Chicago more like 3 biggest East Coast cities OR 3 biggest Midwest cities (Naperville: apartment, beaches)

[personone]

Originally Posted by MassVt

Some of the areas in Philly and Baltimore do look alike, but overall Philly has more of a variety of row houses. Both are unquestionably dominated by row house neighborhoods ( and unfortunately, many are pretty neglected). Chicago, Milwaukee, etc are bungalows, and thus have more separation, more breathing room, and to me, more pleasant to live ii..

True. But Chicago’s housing stock really does vary by neighborhood. In many areas of the Northside and near west side (Tri-Taylor/ Little Italy), you will see lots of brownstone/greystone rowhouses, reminiscent of east coast housing stock. Gold Coast, uptown, and parts of the south side have the traditional high rise housing. There are obviously bungalows, but I don’t think that is the predominant housing stock. The housing stock in Chicago is so diverse.

[andrew61]

Originally Posted by Blackbeauty212

Ohio yes, Cleveland no... Cleveland was about Automobiles more akin to Detroit than Pittsburgh.

Sorry, no. You're talking to someone who was born and raised in Cleveland (and is living there again after 20 years in Chicago). For about a year when I was a kid, we lived in an old house with an unimpeded view of Cleveland's vast Industrial Valley with its many, many steel mills. (As a kid I was fascinated and thought this was way cool.)

[andrew61]

Originally Posted by personone

True. But Chicago’s housing stock really does vary by neighborhood. In many areas of the Northside and near west side (Tri-Taylor/ Little Italy), you will see lots of brownstone/greystone rowhouses, reminiscent of east coast housing stock. Gold Coast, uptown, and parts of the south side have the traditional high rise housing. There are obviously bungalows, but I don’t think that is the predominant housing stock. The housing stock in Chicago is so diverse.

When my friend and I visited Chicago back in the '90s (shortly before I moved there), he took note of all the greystone three-flats in the Lakeview area and remarked that it reminded him of Boston with its triple-deckers. I think some parts of Chicago do look eastern in character, and other parts look very Midwestern.

[moneymkt]

Originally Posted by andrew61

When my friend and I visited Chicago back in the '90s (shortly before I moved there), he took note of all the greystone three-flats in the Lakeview area and remarked that it reminded him of Boston with its triple-deckers. I think some parts of Chicago do look eastern in character, and other parts look very Midwestern.

Chicago's downtown does look eastern

[Blackbeauty212]

Originally Posted by personone

Disagree. Cleveland/Detroit definitely don’t feel similar to Baltimore/Philly, and Baltimore and Philly do not feel similar to each other. The only slight similarity is with some of the row houses in the residential neighborhoods, but even many of them have a different style. Demographically they are very different. Philly is an “Italian” city (at least historically) and you can find many ethnic enclaves. Philly has a real Chinatown. Downtown Philly is much bigger and more grand. There is a much more “Northeast” vibe and pace to Philly. Baltimore is way less diverse, way smaller, way grittier and just doesn’t “feel” like Philly in any tangible way. The AA pops are different too. Philly’s are much more “Northeastern” characteristically, and Baltimore’s are more Southern. Philly feels much more cosmopolitan and Baltimore is more local. Compare the skylines- Philly’s is large and impressive, Baltimore’s is tiny (a bunch of small boxes; although the harbor is nice). Bottom line is that Philly and Baltimore feel nothing alike.

Outside of Center City... Philadelphia has very very blue collar feeling, in damn near every direction... Philly boosters love to make Philadelphia sound like its just Center City and nothing else to make it seem closer to NYC cosmo and less of a Baltimore/Pittsburgh level of "Blue Collarness".

Philadelphia and Baltimore have A LOT of the same characteristics... Outside of Center City Philadelphia its still mostly largely working class and poverty.

Stop BS'ing folks.

[DavePa]

Originally Posted by Blackbeauty212

Outside of Center City... Philadelphia has very very blue collar feeling, in damn near every direction... Philly boosters love to make Philadelphia sound like its just Center City and nothing else to make it seem closer to NYC cosmo and less of a Baltimore/Pittsburgh level of "Blue Collarness".

Philadelphia and Baltimore have A LOT of the same characteristics... Outside of Center City Philadelphia its still mostly largely working class and poverty.

Stop BS'ing folks.

Oh No .... they will label you a Hater. But then they long already did.
I just see much less likeness of Philly and Chicago then some believe. Much is because of a much tighter street-grid in much of the city, and one primarily a Row-Home city ..... and the other not. Philly city has no Bungalow belt. It does have its Northwest region that is totally suburban. That helps the city not being much higher a Row-housing city then the general 60 +% overall generally used.

But blue-collar cities primarily in there past yes. Philly even gets left out of the Rust-Belt. But to see much of the city..... you clearly think it would be.

But clearly Philly is gentrifying Core outward and boosters clearly can note it and praise transformations. So boasting still has warranting and should not be written-off. Sadly poverty-levels hurt our cities still. Some have higher levels .... and some closer to their cries ..... then others to be seen.

Philly still is renewing and that clearly can be boasted of and not BS'ing.

[personone]

Originally Posted by Blackbeauty212

Outside of Center City... Philadelphia has very very blue collar feeling, in damn near every direction... Philly boosters love to make Philadelphia sound like its just Center City and nothing else to make it seem closer to NYC cosmo and less of a Baltimore/Pittsburgh level of "Blue Collarness".

Philadelphia and Baltimore have A LOT of the same characteristics... Outside of Center City Philadelphia its still mostly largely working class and poverty.

Stop BS'ing folks.

I disagree. I grew up in the suburbs outside of Baltimore (about midway between Baltimore and DC), but did grad school in Baltimore and a residency in Philly, so know both cities well. Baltimore and Philly do not feel anything alike. Philly is much bigger, more diverse, more ethnic enclaves, faster-paced, the list goes on.... Aside from the row house prevalence in the neighborhoods; although the row houses in both cities look very different even then. You are the one nitpicking about how "different" Pittsburgh and Cleveland are. If you are going for that level of granularity, then Philly and Baltimore do not feel remotely alike. I agree with you that in totality Philly would probably not be considered cosmopolitan, but it is definitely more so than Baltimore. I can't really comment how it compares to Pittsburgh because I haven't been there enough times (the brief time I was there for a conference, It seemed like a great city).

[sahd0w]

I have been to Philly once and I actually felt like it had sort of a similar feel to it as Chicago.

[Hiruko]

Originally Posted by gladhands

Aside from Milwaukee, I think Chicago is more like the Northeastern cities than any Midwestern city.

Cleveland is undoubtedly the least Midwestern city in the Midwest. Cleveland and northeast Ohio has much more in common with New York, Pennsylvania, and Connecticut. The area was once part of Connecticut's Western Reserve. Chicago has much more in common with Minneapolis/St. Paul and Detroit than the Eastern Seaboard. The strong presence of financial services and old financial money gives Chicago a hint of New York and Boston, but it is still a strongly Upper Midwestern metropolis.

[personone]

Originally Posted by Hiruko

Cleveland is undoubtedly the least Midwestern city in the Midwest. Cleveland and northeast Ohio has much more in common with New York, Pennsylvania, and Connecticut. The area was once part of Connecticut's Western Reserve. Chicago has much more in common with Minneapolis/St. Paul and Detroit than the Eastern Seaboard. The strong presence of financial services and old financial money gives Chicago a hint of New York and Boston, but it is still a strongly Upper Midwestern metropolis.

Disagree with this. Chicago is undoubtably the most “east coast”- like city in the Midwest, much moreso than Cleveland. I have lived in Philly and am from the east coast. Granted, I am not too familiar with Cleveland, but downtown and the north side of Chicago resemble a major east coast city more than anywhere else in the Midwest. From the high rise apartments to the brownstones/greystones, to the way the L/ CTA hovers in the backdrop. Chicago reminds me a lot of Philly, both at the downtown and neighborhood level (especially the north side, but even the near west side too). Have only been to Cleveland once and didn’t get too far outside downtown, but it had a quintessentially Midwest feel, and driving there felt very rural Midwest near city limits. In no way does it feel more “east coast” than Chicago.