Atlanta's not a world class city[CL Article] (Washington, Morgan: 2015, live)

[Pemgin]

...Cool pics bro.

Is Atlanta "world class?" If the standard is NYC, Paris, or London, then no. But what's undeniable is that Atlanta has grown from a small provincial southern city to a major global city in just a few decades. That's damn impressive and I think it has a bright future.

[AtlantaIsHot]

Originally Posted by 2Easy

San Francisco 1906 after the earthquake

San Francisco was already a sizeable city of almost 400,000 people with an established highly urbanized development pattern. Atlanta was a small town of 9,000. No valid comparison exists between the two disasters.

[AtlantaIsHot]

Originally Posted by MathmanMathman

But supposedly, both were destroyed and had to "start over". Right?

They were heavily damaged but not destroyed just like Atlanta wasn't destroyed entirely. The populations of all mostly returned and began to rebuild almost immediately. Berlin and London were much larger than Atlanta at the time they were damaged. London and Berlin had already developed into urban areas before the automobile came. Those cities were ALWAYS urban because that's the way cities developed before the age of the automobile, suburbia, and highways.

[EarlofCardigan]

Deleted

[AtlantaIsHot]

Originally Posted by EarlofCardigan

That 's part of it, though.

The other parts are that it lacks world-class museums, operas, and ballets. It's not an international political center or media center. Indeed, even CNN had basically jumped ship for NY.

It has no internationally-known landmarks, and it doesn't even have a grand urban shopping district; instead, it has a mall. Atlanta is awesome, but it's not remotely world-class.

You are not quite correct in your claims. Atlanta has two world class museums in the High and the Carlos. The Atlanta Opera has won several awards. It also has an awarded Ballet. It doesn't have enough though, I'll give you that.

New York is not a political center either but that doesn't stop it.

Atlanta actually IS still a major media center. Only N.Y. and L.A. are ahead of it in terms of cable, internet, and satellite transmissions. CNN is still there and so is TBS superstation and the Turner media empire (HLN, Cartoon Network, TCM, TNT, Adult Swim, TruTV, Boomerang). Atlanta remains the broadcasting headquarters for The Weather Channel as well. Atlanta is also a hub of music and is regarded as the new Motown. In addition, it is a major TV and radio broadcasting hub for the southeast.

Atlanta is a world class city but it's not of the stature of New York and likely won't ever be. There is usually only ONE city that is the "capital" of that country. London has no competition in the U.K. and Paris has no competition in France and Tokyo has no competition in Japan. Germany is a little of an exception as it has Berlin, Frankfurt, Munich, and Hamburg which all seem to have world class features.

[EarlofCardigan]

Atlanta's lack of dramatic new buildings also is an issue. When I was in NY , I observed a boom in 1,000+ Foot towers that are being built. They even have a 1,550' tower under construction, together with around 5 in the 1,200' to 1,400' range, and around 5 in the 1,000' range that are under construction. In fact, they're building something called Hudson Yards which is bigger than most cities' entire downtowns.

My point is: they don't need to ask if they're world- class. It's unmistakable.

[EarlofCardigan]

Originally Posted by Pemgin

...Cool pics bro.

Is Atlanta "world class?" If the standard is NYC, Paris, or London, then no. But what's undeniable is that Atlanta has grown from a small provincial southern city to a major global city in just a few decades. That's damn impressive and I think it has a bright future.

I agree.

[Mutiny77]

Originally Posted by AtlantaIsHot

New York is not a political center either but that doesn't stop it.

Ummm....

Welcome to the United Nations

[EarlofCardigan]

I was just about to write the same thing. NY is the only city in the world that hosts every single world leader at the same time each year when the UN General Assembly.

[Pemgin]

Originally Posted by EarlofCardigan

Atlanta's lack of dramatic new buildings also is an issue. When I was in NY , I observed a boom in 1,000+ Foot towers that are being built. They even have a 1,550' tower under construction, together with around 5 in the 1,200' to 1,400' range, and around 5 in the 1,000' range that are under construction. In fact, they're building something called Hudson Yards which is bigger than most cities' entire downtowns.

My point is: they don't need to ask if they're world- class. It's unmistakable.

Enormous buildings don't really add much to a city's quality of life. Projects like the Beltline and the human scale development going on around it are more transformative for a city than adding a few supertalls to the skyline, IMO.

Lack of shiny new skyscrapers doesn't take anything away from a city. Cities like Doha, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen have built a lot of dramatic buildings lately, and they don't have as high a stature as Atlanta. Washington, D.C. is one of the most powerful cities in the world and it doesn't have skyscrapers. Besides, the next five years could be amazing for Atlanta's skyline, especially if 98 14th Street is fully realized.