianapolis, which is also why it is listed as the 13th largest city, let only the 32nd (I think?) largest metro.
Also, it does a shorter downtown compared to Cincinnati, with only 13 buildings over 200 meters, while Cincinnati has 20.
I have lived in Indy for 5 years now and basically all of the issues that have been discussed in this thread are why Indy receives so much "hatred." I do not hate the city, it is a nice city, but at its heart it lacks an identity. Its a nice city for a family that wants to live "in a big city," but not as though they are living in a big city. You don't get that big city feel here.
People are definitely car obsessed (meaning no public transport), the city is a chain restuarant mecca (and somewhat proud of it), there is not much of an arts scene, there is no natural beauty as it is very flat, and the city does not use its downtown river for anything, unless you count waste disposal. (Seriously, there are signs everywhere warning you not to touch the water because it may be toxic!)
That being said, it is a good city for families and has a clean downtown. As was stated earlier, I might have a different opinion of the city if I had kids to send to school, etc, but I don't and very likely never will (unless puppies count, lol).
I don't think Indy is a hated city, I just think when people visit they are expecting a larger city with an identity, especially for a city that claims to have be the countries 13th largest. However, what they really find is one of the countries largest suburbs with some large buildings (and NASCAR *Shudder*)
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I love a great downtown and all, but sometimes a small skyline doesnt mean the city is bad per se.
