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Location: northern Vermont - previously NM, WA, & MA
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Which state capital city do you prefer?
Providence, RI
Hartford, CT
Albany, NY
Discuss pros and cons and favorites for each city, based on
Dining scene
Nightlife
State Capital building
Architecture
Skyline
Downtown/Urban Vibrance
Economy
Attractions on the periphery/outskirts of the city
Suburbs
Location and anything else
Last edited by Champ le monstre du lac; 05-19-2011 at 07:49 PM..
Even though I live in NY, I would have to say providence is the most well rounded.
I agree and it is the heart of a metro that ranks 37th in population. So, I'd give the edge to Providence. It's the most dense city out of the 3 as well.
Location: northern Vermont - previously NM, WA, & MA
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Dining scene - Providence. Federal Hill/Little Italy alone sets it apart. Rhode Island seafood (quahogs & lobsters), really good in PVD
Nightlife - Lark St. Albany is alright. Downtown Providence not bad. Hartford is weak.
State Capital building - All three are very impressive. Hard to decide between CT and RI's, but I have to go with Hartford since Connecticut’s state house is so ornate and gothic.
Architecture - Albany has some beautiful architecture, like the row houses that look a bit like Greenwich Village. Hartford lost a lot of its historic architecture in the 60's and 70's when they built the skyscrapers. Providence has the most historic architecture and a lot of colonial relics plus the Brown campus make it the leader of the pack.
Skyline - Hartford, well ahead of the others. Albany has an ugly skyline.
Downtown/Urban Vibrancy - Providence. With the mall, Brown University nearby, historic Benefit Street, and Federal Hill close by, and a few theatres with a bit of nightlife. Providence has a very decent downtown.
Economy - I'm guessing a toss up between Albany and Hartford, leaning more towards Albany. Providence falling way behind here.
Attractions on the periphery/outskirts of the city - Albany has the Berkshires, Adirondacks, good skiing and some beautiful lakes nearby. All 3 have good access to NYC within 2-3 hours. Providence has Newport, an hour to Boston, and close to Cape Cod and excellent beaches on the RI shoreline. Hartford, well Connecticut just doesn't excite me. It's best asset is 2 hours to NYC & 2 hours to Boston. Providence seems to be the best one here for me.
Suburbs: West Hartford is nice, so is Clifton Park, NY and Barrington, RI. Connecticut is known for its attractive bedroom communities and suburbs, so probably Hartford here.
I was surprised to see Hartford leading the pack. Strange.
Dining scene Providence, no question. Providence is known for its Italian food and deservedly so. It's excellent (I still say Federal Hill is more authentic even than Boston's North End). Still PVD has excellent contemporary American food. In addition, seafood is excellent (Providence is a port city, and close to the ocean, lest we forget). I don't think you've lived until you've had a NY System Wiener or a Dell's Frozen Lemonade either.The Portuguese food in metro Providence is difficult to beat too (Fall River, Bristol, New Bedford, etc. are all part of metro Providence). If you haven't had a Portuguese Sirloin (grilled steak with the red garlic sauce, fried egg and red pepper over sliced potatos), Chourico and Chips, Shrimp Mozambique, etc. you won't know what I'm talking about. Providence by a large margin. I've never craved anything from Albany or Hartford before, but I miss Providence's food all the time.
Nightlife Providence again. Sure, the clubs are a little guido. Lots of Paulie D wannabes. However, Providence has a lot of clubs (some good ones) in addition to great craft beer bars, artsy hot spots, irish pubs and more. Providence has a pretty good nightlife.
State Capital building Hartford's is awesome. Hartford wins this one. It reminds me a little bit of Parlaiment in Budapest.
Architecture Tough Call. I like PVD's colonial architecture (take a virtual walk down Benefit Street) and historic buildings. Still all three have some good structures. I don't care for the ultra modernist Empire Plaza in Albany (The "Egg" is cool though). I think after careful consideration, Hartford wins this one too.
Skyline 1) Hartford (it's great for a little city) 2) Providence (not fantastic, but improving) 3) Albany. Two heavily occupied by buildings from a single era. Not much variety and it's a little out of scale.
Downtown/Urban Vibrance Providence. Much better than the other two
Economy Probably Providence, though none are exactly tearing it up. I think PVD's higher education institutions and proximity to Boston make it a little more stable than the other cities. Hartford's insurance companies have left in alarming numbers. Albany has had trouble for a while. Again, None of them are economic powerhouses, but I think Providence's higher ed and healthcare combined with proximity to Boston make it the best of the bunch.
Attractions on the periphery/outskirts of the city Providence. Coastal Rhode Island and Southeastern MA are beautiful. I prefer it to the CT River Valley or Albany Area.
Suburbs I'm most familiar with Providence. I do like West Hartford a lot though. I'm going to give this one to Hartford even though Bristol RI is one of the best towns out there.
Location and anything else If you give me a coastal city vs. inland cities, I take the coastal city 9 times out of 10. Add to that that Providence is on a number of major transit routes (95, Acela, Amtrak Regional, TF Green Airport, MBTA Commuter Rail, etc) and it's close to Boston, relatively close to New York, and near Newport and Cape Cod, I have a hard time even making a decent case for the others.
Overall
Providence by a huge margin. Throw New Haven into the mix (I know, not a state capital) and we have a more interesting battle. I love me some New Haven.
Location: northern Vermont - previously NM, WA, & MA
10,745 posts, read 23,801,634 times
Reputation: 14660
Quote:
Originally Posted by lrfox
Location and anything else If you give me a coastal city vs. inland cities, I take the coastal city 9 times out of 10. Add to that that Providence is on a number of major transit routes (95, Acela, Amtrak Regional, TF Green Airport, MBTA Commuter Rail, etc) and it's close to Boston, relatively close to New York, and near Newport and Cape Cod, I have a hard time even making a decent case for the others.
I agree with most of what you said, and I do prefer Providence for the most part, but Albany does have its merrits. Easy to understand a coastal city preference, nonetheless Albany is in a very good location. Within only 3 hours to New York City, Boston, and Montreal. Very close to many beautiful lake regions like the Finger Lakes, and the Adirondack Mountains, Berkshires a stones throw away. And there are alot pretty bucolic towns in Upstate NY, Saratoga Springs is also very decent. I considered living in Albany based on it's location, but just didn't find the city vibrant enough. Schenectady and Troy have definitely seen better days. But I really do like Upstate a lot.
Albany's unemployment rate is the lowest out of the three. Schenectady has the Upper Union area and Troy's Downtown, along with the area around RPI is alright. Albany's Pastures neighborhood has some very old architecture and the Delaware Ave. area is OK too.
I'll take Albany, by a nose, over Providence; Hartford doesn't really enter into the equation..
Next Poll: Worcester vs. Manchester vs. Schenectady
Will the thrills ever cease?
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