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They're it cities of the moment but they'll fade. The only real *it* city's in the U.S. with perennial staying power are the biggies, NYC, LA, Chi, SF and a small handful of others. These cities will never be "it" cities because they *are* "it" cities. Hopefully this makes sense.
Portland had its moment (a long one). I'm surprised Austin's star hasn't waned more. Next up... Kansas City.
I think that Austin and Nashville have been put on a pedestal for the past 5 years...and they are starting to be recognized as fun cities that offer a lot, but are no longer have the value they once had. For "it" cities right now, I'd say Boise & Tampa.
Miami obviously with South Americans. Central Americans are pretty much moving to every city in the US I think. Mexican immigration has slowed down and second/third generation Mexicans are well integrated into mainstream America IMO.
Regarding black people in Austin, a primary issue is that blacks are super underrepresented in high tech, which drives growth in Austin.
Central Americans generally move to border states.
I'd substitute Dallas and Portland for Orlando and Seattle for the '90s. Nickelodeon Studios, the Disney Renaissance, lots of media love as well. Seattle of course had grunge, Sleepless in Seattle, Microsoft's big boom, the launch of Amazon, and Starbucks becoming a household brand. The majority of the top ten buildings from Dallas' skyline were built in the '80s, and a certain TV show helped to really prop its imagine. SF was more of the '60s "it" city, and I'd replace it's '70s position with Houston, which benefited greatly from the energy price booms in the '70s. Outside of Walker, Texas Ranger, I don't really associate much with Dallas from the 1990s; most of the development that decade in the metro was all about McMansion/strip mall runaway sprawl.
Portland belongs more in the 2000s IMO; until late in that decade, Seattle had a bit of a period of relatively stagnant growth, and a lot of the culture in Portlandia was based on that decade's vibe.
I see what you mean with Dallas and Portland. But Orlando? I don't think it was an "It" city--at least at the level of what we are all thinking an "It" city constitutes.
Orlando has grown, and is growing, fast. And it is a hotspot for folks to move to. But I think it falls short overall as a hotspot in general, to be called an "It" city--at least yet.
I think of an "It City" as a city with this criteria-
*Fast population growth in the city and metro area
*Strong economy with companies relocating to the city, creating white collar, good paying jobs
*Cultural impact on the US overall with what the city is known for (like Portland with "Portlandia" and "Starbucks" or "grunge" with Seattle)
*Decently growing or fast-developing tourism for the "It City"
*Popularity of the city in many "elite circles" in middle America as well as on both coasts: from finance to entertainment to real estate, to hospitality to education to tech, etc
*Fast development of "destination" type neighborhoods in the city that become popular nationwide - think "6th street" or "Rainey street" in Austin, or "the Gulch" or "Lower Broadway" in Nashville: both have become well known outside of both cities
I'm not sure Louisville is on the radar yet. And Albuquerque? SLC is growing but at it city? Care you make your case?
Well, I don't have anything verifiable but Louisville I thought was a no brainer. I hear as much about Louisville as I do Nashville now. The great dining seen, bourbon, yadda yadda. Salt lake City because it is growing fast. I put Albuquerque on there more anecdotally from people visiting and also they ran a tourism campaign in my area I believe. I'd stick by my ranking but admittedly much is anecdotal. Another city I'm hearing about is Columbus OH (god forbid).
I have family in Albuquerque and have spent a little time there...it has some cool aspects but it's not fast-growing and doesn't seem to get much attention imo. Louisville is off my radar almost completely. Columbus seems to get publicity for the football team and not much else. Since others haven't mentioned them I'm guessing my prism isn't unusual.
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