Does Chicago feel like the third largest city? (Evanston, Burbank: airport, metra)

[Master Jay]

BOBNCHI, good morning. Speaking of rats, the 3rd largest city certainly has those!! ..... I think the first one I ever saw was at Maggie Daley park.

[andrew61]

Whether or not Chicago "feels" like the third largest city depends a lot upon where you are. Some neighborhoods in Chicago have more of a small town feel.

[Master Jay]

andrew61, you may have a good point, Sir! Neighborhoods like Forest Glen and Edison Park come to mind. Which neighborhoods were you thinking about?

[gwillyfromphilly]

"2nd largest" is winning the poll? lmao

I'm amazed how anyone who has visited Los Angeles would think Chicago feels larger.

[CCrest182]

Originally Posted by gwillyfromphilly

"2nd largest" is winning the poll? lmao

I'm amazed how anyone who has visited Los Angeles would think Chicago feels larger.

My guess is because LA is so spread out. There's a lot more different parts of LA that are famous and localized, but it's all spread out, typically low rise, and sprawly. Chicago, is much more centralized; everything is centered in or around downtown. You start in the core of the city, where everything is dense and big city feeling, but as you get further away, that begins to diminish. Obviously LA is more populated, but does it "feel" like the second largest city? Because everything isn't as centralized and more spread out, I think this is where Chicago could be seen as second largest. Not to mention, Chicago and New York are far more alike in the traditional "city" sense (tall buildings, denser streets, etc) than LA. In terms of CBD's, it's New York, Chicago, then a big gap down to the next city.

I voted for third largest, but I can see why some people voted second largest. LA is larger based off population, but feel is a different debate. Sort of the same way Phoenix is a massive city.... but being in Phoenix, everything is so sprawled out and not dense, it doesn't feel like you're in a top 10 population city in the country.

[gwillyfromphilly]

Originally Posted by CCrest182

My guess is because LA is so spread out. There's a lot more different parts of LA that are famous and localized, but it's all spread out, typically low rise, and sprawly. Chicago, is much more centralized; everything is centered in or around downtown. You start in the core of the city, where everything is dense and big city feeling, but as you get further away, that begins to diminish. Obviously LA is more populated, but does it "feel" like the second largest city? Because everything isn't as centralized and more spread out, I think this is where Chicago could be seen as second largest. Not to mention, Chicago and New York are far more alike in the traditional "city" sense (tall buildings, denser streets, etc) than LA. In terms of CBD's, it's New York, Chicago, then a big gap down to the next city.

I voted for third largest, but I can see why some people voted second largest. LA is larger based off population, but feel is a different debate. Sort of the same way Phoenix is a massive city.... but being in Phoenix, everything is so sprawled out and not dense, it doesn't feel like you're in a top 10 population city in the country.

I don't think having a bigger skyline means a city feels larger. Miami has a huge skyline but I don't think it feels larger than cities like Boston or San Francisco. If the thread topic was "does Chicago feel like it has the 2nd largest downtown?" then your argument would hold more weight. "Traditional cities" tend to feel more urban, not necessarily larger.

I really do believe a lot of people who voted for the 2nd largest option have probably never been to Los Angeles or is at least a serious homer.

[gwillyfromphilly]

Chicago to me feels like the quintessential 3rd largest city.

[Chicago South Sider]

Originally Posted by Nashville_Native

Having lived in Chicago for 2+years, and now living in Los Angeles, LA still feels like the 2nd largest city despite the smaller downtown. Southern California is the largest urban area in the country, and the uniform population density in SoCal still trumps the numbers in Chicago across a similarly sized land area. Just because there are more skyscrapers doesn't mean Chicago feels bigger. All you have to do is spend time on the ground in LA for a few hours to get the gist of it. Not to mention, LA is still growing at a rapid clip, while Chicago has been experiencing stagnant growth for the past several years.

LA is not the largest urban area in the country. That would be New York City.

[chitown202020]

chicago feels like the second largest city, LA feels like a bunch of smaller cities combined.

If you drive through all of chicago you feel you are always on an urban grid to me driving through LA was like if chicago was squished together with joliet , elgin, and aurora.

may not make sense but I dont feel like ecplaining myself more than this if you get it you get it

[andrew61]

Originally Posted by Master Jay

andrew61, you may have a good point, Sir! Neighborhoods like Forest Glen and Edison Park come to mind. Which neighborhoods were you thinking about?

Roscoe Village. Hegewisch. Perhaps even the Southport Corridor if one compares it to Wrigleyville and Boystown just to the east.