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The term "coastal" is often not used in a literal sense. Cities that do not appear to be on a coast, but are located in the right part of the country, often get this designation. Others that do appear to be on a coast might not be referred to as coastal.
Throwing up a few candidates and am interested in hearing which one deserves this designation and why you think it does over the others.
This is less of a fact driven poll than an individual interpretation one.
I consider Seattle, Baltimore, and New Orleans coastal for sure as those are big port cities that are defined by their waterfronts. I guess Houston is as well, but it gets an asterisk because of the port being 5+ miles east of downtown. As such the city doesn't feel the same as the others that have real waterfronts near downtown. Chicago has a better waterfront than any of these cities but it's a lake, not the ocean, so I don't consider it coastal.
Colloquially people use "coastal" as the antonym of "middle America" in which case Houston and New Orleans are not coastal and Chicago maybe is.
I don't think requiring an actual oceanfront makes sense, as generally (throughout the world) port cities are placed where there are natural safe harbors a bit inland.. so that's hardly limited to these cities.
The way "coastal" is popularly used, Chicago, Minneapolis, and Denver are more "coastal" than Florida, Georgia, or Alaska.
(Baltimore is a bit of a weird case- it's definitely held up as an example of bad liberal governance, but it's also not a rich or elite city, particularly in the city proper.)
Chicago (yes, I do believe the Great Lakes is the North Coast of the Lower 48 given how canals have integrated it completely into the St Lawrence Seaway and the volume of shipping through them)
Houston - Houston's primary original identity was not as a port in a way like all of the others above, but instead Galveston was the primary port.
Always, there are arguments about what is coastal and what is not. This is one link (an official US Government link), that includes the Great Lakes in coastal regions. I know most won't agree with this, as everyone has their own bias or opinion, but to each their own. I voted for Chicago, but Seattle would have been my second choice. Chicago is the only one of these cities that looks truly coastal. It sits on water that is 80 miles across and you can't see the other side. It's not a river that it sits on, nor is it miles away from an ocean like the others. Interesting, if you think about it.
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
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They are all frequently referred to as coastal, but are only in the common interpretation.
Coasts are the water borders of the country, and that means that they have to be on the ocean. That eliminates:
Chicago, which is on a lake
Seattle which is on a Bay, over 100 miles from the Pacific
Houston, which is on a bay inland from the Gulf
Baltimore, which is on a river to a Bay
New Orleans is on a sound but closer to an ocean than the others so is coastal.
When I think of coastal, at least in the CD sense, I think non-flyover, coastal elite status. To me, that's Seattle in this group. Than Baltimore as it gets lumped with the Bos/Wash corridor.
Seattle got my vote - literally the whole western border touches a large bay. It's not real ocean (yet) but with a lake on one side and a bay on the other, easily the most "coastal" of the bunch.
Chicago feel "coastal" since Lake Michigan is huge...but it's still a lake. It's my #2.
NO does not feel "coastal" at all since most of it are on a river. You can't really get to Gulf Coast easily either as most of the Mississippi Delta is not all that accessible.
Baltimore's "coast" is way too small, and most of it are former industrial area. Even Annapolis feel more coastal than Baltimore.
Houston's city limit does not even touch the coast other than that outlet of the Ship Channel. Also, like Baltimore whatever "coast" it touches are industrial / port area (basically the ship channel). It does have the best access to "real" oceanic beaches, though, with Galveston <1 hr away (from DT Houston...less than that if you're talking about Clear Lake area).
Not sure how yall are saying New Orleans is coastal but Houston isn't.
New Orleans isn't anywhere near open water. The Gulf is 100 miles downstream on the Mississippi.
Houston city limits extends right to the Bay of Galveston.
Houston is in a similar situation to Seattle and Baltimore.
New Orleans and Chicago are on Rivers and lakes.
People have different definitions of coastal. For some a large lake is coastal, but I do not go with that definition. I think of coastal as being on an OPEN body of water, not one that is connected to open bodies of water.
If you can get from the city to China by boat without going down a river then you are coastal.
Seattle- Puget Sound to Salish Sea to Pacific Ocean
Baltimore- is on Chesapeake Bay and the Patapsco River is a tidal estuary of Chesapeake Bay which is connected to the Atlantic Ocean.
Houston is on Galveston and Trinity Bays, which are connected to the Gulf of Mexico and on to the Atlantic.
New Orleans city is technically connected to the Gulf through Lake Borgne, but that area of the city is uninhabited nature reserves. No part of the habitable city is on open coasts.
I would rank the 4 in terms of open coasts:
1. Seattle via Chesapeake Bay
2. Houston via Galveston Bay
3. Baltimore via Chesapeake Bay
New Orleans and Chicago- no open coasts- got to go through other cities to get to China
If whales can be spotted in the “coastal” / ocean water in front of the city, it’s a coastal city. Seattle gets my vote hands down. Seems almost silly to question it. I don’t know enough about the other cities to chime in on those.
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