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What cities have you found are typically under-estimated in terms of urbanity? Places that people here on city data and generally tend to not give enough credit to, in terms of how urban they are.
I've got two to start:
San Diego - Now, I'm not saying San Diego is really urban, but I feel people often view it as similar to Phoenix or other super-sprawly sunbelt cities, and I think it is substantially more urban that that. Downtown, Little Italy, Hillcrest, North Park, South Park are all pretty urban and make up a large chunk of the city. Even the beach communities like Pacific Beach of Ocean Beach have walkable, urban cores. There are a lot more street-facing, pedestrian friendly retail and commercial districts than you'd expect. Don't get me wrong, it's in many ways a sprawled-out city, but it has more urban areas and urban elements that people usually give it credit for.
Baltimore - everyone knows Baltimore is urban (to be clear, "urban" in the city-data sense), but I still think it's under-estimated. It is an incredibly urban city with massive rowhouse neighborhoods and a lot of in tact dense infrastructure. Sure, there are issues with rampant poverty, disinvested neighborhoods, and sections that are unsafe or not vibrant, but overall I'd argue Baltimore is one of the most urban cities in the country, easily. It is very walkable and has a ton of great urban amenities.
My thoughts on Dallas being urban is when you get to downtown Dallas east and west of downtown is really build up and urban from manufacturing corperation's,to condos,apartments,townhomes and a lot of jammed up homes everywhere.Dallas also have suburbs that have of 125,000 people to over half a million people.Dallas downtown heading north on US 75 north is jammed up with major corperation's that have set shop up in North Dallas.Dallas can't be compared to cities that have a simple loop around them like Atlanta or Houston having two because when people visited those cities they can get a glimpse in one day as far as the urbanity of those cities even driving the major corridor of inner part of those cities.DFW is a different ballgame because city extend so far north,east and west until people get mislead by some of the poor pockets of density that the city have like Plano or Irving which are two strongly dense areas.Atlanta may have buck head and downtown but my experience in Atlanta and Houston you have to make it almost to downtown to see anything that is consider somewhat urban but in Dallas you can drive from Mckinney to Downtown Dallas and see so much urbanity
My thoughts on Dallas being urban is when you get to downtown Dallas east and west of downtown is really build up and urban from manufacturing corperation's,to condos,apartments,townhomes and a lot of jammed up homes everywhere.Dallas also have suburbs that have of 125,000 people to over half a million people.Dallas downtown heading north on US 75 north is jammed up with major corperation's that have set shop up in North Dallas.Dallas can't be compared to cities that have a simple loop around them like Atlanta or Houston having two because when people visited those cities they can get a glimpse in one day as far as the urbanity of those cities even driving the major corridor of inner part of those cities.DFW is a different ballgame because city extend so far north,east and west until people get mislead by some of the poor pockets of density that the city have like Plano or Irving which are two strongly dense areas.Atlanta may have buck head and downtown but my experience in Atlanta and Houston you have to make it almost to downtown to see anything that is consider somewhat urban but in Dallas you can drive from Mckinney to Downtown Dallas and see so much urbanity
Are you serious? How can you say that you have to get near Downtown Houston before you see anything urban. McKinney is no more urban than these places well away from Downtown Houston. And I might Add Sugar Land, Energy corridor are non-stop continuous Urban development stretching a at least a good 20 miles away from downtown Houston.
^^ The Woodlands feels like a suburban edge city at best. mostly sorounded by very suburban planned communities. While Hosuton definetely has a large swath of development I am not sure I would consider the Woodlands, Katy (not sure I really have any personla feel for Sugar land) etc urban in this sense. Some areas in the loop are getting there and it continues to get better in this regard but the Woodlands is more like the burbs of NOVA than a city in the urban sense
Mid rise office clusters does not make a place urban IMHO, that is not to say living in a place like the Woodlands does not afford a desireable lifestyle than many people desire, just would not really call it urban in this sense
^^ The Woodlands feels like a suburban edge city at best. mostly sorounded by very suburban planned communities. While Hosuton definetely has a large swath of development I am not sure I would consider the Woodlands, Katy (not sure I really have any personla feel for Sugar land) etc urban in this sense. Some areas in the loop are getting there and it continues to get better in this regard but the Woodlands is more like the burbs of NOVA than a city in the urban sense
Mid rise office clusters does not make a place urban IMHO, that is not to say living in a place like the Woodlands does not afford a desireable lifestyle than many people desire, just would not really call it urban in this sense
I'm responding to the prior poster who claimed Dallas is urban from downtown to McKinney... McKinney is no more urban that the places I mentioned in Houston so the claim is off.
I'm responding to the prior poster who claimed Dallas is urban from downtown to McKinney... McKinney is no more urban that the places I mentioned in Houston so the claim is off.
Would mostly agree then. Houston and DFW are getting more urban though. To me there area where they are not as much as other places of the same size are in a compressed urban form with continuity. But even that is changes. They are both mostly newer in their development and have developed more spread out so will take time but they are changing (by the year really)
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