Rank the Downtowns of Californian cities (Los Angeles, San Diego: hotel, new construction, camp)

[mrsltd]

Originally Posted by ccm123

Downtown San Luis Obispo is very nice, as is Downtown Montrose (La Crescenta).

In some places, "downtowns" are actually "uptowns" (such as Whittier). Just depends on the lay of the land of the original area of a city.

[NorCal Dude]

Sf, la, sd, sj, lb, oak, sac,the rest

[andyadhi01]

This is complex because lot of small cities also have pretty large downtowns! In bay area all the major cities in Peninsula have decent downtowns. Walnut creek, although a suburb, has a fairly large downtown which is probably as large as Pasadena downtown. In SF, all the action is in union square but technically the financial district is downtown. In any case, SF is by far the largest and most actiona filled downtown in CA!

[Think4Yourself]

I'd crap on all of you. San Diego is the only one worth bothering with.

[mrsltd]

Originally Posted by Think4Yourself

I'd crap on all of you. San Diego is the only one worth bothering with.

Nice. You're full of it for sure if you think SD is the only downtown worth "bothering with".

[krudmonk]

Originally Posted by Think4Yourself

I'd crap on all of you. San Diego is the only one worth bothering with.

I'll think for myself, thanks...

[Mountainbluebear]

#1: San Francisco
#2: San Diego
#3: Berkeley
#4: Monterey

There isn't really much else to list because in California people tend to consider 2 malls in a 2 block radius a "downtown". Los Angeles's Downtown is just a slum.

[GatsbyGatz]

Shopping malls and grocery stores have more hustle and bustle than downtowns in California save for SF and San Diego at night. DTLA is a bit of a slum. Can't do much with Skid Row ruining a third of DTLA.

The problem with "downtowns" is that everywhere in the country they're becoming nothing more than outdoor shopping malls. Take an ordinary shopping mall and chain restaraunts and throw them out into the street and people cheer about how "urban" and "vibrant" a downtown is. The irony is that shopping malls are more compact and waste less space than taking up an entire downtown for the same stores.

[andrecle]

Of all of the major California cities, DTLA is by far the most improving but still has a long way to go. San Diego and even Sacramento have probably the most livable downtown areas. For shopping/dining, San Francisco would probably be the best.

For a small/mid-size city, I think Pasadena is one of the best in the state.

[dalparadise]

To answer the earlier question: Downtown San Francisco is just about everything east of Van Ness and north of 13th Street.

On another note, if you haven't been to DTLA in awhile, you need to check it out. It was busy and lively last week. There's a Sugarfish Sushi open, with a great looking crowd, several bars, pubs and restaurants, chic hotels and lots of foot traffic (for LA). I think it's a strong #3 in California, behind SF and SD...and rapidly rising.