Does Minneapolis have what it takes to be a global city? (Houston: transplants, theater)

[Hans64]

In response to the original thread question: No Way. Downtown Mpls. is dead after 6 pm and downtown St. Paul is dead 24/7. Overall the Twin Cities are very middle of the road and suburban in feeling--I don't get 'Global City' from that.

[AnUnidentifiedMale]

Originally Posted by uptown_urbanist

And from my own experience (three years living in LA as a non-driver) I strongly believe LA's public transportation is much, much better than what exists in the Twin Cities. LA has an extensive bus system (including many express buses), a subway line, several light rail lines with more on the way, a commuter rail system, and regular AMTRAK trains at decent times heading north and south. It's cheaper, too.

Buses aren't appealing when they have to sit in the same traffic with everyone else. That's a major problem with transit in L.A. If there were subway lines crisscrossing the city, it could be wonderful. Maybe it'll happen someday, but I'm sure we'll all be dead by the time it does.

[uptown_urbanist]

Originally Posted by AnUnidentifiedMale

Buses aren't appealing when they have to sit in the same traffic with everyone else. That's a major problem with transit in L.A. If there were subway lines crisscrossing the city, it could be wonderful. Maybe it'll happen someday, but I'm sure we'll all be dead by the time it does.

Yes, that is the problem - luckily I lived on a subway line, and later a light rail line, but the west side is completely underserved by train. The buses are filled to the brim, and now people are screaming for the subway extention that some didn't want back when it was offered. (there's movement now, but of course it's going to cost more and it won't be up and running for a long time) Minneapolis obviously doesn't have the population and traffic that LA does, but I think the lesson from LA is that it's better to put in the light rail before the problem becomes unbearable.

[fashionguy]

You are right. LA is the stereotyped city for lacking public transportation, but if you don't consider per capita (what's the point of public transportation per capita anyways, in this country it is not like you might not be able to get on the train or bus because there are so many people), LA definitely has more public transportation options than Minneapolis, and a lot other mid-sized cities as well. LA's rapid transit system, though not very successful, was long done, and has three lines of light rail, one subway with two branches, and 6 commuter rail lines. Not many mid-sized cities can compare with that in terms of total volume. True it doesn't cover the whole city, but don't try to say that the only light rail line of Minneapolis covers the whole city. I wouldn't buy that no matter what. Minneapolis has a long way to go to catch up with LA in terms of public transportation options, so does Seattle, Charlotte, etc, etc. Though these cities sometimes find that they can actually bash LA about its public transportation, they don't know what they are talking about. LA has poor public transportation compared to other global cities such as NYC, Chicago, SF or Boston, DC, not compared to those regional hubs like Seattle or Charlotte, or Minneapolis.

Minneapolis will never be a global city unless something significant happens. I don't think it will become a global city in our span of life anyways. This is not necessarily a bad thing. It will always be a nice local hub to live and raise kids. That said, if it gets to hold the Olympics in 2020, it might gain some international recognition. I doubt that will happen even if Chicago loses the bill for 2016, because current trend is Olympics usually is held at the largest cities, and there is good reason for that. The Olympics scale is growing and it requires the city to have a certain size to be able to pull it off.

Originally Posted by uptown_urbanist

I agree that public transportation is only part of the picture, but I don't think we can compete even at the minor global city level without one.

And from my own experience (three years living in LA as a non-driver) I strongly believe LA's public transportation is much, much better than what exists in the Twin Cities. LA has an extensive bus system (including many express buses), a subway line, several light rail lines with more on the way, a commuter rail system, and regular AMTRAK trains at decent times heading north and south. It's cheaper, too.

[fashionguy]

LA has the dedicated bus rapid transit (Orange line) which Minneapolis is learning from. If you look at the Minneapolis 2030 transit plan, they specifically mentioned this example and the Boston Silver line. LA has one subway line (2 branches) and 3 light rail lines. It is not enough, but still better than most mid-sized cities.

Originally Posted by AnUnidentifiedMale

Buses aren't appealing when they have to sit in the same traffic with everyone else. That's a major problem with transit in L.A. If there were subway lines crisscrossing the city, it could be wonderful. Maybe it'll happen someday, but I'm sure we'll all be dead by the time it does.

[knke0204]

Minneapolis would be so much better if about 40,000 more people lived directly downtown.

[Thegonagle]

Global city? Why would we care? (That's the Pragmatic Minnesotan in me talking.)

[kuan]

Originally Posted by Thegonagle

Global city? Why would we care? (That's the Pragmatic Minnesotan in me talking.)

I'd actually like it to be a little bit more global. IOW I wish DT Minneapolis would spill over into the suburbs a bit. There is just no variety in the suburbs.

Actually I would love for Minneapolis to be on the radar for some events, like a ski jumping World Cup event or maybe the Winter Olympics, or like the Superbowl even.

[BlackOut]

Originally Posted by Hans64

In response to the original thread question: No Way. Downtown Mpls. is dead after 6 pm and downtown St. Paul is dead 24/7. Overall the Twin Cities are very middle of the road and suburban in feeling--I don't get 'Global City' from that.

How many U.S. cities have a "24 hour" downtown area?

[rcsteiner]

Originally Posted by BlackOut

How many U.S. cities have a "24 hour" downtown area?

New York City, possibly. But are there any others?