Does anyone else think Baltimore is one of the most underrated cities in the US? (Dundalk: condos, hotel)

[tcave360]

Bmore can be cool sometimes. I have a LOT of dislikes about it but there are some things I like about the place, so I'll highlight my likes instead for the sake of the thread's positivity.

Me being a devout seafood lover, Bmore is the best in the Northeast/Mid-Atlantic. DC does great seafood and I know Boston does it well, especially having access to the well-known seafaring culture of New England in general, but Bmore deserves a pedestal on this one.

I love the architecture.

I like some of the neighborhoods such as Mount Vernon (my most favorite), Fells Point, Midtown-Belvedere, Bolton Hill, Harbor East, Inner Harbor, Little Italy, Roland Park, Patterson Park, Canton, and Charles Village.

Passionate sports fans that you can't help but enjoy. I always enjoy the Battle of the Beltway showdowns (Being born and raised in the DC-Maryland suburbs I live and die by my Skins, Nats, Wiz Kids, Caps, United but I personally don't have any animosity towards the Ravens and O's...At least not on the level towards the Dogboys, Sqeagles, Graves, and Filthies ). Looking forward to a possible Nats vs. O's World Series

The randomness of Bmore can be interesting at times....

I really like 92Q. I like WPGC and WKYS but I find 92Q refreshing for some reason, probably because it's not as typical mainstream to me as most Hip Hop stations in the country.

Bmore has some pretty good Italian, Greek, Russian, Polish, German, and Pub food.

Camden Yards.

I really like the fact that both the football and baseball stadiums are literally right next to each other (Nats Stadium will finally have a companion within the next 8 years with United's new stadium being planned for the Navy Yard neighborhood in DC).

Penn Station looks nice. Not as grand as Union Station but it looks nice.

That funny ass 'Hon' talk lol. It can be annoying but it can be cute at the same time I guess

The borderline Midwestern level of friendliness.

The quintessential City of Neighborhoods (some claim Bmore does it even better than Philly).

King Los (great Hip Hop artist and he's married to homegirl Lola Monroe so he gets further props for that ).

R&B Singer Mario.

Michael Phelps (sucks about that DUI...).

Some good movies and television shows were filmed up there such as Hairspray and The Wire.

Johns Hopkins is a world class hospital and medical school.

Just like DC and Philly, Bmore has a pretty good college town vibe.

Overall, there are some things that I like about Baltimore and whether or not it is underrated is entirely up to you.

[tcave360]

Originally Posted by dogpark

I don't know Cleveland well. Seems to me Baltimore is doing well comparatively due to Hopkins as the largest employer and the proximity to federal jobs. What does Cleveland have similarly?

Another thing I like a lot about Baltimore is that I can be at the beach or the mountains in 3 hours give or take.

I believe health/medical care has a pretty big presence in Cleveland's economy as well.

[trickymost]

Originally Posted by dogpark

I don't know Cleveland well. Seems to me Baltimore is doing well comparatively due to Hopkins as the largest employer and the proximity to federal jobs. What does Cleveland have similarly?

Another thing I like a lot about Baltimore is that I can be at the beach or the mountains in 3 hours give or take.

The last statement is true for the entire east coast, not only Baltimore.

Baltimore's other under-reported problem on this thread is the state business taxes are too high relative to its neighbors in Delaware and in Virginia.

Baltimore is too expensive for most companies to have a meaningful presence. If a company is in a position to locate elsewhere, they will. Look at the flood of businesses relocating to N. Virginia, where everything is less, from taxes on the businesses to taxes on individual income.

I see Baltimore as treading water, a testament to the old real estate tenet "location, location, location". If Baltimore were not so centrally located in the mid-Atlantic, it would've devolved into Detroit long ago.

Baltimore's problems are completely tractable. Cut the city property tax in half (or greater), give incentives to all sized businesses to set up shop in the city (so effective tax rates are on par with VA), give things 3-5 years, and the city and surrounding counties will be awash in growth.

[feck]

"Baltimore is too expensive for most companies to have a meaningful presence. If a company is in a position to locate elsewhere, they will. Look at the flood of businesses relocating to N. Virginia, where everything is less, from taxes on the businesses to taxes on individual income."

Baltimore City government can attract business if it so desires. Look at the attention lavished on the
casino that opened in its downtown recently. The city government even "borrowed" money earmarked
for another project to take care of a last minute issue that was entirely the responsibility of the casino.

[trickymost]

A casino is not the sort of business I meant and proves my point.

A casino is a tourist attraction at best and a convenience for gamblers at worst. It doesn't make people decide to relocate and put roots down.

[dogpark]

Originally Posted by trickymost

The last statement is true for the entire east coast, not only Baltimore.

Baltimore's other under-reported problem on this thread is the state business taxes are too high relative to its neighbors in Delaware and in Virginia.

Baltimore is too expensive for most companies to have a meaningful presence. If a company is in a position to locate elsewhere, they will. Look at the flood of businesses relocating to N. Virginia, where everything is less, from taxes on the businesses to taxes on individual income.

I see Baltimore as treading water, a testament to the old real estate tenet "location, location, location". If Baltimore were not so centrally located in the mid-Atlantic, it would've devolved into Detroit long ago.

Baltimore's problems are completely tractable. Cut the city property tax in half (or greater), give incentives to all sized businesses to set up shop in the city (so effective tax rates are on par with VA), give things 3-5 years, and the city and surrounding counties will be awash in growth.

I hear you loud and clear and have advocated on this forum and others for Bmore to cut property taxes to spur reinvestment (the Curley effect).

Keep in mind though that while MD is facing a $405M shortfall and write down for the coming year's budget, VA is in a much deeper hole. While VA has undoubtedly lured some business away from MD (remember the ill fated tax on computer services? No wonder Booz Allen and Northrup Grumman made moves) and pushes some others out (Barretta), VA ain't a bed of roses either. Oddly enough Texas is an economic powerhouse right now with lots of tech, biotech and energy there.

[Infinite_heights77]

This is a fire I started and can't extinguish it!!!

[B.K.]

Originally Posted by trickymost

A casino is not the sort of business I meant and proves my point.

A casino is a tourist attraction at best and a convenience for gamblers at worst. It doesn't make people decide to relocate and put roots down.

Eggs-ackley!
Putting in another Planet Hollywood/Hard Rock Cafe/Cheesecake Factory/Celebrity Chef-owned chain or any other same-one-in-every-town tourist attraction does NOTHING to improve Baltimore, living in Baltimore, or anyone's image of Baltimore. Maybe it makes the occasional tourist feel comfortable seeing some chain that they're already familiar with, but that's about it.
Casinos and the gambling scene in general have exploded over the past 15 years, and are everywhere. I grew up in Georgia, and when I was visiting St Simons Island there in July, they had Riverboat gambling casinos in Savannah and even tiny Brunswick, for cripes sake! This in the deepest depths of the Southern Bible-belt! Taken a look at Atlantic City lately? The town's economy was built on gambling/casinos for 30 years, but with the casino gambling expansion/explosion nationwide, the city is collapsing.
The times when the presence of a Casino could provide a singular destination for visitors, and a long-term cash cow for a city and its residents is long past.
Now if only they had actually incorporated Casino-style gambling and slots at Maryland's horse racing tracks when they began discussing it 30+ years past, we may have had a long-time additional draw of tourists, jobs and tax revenues here in Baltimore....

[gwillyfromphilly]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4E_0VTUEJac

[B.K.]

Originally Posted by gwillyfromphilly

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4E_0VTUEJac

Hi-effin'-larious!
My, we certainly seem to have a lot of African-Americans here!
FWIW, Port Discovery opened (well, sort of, seems like it opens/closes fairly regularly due to expansion, improvements, lack of funds or interest, etc.) around 1998/99. Walt Disney died in 1966 (well, sort of, some say his head lives on in a cryogenically frozen jar, so maybe he did have something to do with it)!