Which big Texas city has the best downtown? (Dallas, Houston, Austin, San Antonio, Ft. Worth) (Mission: construction, cost of living)

[Spade]

^^ honestly his opinion is shared by the majority including me. VP could be so much better.

Originally Posted by OmShahi

The top 10 list for US populations is a TOTAL Texas Takeover!

Houston
San Antonio
Dallas

All above a million!

California has three too, but San Jose isn't at the million mark yet.

According to the state of California, San Jose is indeed over a million.

[DANNYY]

Originally Posted by Scarface713

Why would Houston do without HP? Have those three surface lots there instead? Heck no. LOL!

House of Blues = Pretty Raw.
I'm hoping Houston keeps up the good revitalization effort for downtown with good projects like HP, I'm sure they'll surpass that one day.

[artsyguy]

It's the first largest if you add in the metro population.

Originally Posted by ladarron

I do believe that Dallas is the 2nd largest city in Texas.

[DANNYY]

Originally Posted by artsyguy

It's the first largest if you add in the metro population.

With Fort Worth's help!

[ladarron]

Originally Posted by OmShahi

With Fort Worth's help!

You know when we say Dallas or metro we mean the Metroplex.

[JJG]

Dallas is #2 in population?


I'm pretty sure San Antonio is #2 right now. I haven't seen the numbers for THIS year, but as of right now, I believe San Antonio still has the #2 spot, then Dallas, then Austin, Fort Worth, and El Paso in that order....

[dallasboi]

Originally Posted by JJG

Dallas is #2 in population?


I'm pretty sure San Antonio is #2 right now. I haven't seen the numbers for THIS year, but as of right now, I believe San Antonio still has the #2 spot, then Dallas, then Austin, Fort Worth, and El Paso in that order....

Go Check out post #196..and u will see what we are talking about.

[royal744]

Questions about which city or downtown is the best call for a subjective response based on personal opinion unless the criteria for evaluation are clearly stated. This is OK as long as we recognize that that's just what it is. Population by itself doesn't mean much, unless you think Calcutta or Beijing are great cities. Skylines are interesting architecturally, but unless there's interesting life on the streets not choked by pollution (Beijing, Shanghai, Bombay, Calcutta & many others) that doesn't mean much either. History is a good addition to a city if it is cared for and promoted - Rome, London, Paris, Boston, NYC, St Augustine, San Antonio (six 18th century Spanish Colonial Missions), Ft. Worth, Chicago, San Francisco but fairly worthless if many of the historic buildings have been demolished as in Houston or Dallas and Los Angeles. The existence of good, efficient public transit can also be a criteria and is a plus for NYC, Boston, Chicago, San Francisco, Dallas, Portland, etc. Cost of living/housing is of course a real factor for most of us and that counts against Boston, NYC, Seattle, Los Angeles and San Francisco. Downtown living and positive street life are good indicators for some that downtowns have more life in them than just during the business day. Public amenities and how they are cared for are important - parks, pocket parks, rivers, water edges, etc. and how they enhance, instead of detract from a city make a difference. So it depends very much on what criteria are used and even then the answer probably can't be reduced to a single score. Shameless local boosterism is amusing, but not very helpful.

[eepstein]

To be quite honest, I dont think any major Texas cities' downtown's can compare with cities like San Francisco, Chicago, NYC, or Seattle. Those cities truly have a main focus on downtown. But, with regards to the big TX cities, here is my take.

Houston--For a city the size of this, you would truly expect to see more effort put into downtown. Does have some items such as minute maid park, Houston Pavilions, and numerous restaurants and museums. The light rail system does also operate here which makes getting downtown a little easier. There are several areas of bars and clubs as well. However, I never got a real feeling of comfort in downtown Houston. Still seems rather seedy in places.

Dallas--Again, not a great downtown, but they are making some strides in this area. Victory plaza is up and coming, the world aquairium is downtown. However, it seems to me that most of the entertainment in Dallas lies just north of downtown along places like Mckinney street. (bars and clubs) Most of my time is spent north of downtown. Ton of fabulous restaurants just north of downtown.

Austin--There is really only one area in downtown Austin that anyone would have an interest in. That is the 6th street and warehouse district which all of the bars and clubs lie. Outside of that, there is little reason to visit downtown.

San Antonio--As much as I dislike San Antonio as a whole, I would have to say that it probably has the best downtown in the state as far as continuous activities are concerned. It has the riverwalk and alamo which attracts millions each year. It also has hundreds of cafes, restaurants, and bars downtown which cater mostly to tourists and some locals. Also, many old restored luxury hotels which have been around for 100 years or more.

Fort Worth---ummm, well they recently built a 30+ story Omni hotel down there. There must have been SOME reason for doing that. Right??

Originally Posted by caphillsea77

Downtown should be the the heart and soul of the city, a nucleus, a core. All Texas cities have a reputation to be auto dependent and sprawly. Out of the big 5 (Dallas, Houston, Austin, San Antonio, Ft. Worth) which city do you think has the best downtown. Many cities are reversing the trend of sprawl and actually putting life back into their downtowns building high rise condo towers. Which downtown is the most pedestrian friendly, has sidewalk culture, retail and cafes.

[dallasboi]

Originally Posted by eepstein

To be quite honest, I dont think any major Texas cities' downtown's can compare with cities like San Francisco, Chicago, NYC, or Seattle. Those cities truly have a main focus on downtown. But, with regards to the big TX cities, here is my take.

Houston--For a city the size of this, you would truly expect to see more effort put into downtown. Does have some items such as minute maid park, Houston Pavilions, and numerous restaurants and museums. The light rail system does also operate here which makes getting downtown a little easier. There are several areas of bars and clubs as well. However, I never got a real feeling of comfort in downtown Houston. Still seems rather seedy in places.

Dallas--Again, not a great downtown, but they are making some strides in this area. Victory plaza is up and coming, the world aquairium is downtown. However, it seems to me that most of the entertainment in Dallas lies just north of downtown along places like Mckinney street. (bars and clubs) Most of my time is spent north of downtown. Ton of fabulous restaurants just north of downtown.

Austin--There is really only one area in downtown Austin that anyone would have an interest in. That is the 6th street and warehouse district which all of the bars and clubs lie. Outside of that, there is little reason to visit downtown.

San Antonio--As much as I dislike San Antonio as a whole, I would have to say that it probably has the best downtown in the state as far as continuous activities are concerned. It has the riverwalk and alamo which attracts millions each year. It also has hundreds of cafes, restaurants, and bars downtown which cater mostly to tourists and some locals. Also, many old restored luxury hotels which have been around for 100 years or more.

Fort Worth---ummm, well they recently built a 30+ story Omni hotel down there. There must have been SOME reason for doing that. Right??

So is Ft.worth T overrated to u?.Or is it truly better than DTD and DTHou?..just asking..... JJG dont cut my throat