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We've been through this before and it's been proven to not be true. Morgantown offers a lot but not to the level of what Huntington and Charleston offer. And although Mylan still has facilities in Morgantown, they moved their headquarters and main operations to PA. That's where most of the growth for that company is now.
I've seen what you sent along, and strongly disagree with you. The Marshall Artist Series is not as good as that at WVU, the Pittsburgh and Wheeling symphonies seem to offer more programming than that in Huntington, WVU athletics is clearly on a higher level than that of Marshall and much better supported, WVU has bigger and more concerts and plays, and the new art gallery will be the State's best. I will give Huntington the edge for circuses and tractor pulls. I'll also give Huntington the edge over Charleston except Charleston does share the Mountain Stage with Morgantown.
Mylan's headquarters has always been in Canonsburg. They are doubling their Morgantown facility, which now employs more than 1,000 people. I don't know what they are doing with their Canonsburg plant, which is located about 40 miles north of Morgantown.
And having the experience to have actually lived in both places recently, I strongly disagree with you. The Huntington Symphony puts on a heck of a show. The number of shows you see listed on their website is only for the winter/fall season, they do another set in in the spring/summer. And if one chooses, they can also check out the MU symphony, or another local symphonic band. MU puts on 2 jazz festivals each year along with several performing arts pieces in addition to the Marshall artisits series, which in my opinion is as good or better than the WVU arts and entertainment series because it focuses on great plays and performances of the type that we don't get at the Huntington Civic Arena. Last year the Huntington Civic Arena was one of the top venues in the US when compared to others of it's size. And at least the civic arena can host circuses and tractor pulls in addition to all of the other great concerts and events they offer. Those types of events do appeal to people, even in Morgantown. I remember seeing an article talking about how people there were excited that a motocross race was taking place across the border in PA so don't act like there is no market for that type of thing up there. There's just no place to have it. You say they offer bigger concerts up there, but what performing arts venue can hold almost 9,000 people like the Arena can? And the Keith Albee holds about twice the amount of the CAC. And this doesn't even include the 3 other performing arts venues in Huntington.
Then there's the Funny Bone Comedy club that hosts some great comedians in addition to the comedians that visit the Keith Albee either through the MAS or on their own. Add to this all of the local performing arts companies like the Huntington Dance Theater, The 5th Avenue Theater Group, The First Stage Theater Group, Huntington Outdoor Theater, The Jeslyn Performing Arts Center Group, and the Arts Resources for the Tri-State and you have even more going on. And this doesn't even include all of the local small music venues or the great festivals that are put on in the area. And the new WVU art museum may be newer, but I doubt it will come close to the quality of the HMA, which also offers the only indoor plant conservatory in WV and also has an auditorium to host shows and performances. Also add in the Appalachian Film Festival that is presented each year in addition to the MAS Spring and Fall film Festivals and you've got even more going on. And this doesn't even include the things that go on over in Ashland, KY 15 minutes away. So from someone who has actually lived in both places within the last 5 years, I feel confident stating that there's more to do here in Huntington than there is in Morgantown. You can disagree if you want but do you have the experience of living in both places recently to back it up? Or are you just giving a strongly biased opinion? Either way, both places offer lots of great shows and venues and have quality entertainment to experience. Here are some links for you.
Tim
And having the experience to have actually lived in both places recently, I strongly disagree with you. The Huntington Symphony puts on a heck of a show. The number of shows you see listed on their website is only for the winter/fall season, they do another set in in the spring/summer. And if one chooses, they can also check out the MU symphony, or another local symphonic band. MU puts on 2 jazz festivals each year along with several performing arts pieces in addition to the Marshall artisits series, which in my opinion is as good or better than the WVU arts and entertainment series because it focuses on great plays and performances of the type that we don't get at the Huntington Civic Arena. Last year the Huntington Civic Arena was one of the top venues in the US when compared to others of it's size. And at least the civic arena can host circuses and tractor pulls in addition to all of the other great concerts and events they offer. Those types of events do appeal to people, even in Morgantown. I remember seeing an article talking about how people there were excited that a motocross race was taking place across the border in PA so don't act like there is no market for that type of thing up there. There's just no place to have it. You say they offer bigger concerts up there, but what performing arts venue can hold almost 9,000 people like the Arena can? And the Keith Albee holds about twice the amount of the CAC. And this doesn't even include the 3 other performing arts venues in Huntington.
Then there's the Funny Bone Comedy club that hosts some great comedians in addition to the comedians that visit the Keith Albee either through the MAS or on their own. Add to this all of the local performing arts companies like the Huntington Dance Theater, The 5th Avenue Theater Group, The First Stage Theater Group, Huntington Outdoor Theater, The Jeslyn Performing Arts Center Group, and the Arts Resources for the Tri-State and you have even more going on. And this doesn't even include all of the local small music venues or the great festivals that are put on in the area. And the new WVU art museum may be newer, but I doubt it will come close to the quality of the HMA, which also offers the only indoor plant conservatory in WV and also has an auditorium to host shows and performances. Also add in the Appalachian Film Festival that is presented each year in addition to the MAS Spring and Fall film Festivals and you've got even more going on. And this doesn't even include the things that go on over in Ashland, KY 15 minutes away. So from someone who has actually lived in both places within the last 5 years, I feel confident stating that there's more to do here in Huntington than there is in Morgantown. You can disagree if you want but do you have the experience of living in both places recently to back it up? Or are you just giving a strongly biased opinion? Either way, both places offer lots of great shows and venues and have quality entertainment to experience. Here are some links for you.
Tim
Tim ... I've lived in both cities too, as well as Wheeling and Fairmont. I've also lived in California, Ohio, New York, Connecticut, Oklahoma, Florida, and Germany. But, I've spend most of my 65 years in West Virginia and own my own place in Morgantown. I don't disagree that Huntington has some nice arts stuff. I am just stating the obvious... Morgantown's has more. It is a real, honest to God, live there University city with nearly 30,000 students.
It also draws from the entire North Central WV area as well as nearby areas in Pennsylvania and Maryland.
I really don't want to argue with you. I suspect it wouldn't do any good to do that. You have your opinion, and I have mine. I will just point out that the highlight of Huntington's arts scene this year is Sally Struthers. All 300 pounds of her. Then I'll again mention that the storied and world famous Pittsburgh Symphony performs in Morgantown. They actually list films as highlights on the Marshall Arts Series. They have films like that in Morgantown each and every night. They have choral concerts with 300 people in the choirs. Marshall's is like a barbership quartet in comparison.
There are plays and performances every week, sometimes every day, sometimes more than one at the same time. They do not have a circus nor do they have tractor pulls and the like. Huntington has the edge for things like that. However, major advantages of Morgantown include its proximity to Pittsburgh (which will be much more accessable in the near future with the new Expressway), having a beautiful State Forest and Lake right outside of town, and the fact that it is actually GROWING. It is growing much faster than Huntington, if Huntington is growing at all. A lot of people must think it is a nicer place to live for that to be the case.
By the way, Tim... I posted most of this stuff before and apparently you didn't avail yourself of the opportunity to look at them. I put some more up for you.
In addition to being chosen as one of 12 distinguished cities by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, Morgantown has won the following awards: Morgantown Awards Continue to grow
Vec, apparently we are but the difference is that his primary residence is in CT with a home in Morgantown for WVU football games. Otherwise his name would be WV Mountaineer. He claims to love Morgantown so, but where does he spend most of his time? If you don't believe enough in the city you are promoting to actually LIVE there, it doesn't add much substance to your argument.
CTM, it's funny how you like to ignore things in my posts but act like I don't read yours. I went through your links before, no need to post them again. Also, great that Morgantown has won so many awards, I'm happy for them. Most of those awards are won by looking at stats on a piece of paper rather than actually visiting the cities. Do you really think Morgantown is more "walkable" than Huntington? If you do I've got some oceanfront property for you in AZ that I'll sell. And just because the Pittsburgh or Wheeling symphonies visit each year, doesn't mean Morgantown can claim them. They could stop coming any time they wanted. The Moscow Ballet usually does a yearly performance here but it's not like they build up the Huntington area or are counted when people are looking for performing arts groups BASED in the city. What does MORGANTOWN offer, not Pittsburgh or Wheeling. I'll take 8 or 9 guaranteed performances a year from the HSO any day to 3 performances from the PSO and 1 or 2 from the WSO. That's more performances here that I can count on EVERY year. That's also 8 here to 4 there if you're counting. And did you see the credentials of the HSO conductor? Here they are incase you missed them Huntington Symphony Orchestra of Huntington, West Virginia (http://www.huntingtonsymphony.org/pages/musicians.htm - broken link) . So don't act like the HSO is small time.
And CT, Huntington is a real honest to goodness University city with 50,000 residents that draws from the entire Metro Valley as well as is the MAIN city for the areas of the surrounding states. People often drive 2 1/2+ hours to come here and shop, dine and attend other entertainment options. Also, how long ago did you live in Huntington? Was it 1992 when you got your degree from MU? So you're trying to compare the Huntington of 16 years ago to the Morgantown of today. That's why I tried to stress I've lived in both cities RECENTLY and still visit Morgantown FREQUENTLY as my wife's family lives there. I also find it funny how most of your posts revert back to comparing WVU and MU and how MU is so inferior, even to things you have no real knowledge of like choirs. I thought we were comparing cities and things to do. My bad. Also funny how I manage to build up Huntington without tearing down Morgantown but you can't seem to build up Morgantown without attempting to tear down Huntington. I could do the same and we could tear down both cities and what would we have accomplished? Let's just agree that we both have our STRONG opinions, we've posted links to build a case for those opinions and we'll let others who might move to one or the other decide which might be best for them. Your opinion isn't the end all be all, written in stone deciding factor and neither is mine for that matter. In all actuality, it's hard to truly determine which city has more. As you could see by the links I posted (if you actually read them) there's things going on in Huntington weekly, daily and even multiple things on the same day sometimes. Big concerts going on at the Keith Albee and Civic Arena on the same days as a comedy club performance and a MU football game. Huntington can make those claims too. You can also catch a train from here, ride the Greyhound somewhere from here or fly to multiple cities via direct flight from here. Each area has positives and negatives but for me and my opinion that is based on RECENT experience, Huntington has more of what I need and like. That may not be the case for you but again, that's YOUR OPINION.
Tim
Vec, apparently we are but the difference is that his primary residence is in CT with a home in Morgantown for WVU football games. Otherwise his name would be WV Mountaineer. He claims to love Morgantown so, but where does he spend most of his time? If you don't believe enough in the city you are promoting to actually LIVE there, it doesn't add much substance to your argument.
CTM, it's funny how you like to ignore things in my posts but act like I don't read yours. I went through your links before, no need to post them again. Also, great that Morgantown has won so many awards, I'm happy for them. Most of those awards are won by looking at stats on a piece of paper rather than actually visiting the cities. Do you really think Morgantown is more "walkable" than Huntington? If you do I've got some oceanfront property for you in AZ that I'll sell. And just because the Pittsburgh or Wheeling symphonies visit each year, doesn't mean Morgantown can claim them. They could stop coming any time they wanted. The Moscow Ballet usually does a yearly performance here but it's not like they build up the Huntington area or are counted when people are looking for performing arts groups BASED in the city. What does MORGANTOWN offer, not Pittsburgh or Wheeling. I'll take 8 or 9 guaranteed performances a year from the HSO any day to 3 performances from the PSO and 1 or 2 from the WSO. That's more performances here that I can count on EVERY year. That's also 8 here to 4 there if you're counting. And did you see the credentials of the HSO conductor? Here they are incase you missed them Huntington Symphony Orchestra of Huntington, West Virginia (http://www.huntingtonsymphony.org/pages/musicians.htm - broken link) . So don't act like the HSO is small time.
And CT, Huntington is a real honest to goodness University city with 50,000 residents that draws from the entire Metro Valley as well as is the MAIN city for the areas of the surrounding states. People often drive 2 1/2+ hours to come here and shop, dine and attend other entertainment options. Also, how long ago did you live in Huntington? Was it 1992 when you got your degree from MU? So you're trying to compare the Huntington of 16 years ago to the Morgantown of today. That's why I tried to stress I've lived in both cities RECENTLY and still visit Morgantown FREQUENTLY as my wife's family lives there. I also find it funny how most of your posts revert back to comparing WVU and MU and how MU is so inferior, even to things you have no real knowledge of like choirs. I thought we were comparing cities and things to do. My bad. Also funny how I manage to build up Huntington without tearing down Morgantown but you can't seem to build up Morgantown without attempting to tear down Huntington. I could do the same and we could tear down both cities and what would we have accomplished? Let's just agree that we both have our STRONG opinions, we've posted links to build a case for those opinions and we'll let others who might move to one or the other decide which might be best for them. Your opinion isn't the end all be all, written in stone deciding factor and neither is mine for that matter. In all actuality, it's hard to truly determine which city has more. As you could see by the links I posted (if you actually read them) there's things going on in Huntington weekly, daily and even multiple things on the same day sometimes. Big concerts going on at the Keith Albee and Civic Arena on the same days as a comedy club performance and a MU football game. Huntington can make those claims too. You can also catch a train from here, ride the Greyhound somewhere from here or fly to multiple cities via direct flight from here. Each area has positives and negatives but for me and my opinion that is based on RECENT experience, Huntington has more of what I need and like. That may not be the case for you but again, that's YOUR OPINION.
Tim
Tim , No offense intended, but how in the world would you know how the awards were awarded? Forbes Magazine looking at stats only? I don't think so. You seem to want to dilude yourself into believing that Morgantown really is all that good. But thousands of people moving there can't all be wrong. And, I don't see them moving to Huntington. Maybe that says something about that place. What do you think?
I have homes both places and family both places. I spend about the same amount of time, but I do tend to try to make my time in Morgantown co-incide with Mountaineer football or basketball. Do you blame me? WVU has one of the outstanding athletic programs in the whole country. The public part of Morgantown is more walkable than Huntington. That is what they are talking about, not the residential areas in the hills. Plus, there are many miles of rail trails in the region that transect the city. Next time you are home, avail yourself of the opportunity to walk along the Mon down in the Wharf District and along Don Knotts Boulevard.
I haven't been in Huntington this year, it's true. I was there four times last year to attend football games and visit with friends. I'm trying to envision all those thousands of people driving 3 hours to get there but having a hard time doing it. The reason is Edwards stadium was largely empty for the events I attended except when it was filled to overflowing with Mountaineer fans for the second edition of the series thumping of the Herd. There were actually a lot of people in downtown Huntington that night too.
From what I see, Marshall doesn't have significantly more students now than they did when I was there, and most of them went home every night then. I doubt it is significantly different now.
I actually do know about choirs. I participated in one for many years. And, I am not trying to infer that Marshall is inferior. Like I said before, it is different... not better or worse. We are comparing the two cities, and my point is that the sheer size of WVU results in a different level of offering and a different number of them. When you have 25,000 students living there 24/7 in Morgantown vs. maybe 3,000 for Marshall I think that is understandable.
And don't look for the Pittsburgh Symphony to stop going to Morgantown any time soon. The real purpose of a symphony is to make money for those who operate and play music in them, and the Morgantown concerts are very well attended, thus they are money makers. They will likely do even more things like that as the population continues to grow.
In Morgantown, if you build it they will come. In Huntington, they try building it but they still don't come. Then they try lowering the price, drastically, and they still don't come. So, in typical Walmart fashion they bring in a low cost alternative new product that results in less money for the other products so those that come for it barely offset those who stop coming for the others.
Tim , No offense intended, but how in the world would you know how the awards were awarded? Forbes Magazine looking at stats only? I don't think so. You seem to want to dilude yourself into believing that Morgantown really is all that good. But thousands of people moving there can't all be wrong. And, I don't see them moving to Huntington. Maybe that says something about that place. What do you think?
I know this because when you look at the Forbes data, there are little numbers by the titles of the rows called superscripts. These superscripts refer to a key at the bottom of the page. This is what the key says "1 Measure of 4-year colleges in area with extra credit for highly rated schools. 2 Index based on cost of labor, energy, taxes and office space. 3 Index based on cost of housing, utilities, transportation and other expenditures. 4 Crimes per 100,000 residents. 5 Index based on museums, theaters, golf course, sports teams and other activities. 6 Share of Population over age 25 with a bachelor's degree or higher. * 5-year annualized figures. Sources: Economy.com; Sperling's BestPlaces" Those are called statistics and they may or may not weight each category to form the list. Here is how Forbes did the list for best places for jobs:
"To compile the rankings for the Best Cities For Jobs list forecast, we used five data points, weighted equally: the state's unemployment rate, job growth, income growth, median household income and cost of living for full-year 2006 (only partial data is available so far for 2007). We measured the largest 100 metropolitan areas, as defined by the U.S. Census Bureau, and obtained the data from Moody's Economy.com."
So would Forbes look at stats only? I think so. And if you notice, Huntington and Morgantown aren't even in the same categories. Huntington is a large metro area and Morgantown is a small metro area. Huntington is also ranked ahead of Cincinatti, OH; St. Paul, MN and Chicago, IL. Does this mean Huntington is better than these places? No, it doesn't. It just means Huntington is a better place for businesses and careers at this point in time. Also, based on you assertion of population growth as the main stat you want to use, Morgantown's success is fairly recent. They lost 1,471 (-5.2%) people in the 1990s and the recent growth has been, as you said, because of WVU. So while that does mean more people are looking to WVU for jobs and schooling, it doesn't necesssarily mean they are moving there because of Morgantown. And thousands of people moving to Morgantown? I gave you this stat before but it was only 94 people last year. That's not even hundreds let alone thousands. Here's Huntington's Forbes page for you too just incase you wanted to look (we were ranked in the top 100 large metros by the way). #100 Huntington WV - Forbes.com
Quote:
Originally Posted by CTMountaineer
The public part of Morgantown is more walkable than Huntington. That is what they are talking about, not the residential areas in the hills. Plus, there are many miles of rail trails in the region that transect the city. Next time you are home, avail yourself of the opportunity to walk along the Mon down in the Wharf District and along Don Knotts Boulevard.
The walking list was compiled using data such as the number of parks, the number of people who walk to work from their homes (AKA residential areas), etc. Huntington has the 2nd highest number of people who walk to work along with one of the highest (if not the highest) number of parks in the city. So the list compared more than the main parts of the downtowns. And do you really think downtown Morgantown is more walkable than downtown Huntington? Maybe because it's smaller but Huntington is the flattest city in the state.
Quote:
Originally Posted by CTMountaineer
I haven't been in Huntington this year, it's true. I was there four times last year to attend football games and visit with friends. I'm trying to envision all those thousands of people driving 3 hours to get there but having a hard time doing it. The reason is Edwards stadium was largely empty for the events I attended except when it was filled to overflowing with Mountaineer fans for the second edition of the series thumping of the Herd. There were actually a lot of people in downtown Huntington that night too.
From what I see, Marshall doesn't have significantly more students now than they did when I was there, and most of them went home every night then. I doubt it is significantly different now.
I actually do know about choirs. I participated in one for many years. And, I am not trying to infer that Marshall is inferior. Like I said before, it is different... not better or worse. We are comparing the two cities, and my point is that the sheer size of WVU results in a different level of offering and a different number of them. When you have 25,000 students living there 24/7 in Morgantown vs. maybe 3,000 for Marshall I think that is understandable.
There you go again, making this an MU vs WVU thing. Funny how you only used the numbers for the schools and not the population of the cities or their MSAs, since we are comparing cities. Just to add those in, Huntington has about 50,000 residents with 285,000 in the MSA. Morgantown has about 30,000 residents with 116,000 in the MSA. That's a much bigger difference than the 13,000 more students that WVU has when compared to Marshall. When you look at residents and MSAs, you're also looking at the number of people there year round. Also, do you have a link for where you got your residents to commuter stats? I'd like to see that.
Quote:
Originally Posted by CTMountaineer
In Morgantown, if you build it they will come. In Huntington, they try building it but they still don't come. Then they try lowering the price, drastically, and they still don't come. So, in typical Walmart fashion they bring in a low cost alternative new product that results in less money for the other products so those that come for it barely offset those who stop coming for the others.
I assume again that you are indirectly referring (you seem to like to do that) to MU and WVU since the MU=Wal-Mart is something WVU fans often like to use and I think I've seen you use it before too. I also doubt that you are referring to Huntington since it is moving up most of the lists you like to quote and things seem to be doing quite good here. Huntington moved 30 places up the Forbes list last year. Also, many of the restuarants at Pullman have also been either the top in the chain (Max & Erma's) or in the top 10 (Coldstone). Many local restaurants have also expanded or new ones have opened. A Columbus business man also opened a new restaurant here called Frankie D's (this is the first one) with plans to add other franchises across the country. The Chico's here also had the largest single day opening for a store ever and the other retail store down there report yearly increases in sales. The theater at Pullman is also one of the top 1000 in the nation. Not to shabby for places where "people don't come" as you say. And it just keeps getting better downtown as they continue to do massive street scape work and or reworking 4th Ave to be better than it's been before. Again, I'll stick with Huntington any day.
Tim
I am not at all trying to get into this "Civil War" (good one, by the way, Vec--I tried to rate your post positively, but was informed that I need to spread the wealth)...You both make good points and yadda, yadda, yadda. I love Morgantown and am trying to warm up to Huntington now that I call this area my home. Tim, my question is for you:
"People often drive 2 1/2+ hours to come here and shop, dine and attend other entertainment options."
Seriously? I am not at all refuting your premise; I just find that shocking. Where are these people coming from: eastern Kentucky, south and east of Charleston? As you know, I recently relocated to the southern part of the state, so my question stems from ignorance--I am not intimately familiar with the geography, demographics (DMA), and opportunities in southern WV / eastern KY yet. What is the main motivation for these people: the mall? Also, I have read your posts many times and find you to be one of the best and most thoughtful posters that frequent this site. You don't need to find an article or website to "prove" your assertion (although it is appreciated in your other posts)...From your reputation, I trust you on your word. Again, I am only asking because I am shocked and ignorant.
I know this because when you look at the Forbes data, there are little numbers by the titles of the rows called superscripts. These superscripts refer to a key at the bottom of the page. This is what the key says "1 Measure of 4-year colleges in area with extra credit for highly rated schools. 2 Index based on cost of labor, energy, taxes and office space. 3 Index based on cost of housing, utilities, transportation and other expenditures. 4 Crimes per 100,000 residents. 5 Index based on museums, theaters, golf course, sports teams and other activities. 6 Share of Population over age 25 with a bachelor's degree or higher. * 5-year annualized figures. Sources: Economy.com; Sperling's BestPlaces" Those are called statistics and they may or may not weight each category to form the list. Here is how Forbes did the list for best places for jobs:
"To compile the rankings for the Best Cities For Jobs list forecast, we used five data points, weighted equally: the state's unemployment rate, job growth, income growth, median household income and cost of living for full-year 2006 (only partial data is available so far for 2007). We measured the largest 100 metropolitan areas, as defined by the U.S. Census Bureau, and obtained the data from Moody's Economy.com."
So would Forbes look at stats only? I think so. And if you notice, Huntington and Morgantown aren't even in the same categories. Huntington is a large metro area and Morgantown is a small metro area. Huntington is also ranked ahead of Cincinatti, OH; St. Paul, MN and Chicago, IL. Does this mean Huntington is better than these places? No, it doesn't. It just means Huntington is a better place for businesses and careers at this point in time. Also, based on you assertion of population growth as the main stat you want to use, Morgantown's success is fairly recent. They lost 1,471 (-5.2%) people in the 1990s and the recent growth has been, as you said, because of WVU. So while that does mean more people are looking to WVU for jobs and schooling, it doesn't necesssarily mean they are moving there because of Morgantown. And thousands of people moving to Morgantown? I gave you this stat before but it was only 94 people last year. That's not even hundreds let alone thousands. Here's Huntington's Forbes page for you too just incase you wanted to look (we were ranked in the top 100 large metros by the way). #100 Huntington WV - Forbes.com
The walking list was compiled using data such as the number of parks, the number of people who walk to work from their homes (AKA residential areas), etc. Huntington has the 2nd highest number of people who walk to work along with one of the highest (if not the highest) number of parks in the city. So the list compared more than the main parts of the downtowns. And do you really think downtown Morgantown is more walkable than downtown Huntington? Maybe because it's smaller but Huntington is the flattest city in the state.
There you go again, making this an MU vs WVU thing. Funny how you only used the numbers for the schools and not the population of the cities or their MSAs, since we are comparing cities. Just to add those in, Huntington has about 50,000 residents with 285,000 in the MSA. Morgantown has about 30,000 residents with 116,000 in the MSA. That's a much bigger difference than the 13,000 more students that WVU has when compared to Marshall. When you look at residents and MSAs, you're also looking at the number of people there year round. Also, do you have a link for where you got your residents to commuter stats? I'd like to see that.
I assume again that you are indirectly referring (you seem to like to do that) to MU and WVU since the MU=Wal-Mart is something WVU fans often like to use and I think I've seen you use it before too. I also doubt that you are referring to Huntington since it is moving up most of the lists you like to quote and things seem to be doing quite good here. Huntington moved 30 places up the Forbes list last year. Also, many of the restuarants at Pullman have also been either the top in the chain (Max & Erma's) or in the top 10 (Coldstone). Many local restaurants have also expanded or new ones have opened. A Columbus business man also opened a new restaurant here called Frankie D's (this is the first one) with plans to add other franchises across the country. The Chico's here also had the largest single day opening for a store ever and the other retail store down there report yearly increases in sales. The theater at Pullman is also one of the top 1000 in the nation. Not to shabby for places where "people don't come" as you say. And it just keeps getting better downtown as they continue to do massive street scape work and or reworking 4th Ave to be better than it's been before. Again, I'll stick with Huntington any day.
Tim
Let's assume you are right, and Forbes only considered statistical data. Looking at what they consider to be important, it sounds pretty reasonable to me. Crimes, housing, ratings of colleges, etc. would be a good measure anywhere. In fact, for Morgantown to be so highly ranked when those factors were considered is a tribute to how desirable the city is as a place to live. But, the biggest tribute of all is the growth rate. Huntington doesn't really have a growth rate, so it's difficult to measure the two together. I suppose we could consider Morgantown's growth rate verses Huntington's loss rate?
You say the two are in different categories? Maybe. But the point is Huntington is not highly rated in any category. The fact that some other areas are declining at a more rapid rate than Huntington is beside the point. I have a hunch that after the next census they will be in the same category, and that the census following Huntington will remain in the lower category while Morgantown moves to the higher one. It's all conjecture at this point, but the trends certainly indicate that will be the case.
I'm not sure how you feel you know why people are moving to Morgantown. Do you even know the people who have moved there besides me? People are moving there for lots of reasons. The reasons vary from person to person. WVU is a major reason. Job opportunities are more reasons. Low crime rate is another reason. Great business climate yet another. Being around a very high concentration of highly educated people still another. If Huntington were so great they would be rated highly in those areas too... they are not. Maybe they will be someday, who knows? They currently are not rated highly. If they were, people would be flocking to move there instead of leaving. I don't know what your major was in college, but I suspect you know that supply and demand are the major indicators of what is hot, and what is not. Morgantown is in demand. Huntington is not in demand. End of story.
Here's an article posted just today about Morgantown's situation:
The Daily Athenaeum: Morgantown booming despite national economic slowdown (http://www.da.wvu.edu/show_article.php?story_id=40397&archive_date=2008-11-06 - broken link)
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I Also Know Both Cities
but the difference is that his primary residence is in CT with a home in Morgantown for WVU football games. Otherwise his name would be WV Mountaineer. He claims to love Morgantown so, but where does he spend most of his time? If you don't believe enough in the city you are promoting to actually LIVE there, it doesn't add much substance to your argument.
That may not be the case for you but again, that's YOUR OPINION.
