Charleston vs Morgantown

[NOVAmtneer82]

Originally Posted by sharper5

Ive been sort of monitoring this thread since Silk started it, since I was the guy touting Morgantown over Charleston, but I just wanted to add something that I feel, IMO of course, is wrong in the last post. Ive been to concernts in the Municipal audotorium and civic center. The Creative Arts Center and The Coliseum are far better. In fact, I saw the same act, Ron White, at the CAC and the Municipal Auditorium. The CAC performance was much better. Also, the Coliseum is nice as well. In Morgantown, in September alone, I have seen the Fray, Akon, Kellie Pickler, Third Eye Blind and Girl Talk. Thats not even factoring in the acts that come to Pittsburgh.

Are you honestly going to make the argument that the CAC and the Coliseum are better venues than the Clay Center, Culture Center, Civic Center, Municipal Auditorium, etc?That is certainly your opinion and you are entitled to it but let me just say you are the first person I have ever heard say that...with the exception of CT.

Morgantown has 28,000 college students so of course every now and then they are going to get a few shows that Charleston or even Huntington doesn't get. Hell they've even had shows there that haven't come to the DC area on the same tour. I hope you aren't going to try and tell me that the cultural offerings are better in Motown than here. The Fray always does several shows every year at various college campuses and WVU happened to be on their list this year...along with Carthage College, Arkansas State, University of Rhode Island, Penn State, and the University of Illinois.

And again just to reiterate.. Morgantown is not Pittsburgh. Neither is Wheeling. Neither is Weirton. Just like Martinsburg is not DC.

Believe me I'm not claiming Charleston blows Morgantown out of the water on everything but it is simply illogical to make the claim that because the Fray, Akon (which was for FallFest), Kellie Pickler (also FallFest), and Third Eye Blind (yep..also FallFest) came to town that the cultural offerings are superior. Do you honestly think if Morgantown didn't have a major university there that those acts would even consider?

For a city of Charleston's size the Clay Center does get some decent Broadway shows and musical choices. The West Virginia Symphony Orchestra is based in Charleston and they always put on a nice show. Friends of Old Time Music and Dance is housed at the Culture Center and they always bring in nice acts ranging from Celtic to Appalachian to African steel drum bands. I've even come home from the DC area to see some of their shows. Let's not forget Mountain Stage which is based out of Charleston although yes they DID do one show in Morgantown recently. I don't think Morgantown has a major arts festival like FestivALL in Charleston either during the summer...because the town loses half of its population.

The offerings in Huntington that Tbailey posted aren't anything to scoff at either. I remember when I was younger the Big Sandy Superstore Arena getting concerts that nobody else in the state got as well.

[NOVAmtneer82]

Originally Posted by CTMountaineer

Dom... all one has to do is walk around the two towns (Morgantown and Charleston) in the evening to see the difference. Charleston largely dies at nightime but Morgantown is bustling. The barometer as to what is more desireable can be read by where people want to be... and Morgantown is clearly the answer. I'm not saying that as anything negative toward Charleston, but the era of manufacturing prosperity in this country is past and the better paying jobs associated with those activities are on the wane. You do still find "assembly" plant jobs to some degree, but those don't really replace the losses due to the elitists dual quest of cheap labor and bogus environmental ripoffs of our middle class.

Charleston's staple of state government employment is significant, and it does help offset some of the losses in better paying sectors affording a stability not found in most towns. But, they are STATE government jobs in a state that is kept poor by stupid politics as usual and internal bickering and jealousy. Political pork barreling will insure an inefficient allocation of already scarce resources and keep the general tax base artificially low. Those jobs for the most part provide a subsistence level existence.

There are actually not many towns in West Virginia that can compete with Charleston due to the state government stability. However, the topic of this thread is a comparison between Charleston and one of the only towns that can not only surpass it for stability but exceed it for potential. Morgantown's academic based employment pays on average better wages... college faculty and researchers are very highly paid by West Virginia standards, and the medical personnel at the major teaching/research hospitals associated with The University make very good salaries. In addition, the related industrial production at Mylan is not only going great guns... it is expanding.

In addition, the government jobs in the Morgantown region (many workers from the Morgantown area) are mostly Federal jobs that pay much higher wages than those in Charleston. There are more than 1,000 workers in Morgantown area Federal prisons, not to mention the Federal jobs in nearby Fairmont and Clarksburg.

The University is in growth mode in nearly every facit, even with the Nation's and State's economic downturn. That is not to say the area has not lost jobs because of the downturn... it has. What it says is that in spite of those losses it has gained far more jobs than it has lost.

Everyone likes their hometown. I can't tell you how much it hurt to see the gradual decline of the once proud and prosperous City of Wheeling... which as recently as the 70s was the State's primary economic engine. It is now less than half of what it was once. The whole Northern Panhandle is a big ghost town. And, I can understand those who stand by their Kanawha County, wanting to believe in it's continued prosperity and greatness. But, folks, Charleston ain't what it used to be and indications are it will be even less than it currently is in the coming years. There aren't enough horses in state government to stem the outward flow, and artificially expanding the borders just to keep demographics will not alter the downward trend in reality.

And, as to cultural events and opportunities... come on. Do you really believe the Clay Center can match the University City in those areas. It isn't even close.

Arts&Entertainment - West Virginia University

WVU Calendar

WVU College of Creative Arts | Facebook

http://www.morgantown.com/buttons/events-title.gif

Greater Morgantown Convention and Visitors Bureau

http://www.msnsportsnet.com/images/topWVLogo2.jpg

Morgantown Awards Continue to grow

Coopers Rock State Forest - A West Virginia State Park

CheatLake.com -- The online guide to Cheat Lake and Morgantown, WV

There are 100 places to eat and dozens of art galleries in Morgantown.

In comparison, Charleston boasts the annual Chile tasting contest and a Regata, along with some of the same shows and acts you can find in Morgantown. And, Charleston is nowhere close to a large city.

You are right that improving the infrastructure will be a major challenge. Taking down most of the buildings on the river side of Beechurst and expanding that road would help. They can also make 705 four lanes all the way to Mileground, and use lighted arrows to control traffic flow during peak traffic areas there. Don Knotts can be expanded all the way to the I60 connector with relatively little difficulty. And new highway construction in the West Run area is essential with a connection to US19. We're actually in pretty good shape in the Star City area.

Again I'm not saying Charleston is perfect, obviously the employment situation in my field wasn't good enough (IMO) to justify me staying there. But then again it wasn't in Morgantown either.

I get that you really like Morgantown and there is nothing wrong with that but sometimes you accuse other people of distorting facts and then do the same thing. I went to school in Morgantown for four years and go back to visit often..I have NEVER seen "dozens" of art galleries in Morgantown. And downtown Morgantown is bustling at night because hordes of drunk college students (I was one of them, believe me) stumble out of dorms and walk a few blocks to the many dive bars up and down High Street. Most of those same bars don't even stay open during the summer. Charleston isn't exactly a nightlife mecca but at least it has plenty of decent places like Bar 101, the Vault, Sams, Blue Parrot, Vandalia, Impulse, etc to keep people there satisfied. And 80 percent of their patrons aren't under the age of 21 either.

And yes Charleston had a CHILI (not Chile the country) cookoff but as tbailey mentioned earlier you were touting a biker rally in Morgantown. I think I know which one I would chose and it certainly wouldn't be the latter.

I am really shocked also for someone that has lived in the NYC area that you think traffic in Morgantown is that bad. You must live VERY far away from the city because as someone used to the constantly gridlocked state of DC area roadways I just don't see it. Why should Charleston plow tons of money on roads for a place that only has "bad traffic" during the school year. I-64 between Charleston and Huntington is just as congested if not worse than anything in Morgantown for comparison.

I'm not even going to go into the state worker argument because it makes no sense. Yes there are plenty of lowly paid state employees but there are also plenty of very high salaries (relative to the area at least) at the Capitol complex. I don't see how someone working at a federal prison is anymore worthy of recognition than someone who works in the Department of Highways, or the DMV, or the DEP, etc. They are all state and federal agencies.

[sharper5]

NOVA- I wasnt saying they are better. But I believe that someone said that Morgantown didnt have anything like the Municipal Auditorium or the Civic Center. I was just pointing out that they were there. Since they are WVU related, I thought people might not have thought of them. I dont know which is better, honestly, there is no way to probably determine. All Im saying is I saw the same act in both places and the CAC was better. I honestly thought the Municipal Auditorium was awful. Thes seats were old and there was no leg room. The acoustics were not that good either from what I remember.

I know that Morgantown isnt Pittsburgh, but when the issue is where is a better place to live, I dont think you can look at in a vacuum. Pittsburgh is an hour away from Morgantown and that plays a factor. Major sporting events, an International Airport and great concerts are just an hour away from Morgantown. An hour away from Charleston is . . . Beckley? Parkersburg?

[Threerun]

Best Places to Launch a Small Business 2009 - Morgantown, WV - FORTUNE Small Business

MSA: Morgantown, WV
Best places ranking: #7 among small metro areas
Population: 118,506

Morgantown has the convenience of a city with the appeal of a small town. West Virginia University, which is Monongalia County's largest employer, generates much of the city's business activity. WVU's Business Incubator nurtures startups, and the university also provides clientele and an educated workforce.
Major retailers and restaurant chains have made inroads into Morgantown in the past five years. Still, local business owners say Morgantown remains a small, supportive community. The one thing Morgantown lacks is a major airport. However, the city is not far from Pittsburgh, which lies 75 miles north, and Washington, D.C., is only a few hours' drive away. Local perks include abundant outdoor leisure activities, including white water rafting and hiking.

[Threerun]

Inc. 500|5000 Search Results

Shows Inc's fastest growing 5000 companies. I sorted the list over the past 5 years, zeroing on WV companies. Interesting.

[CTMountaineer]

Originally Posted by NOVAmtneer82

Again I'm not saying Charleston is perfect, obviously the employment situation in my field wasn't good enough (IMO) to justify me staying there. But then again it wasn't in Morgantown either.

I get that you really like Morgantown and there is nothing wrong with that but sometimes you accuse other people of distorting facts and then do the same thing. I went to school in Morgantown for four years and go back to visit often..I have NEVER seen "dozens" of art galleries in Morgantown. And downtown Morgantown is bustling at night because hordes of drunk college students (I was one of them, believe me) stumble out of dorms and walk a few blocks to the many dive bars up and down High Street. Most of those same bars don't even stay open during the summer. Charleston isn't exactly a nightlife mecca but at least it has plenty of decent places like Bar 101, the Vault, Sams, Blue Parrot, Vandalia, Impulse, etc to keep people there satisfied. And 80 percent of their patrons aren't under the age of 21 either.

And yes Charleston had a CHILI (not Chile the country) cookoff but as tbailey mentioned earlier you were touting a biker rally in Morgantown. I think I know which one I would chose and it certainly wouldn't be the latter.

I am really shocked also for someone that has lived in the NYC area that you think traffic in Morgantown is that bad. You must live VERY far away from the city because as someone used to the constantly gridlocked state of DC area roadways I just don't see it. Why should Charleston plow tons of money on roads for a place that only has "bad traffic" during the school year. I-64 between Charleston and Huntington is just as congested if not worse than anything in Morgantown for comparison.

I'm not even going to go into the state worker argument because it makes no sense. Yes there are plenty of lowly paid state employees but there are also plenty of very high salaries (relative to the area at least) at the Capitol complex. I don't see how someone working at a federal prison is anymore worthy of recognition than someone who works in the Department of Highways, or the DMV, or the DEP, etc. They are all state and federal agencies.

I worked for 16 years for the State of WV. Believe me, there aren't very many high salaries on that payroll. I also worked for the State of NY for more than a decade. Only the very highest paid employees in WV make what ordinary workers make in NY State. WV public salaries are available on the web if you care to check them out. You are correct that the NYC traffic is far worse, but we are talking in relative terms here. This thread is comparing West Virginia towns, all of which are small towns. For a small town, Morgantown's traffic is horrific and it is mostly the State's fault. It is state numbered highways that are inadequately maintained.

You're right, I got a bit carried away when I said "dozens" of art galleries. I really hadn't stopped to count them. There are a number of art galleries in town. Here are some of them...

Arts in the Area

They are building a new, multi million dollar art gallery at The University in the coming year. I realize that Charleston, Huntington, and Wheeling get some decent acts, but overall Morgantown gets better ones and yes, it has to do with the 29,000 students who live there too. No doubt about that. And, nothing against the Big Sandy or the Civic Center, but the Coliseum is larger and better except as Bailey will point out, they won't allow tractor pull events there.