Is Philly trailing behind DC and Boston in prestige? Do you think it will ever catch up? (zoning, prestigious)
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It seems you don't know the city that well. Here, let me help you out. There are plenty of nice areas outside of Center City:
South Philadelphia Bella Vista
Queen Village
Hawthorne
Graduate Hospital
East Passyunk Crossing
Italian Market
Passyunk Square
Moyamensing
Packer Park
Pennsport
Marconi Plaza
Wharton
Whitman
Sports Complex
Navy Yard (emerging business district in Phila)
Girard Estate (working class)
Newbold (gentrifying)
Point Breeze (gentrifying)
West Passyunk (gentrifying)
Dickinson Narrows (gentrifying)
Gray's Ferry (early stages of gentrification)
Southwest Philadelphia Clearview
Eastwick (working class)
Elmwood Park (working class)
Paschall (working class)
West Philadelphia University City
Powelton Village
Woodland Terrace
Spruce Hill
Clark Park
Squirrel Hill
Cedar Park
Southwest Cedar Park
Garden Court
Walnut Hill
West Fairmount Park
Wynnefield
Wynnefield Heights
Belmont Village
Overbrook Farms
Overbrook Park
Overbrook (portions working class, portions middle class, portions ghetto)
Haddington (portions working class, portions middle class, portions ghetto)
Cobbs Creek (portions working class, portions middle class, portions ghetto)
Mantua (gentrifying)
West Powelton (gentrifying)
Haverford North (gentrifying)
Dunlap (gentrifying)
Lower North Philadelphia Fairmount
Spring Garden
Northern Liberties
Poplar
Norris Square (working class)
Spring Arts (gentrifying)
Francisville (gentrifying)
Brewerytwon (gentrifying)
West Poplar (gentrifying)
Olde Kensington (gentrifying)
Templetown (gentrifying)
Ludlow (portions gentrifying)
Sharswood (portions gentrifying)
Upper North Philadelphia Temple Hospital (nice but surrounding area is ghetto)
Olney (working/ middle class)
Logan (working/ middle class)
Ogtonz (working/ middle class)
Fern-Rock (working/ middle class)
East Oak Lane (working/ middle class)
West Oak Lane (working/ middle class)
Stenton (working/ middle class)
Northwest Philadelphia Chestnut Hill
Manayunk
East Falls
West Mt. Airy
East Mt. Airy
Germantown
Penn-Knox
Morton
Wister
Andorra
Roxborough
Wissahickon
Near Northeast Philadelphia Fox Chase
Burholme
Holme Circle
Holmesburg
Lawndale
Lexington Park
Mayfair
Rhawnhurst
Ryers
Tacony
Crescentville (working/middle class)
Castor Gardens (working class)
Far Northeast Philadelphia Academy Gardens
Ashton-Woodenbridge
Bustleton
Byberry
Crestmont Farms
Krewstown
Millbrook
Modena Park
Morrell Park
Normandy
Parkwood
Pennypack
Somerton
Torresdale
Upper Holmesburg
Winchester Park
That doesn't seem like entirely ghetto to me....
About 20% of the city is ghetto. 20% is okay (gritty or working class). 60% is nice.
Location: The western periphery of Terra Australis
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Carlite
Philadelphia was always a very industrial city, more so than Boston. That's hard on the city now that so much industry has closed down, though some observers predict a manufacturing revival in the U.S. (see The Atlantic). Even if that happens, it won't employ nearly as many people as in the past.
Philadelphia is strong in the "eds and meds" complex. There are a lot of colleges--split between the city itself and the suburbs. There are a number of major hospitals, again split, though perhaps more concentrated in the city. There are a number of pharmaceutical companies, mostly in the suburbs. There's some basis for a "modern" economy there. But New York is the commercial capital of the United States, and Washington is the political capital, and Philadelphia lives between them.
It's been unhappily observed by leaders in Philadelphia that they don't attract as many immigrants as other East Coast cities. Some of this is due to the weak economy, I think some of it is due to insular attitudes. I'm not sure how you deliberately turn that around, but immigrants have been revitalizing American cities across the country.
Philadelphia has lovely neighborhoods with all sorts of housing types. Want the downtown highrise thing? Rittenhouse Square. Lofts? Old City. Rowhouses? Many places, starting at Fitler Square and heading into South Philadelphia. Detached houses, probably made of stone? Mount Airy or Chestnut Hill. There are some really grim parts of North Philadelphia, no doubt about it, but the whole city isn't like that by any means.
The perception of crime and the unbeatable allure of the greatest metropolis in the Western world probably has something to do with that.
Philly has almost all of the advantages Boston has: an Ivy League school, world class cultural institutions (art museum and symphony), decent theater scene, a small subway and excellent commuter rail, and beautiful architecture.
The differences? Old money left Philly a long time ago. The metonym for establishment Boston is Beacon Hill; the metonym for establishment Philly is The Main Line, which is not in the city. When revitalizing a city you really need a core of philanthropist and boosters to get it going, like in New York, Boston or San Francisco.
Also, as wonderful as Harvard is, the school that really drives Boston’s economy is MIT. The Boston tech sector is amazing, second only to Silicon Valley. Philly has nothing like it. The super-star cities of the last 20 years: Boston, San Francisco, Seattle, DC/NOVA, and New York have great tech sectors. At this point it’s very hard to catch up.
If Philly succeeds, it’ll probably be more like Brooklyn than Boston. Brooklyn was regarded as blue-collar and ghetto until quite recently. Quite a lot of Brooklynites are moving to Philly.
I think Philly is behind both Boston and D.C. in terms of prestige. Will it catch up? Who knows. Who can say for sure which cities will be dominant, or move up in stature in 15, 20, 25 years, etc.
You're right about MIT. The collaboration it brings with private companies is fantastic.
Some things Boston has over Philly: Education. Yes both cities have quality schools, but Boston simply has more. And more prestigious schools. Technology. Cambridge and the 128 belt draw some of the biggest names in the tech sector to set up operations. Only Silicon Valley can say it beats what the Boston metro area can offer. There are other clusters that are strong, namely Austin, NYC and D.C. in this realm. Health care is also an area where Boston surpasses Philly. You have the now #1 hospital in MGH plus another top 10 hospital in Brigham and Womens. Not to mention Joslin Diabetes, Dana Farber, Mass Eye & Ear and Spaulding Rehab Hospital. Boston and Philly Children's Hospitals are both neck and neck at the top however.
Other things that have aided Boston in gaining more prestige could be something as seemingly shallow as the sheer number of movies filmed or set in this area in the last 10-15 years. The Town, Gone Baby Gone, The Fighter, Shutter Island, The Departed, Bride Wars, Ted, Ghosts of Girlfriends Past, What's Your Number, RIPD (not released yet), Edge of Darkness, Knight & Day, The Box, The Social Network, 21, Mona Lisa Smile, Mystic River, Goodwill Hunting, A Civil Action, The Company Men, Paul Blart: Mall Cop, That's My Boy, The Game Plan, Grown Ups, Here Comes the Boom, The Zookeeper, The Surrogates, The Women, Pink Panther 2, among others.
In any event, I think all 3 are fine cities and some of the best North America has to offer.
Philadelphia was always a very industrial city, more so than Boston. That's hard on the city now that so much industry has closed down, though some observers predict a manufacturing revival in the U.S. (see The Atlantic). Even if that happens, it won't employ nearly as many people as in the past.
Philadelphia is strong in the "eds and meds" complex. There are a lot of colleges--split between the city itself and the suburbs. There are a number of major hospitals, again split, though perhaps more concentrated in the city. There are a number of pharmaceutical companies, mostly in the suburbs. There's some basis for a "modern" economy there. But New York is the commercial capital of the United States, and Washington is the political capital, and Philadelphia lives between them. Philadelphia actually has an extremely diverse modern economy.
It's been unhappily observed by leaders in Philadelphia that they don't attract as many immigrants as other East Coast cities. Some of this is due to the weak economy, I think some of it is due to insular attitudes. I'm not sure how you deliberately turn that around, but immigrants have been revitalizing American cities across the country.
Philadelphia has lovely neighborhoods with all sorts of housing types. Want the downtown highrise thing? Rittenhouse Square. Lofts? Old City. Rowhouses? Many places, starting at Fitler Square and heading into South Philadelphia. Detached houses, probably made of stone? Mount Airy or Chestnut Hill. There are some really grim parts of North Philadelphia, no doubt about it, but the whole city isn't like that by any means.
Philadelphia also has a very strong toursim and hospitality industry, financial industry and law industry as well as an emerging tech sector, creative/design/fashion sector and media sector.
followed by Washington, D.C., and Philadelphia, each home to slightly more than 450,000 college students. Boston is next with nearly 400,000 college students.
Other things that have aided Boston in gaining more prestige could be something as seemingly shallow as the sheer number of movies filmed or set in this area in the last 10-15 years. The Town, Gone Baby Gone, The Fighter, Shutter Island, The Departed, Bride Wars, Ted, Ghosts of Girlfriends Past, What's Your Number, RIPD (not released yet), Edge of Darkness, Knight & Day, The Box, The Social Network, 21, Mona Lisa Smile, Mystic River, Goodwill Hunting, A Civil Action, The Company Men, Paul Blart: Mall Cop, That's My Boy, The Game Plan, Grown Ups, Here Comes the Boom, The Zookeeper, The Surrogates, The Women, Pink Panther 2, among others.
In any event, I think all 3 are fine cities and some of the best North America has to offer.
Philadelphia also has more media coverage than Boston (although not by much).
Philly has a lot of work to do. It has a staggering amount of vacant commercial buildings and a lot of poverty. Ride an Amtrak train from NYC to Philly and you'll be stunned by the poverty and decay. It starts pretty much at the city limits on the northeast side near Trenton and continues until you reach 30th Street Station in the center of Philly.....miles and miles of it. The residents often point with pride to the 30 square block or so area called Center City which contains the downtown and historic areas, plus a few other neighborhoods of note as evidence of gentrification but the reality is it's a small portion of the city's landmass. The city government has been strongly anti-business in terms of taxes, particularly a wage tax levied against those that live and/or work in the city which has kept out or helped relocate most commerce to the far-flung suburbs such as King of Prussia, Malvern or Blue Bell....and as a result the city's unemployment rate (the city itself, not the MSA) sits at 10% which I believe is the worst of any big city. Many city residents without cars (there are many) can't get to the job centers in the metro area due to inadequate transit options. The crime rate as a result is not surprisingly quite high, even in the Center City area. I wouldn't count on the city making too much more headway without some massive changes in how it appeals to corporations/business.
Excellent post and spot on about how lousy the city govt around here treats business and hard working people. The city employs thousands and thousands of do-nothing loafers that live on the hard working tax payers in the city. It seems just about everyone around here wants to work for the city govt with their lucrative pensions and loafing around all day.
But you are right on the other stuff. Boston is just a step ahead in Eds and Meds, but to say Philadelphia is a slouch would be incorrect.
he meant more GREAT school, the second best college in Boston is also the second best in the United states. UPenn would be 3 or 4 in Boston not the runaway #1
It seems you don't know the city that well. Here, let me help you out. There are plenty of nice areas outside of Center City. About 20% of the city is ghetto. 20% is okay (gritty or working class). 60% is nice.
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Actually my username refers to a zip code, look it up.....I lived in Philly for 8 years, moved out in 2010. Despite your lengthy list of neighborhoods there's no way the city is just 20% ghetto. North Philly, Kensington, West Philadelphia, SW Philadelphia and the west half of South Philly makes up significantly more than 20% of the inhabitable land mass in the city. The city is minority majority populated (57%), of which 44% is Black and the per capita income sits at a whopping $21,000.
No, not even close. The largest business district and the highest concentration of jobs is within Center City. The largest business districts in the Philadelphia metro are as follows:
1. Center City (Philadelphia)
2. King of Prussia/ Conshohocken/ Norristown area (Montgomery County)
3. University City (Philadelphia)
4. Wilmington (Delaware)
5. City Avenue Corridor (Bala Cynwyd/ West Philadelphia)
Then there are obviously more job centers scattered all around the city and the suburbs.
38% of the available jobs in the metro area are in Center City (a three square mile area), across the river University City adds another 11%. All told the city itself (which is massive) provides just half of the available jobs in the metro area, which is problematic when one considers that many of those working in the city actually live outside in the suburbs. It's not exactly what one would call self-sustaining...
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