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This applies to Theads about West coast cities too.. It could be a simple thread about Seattle vs San Fransisco...or La vs San Diego...and BAM a easterner (mainly NYC and Philly posters) has to jump in on it! So it really goes both ways.
SF has the best DT on the WC, no others are close. LA is so much larger than SD I am not sure I see the comparison, would be like comparing NYC to Philly.
On your next post, I dont really see Seattle in the same ballpark as Philly, a good DT yes, on the level of Philly or SF, no Philly and/or SF hang with each other. Seattle does not hang with a Philly or SF in terms of their DTs
I honestly think DTLA offers more than Seattle and a brighter future for the DT and this does not mean i dont think Seattle has a fine future. It actually is a very good DT, but honestly not in the realm of NYC or Philly for that matter. The amenities offered, population, vibrant continuity, cohesion, arts, PT etc are not close. Nor is Philly to Manhattan for that matter
I prefer Philly for the intangibles and its residential qualities, and the narrow easily walkable streets,
BUT I think Seattle has the edge in Shopping, a (slightly) better/more interesting Market, more & overall better Cafes (modern cafe culture owes a lot to Seattle after all), more activities, movie theaters (!), a better waterfront, and a more picturesque/inspiring physical setting. There are some really nice adjacent neighborhoods as well. I really like Queen Anne.
Seattle's a great city. Pretty hard to bash, but I guess people always find a way here...
Also (just to be a Devils Advocate!), if people are getting reeaally specific about downtown borders, someone could argue that the PMA is just outside of Center City, which would then probably give Seattle the edge on art, with the SAM (not remotely as good of a museum as the PMA, but right downtown).
You can't sell Philly as underrated when you act like this thread is an insult to Philly (it isn't). When you claim Philly is two tiers above Seattle (really?). I've seen Philly > San Francisco and even L.A. enough times on this board to conclude it's not underrated.
Nope, it's on whoever things Seattle can hang with the cities I mentioned.
A worldly person would do have problem finding excellent food, entertainment, shopping and sights in Downtown Seattle. Only an ego-driven hater would disagree.
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Seattle simply is not worth the money.
Its worth whatever the market will bear.
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IMO, not as vibrant as philly, lowe quality amenities, lower quality shopping, lower quality dining and less walkable. The onle redeeming quality is the waterfront which I will give credit too.
1. Its vibrant enough.
2. The shopping in Downtown Seattle is more upscale than what is found in Downtown Philadelphia-not that DT Philly has no upscale stores, but DT Seattle has more.
3. The dining is great as well.
4. Downtown Seattle is plenty walkable.
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You do the same Philly in post after post after post after post after post after post.
Modern cafe culture owes nothing to Seattle, go to France or Italy they demolish Seattle and was fully developed long before anything in Seattle. Seattle is popular for making gourmet coffee popular in a chain format nation wide. I.E. Seattle's Best, Starbucks, etc...which led to people not drinking such rubbish coffee. As far as nationwide chain coffee however, I think Peet's from Berkeley is better than anything out of the Pac NW.
Grapico, not sure what your axe to grind here is, but - I think most people recognize Seattle for what it is, which is one of the best downtowns in the country outside of the obvious top 6. I agree, Philly wins this, but they are not such a ridiculous comparison (the Lower Manhattan one clearly is, though) - Seattle's DT and adjoining areas offer a lot.
Not to mention,I think DT Seattle and adjacent areas will see dramatic growth within the next decade. Its downtown is seeing a ton of infill and development in South Lake Union, Sodo, and potentially the Denny Triangle within the next couple of years. The entire waterfront is being re-developed, and the City also building a subway (albeit, light rail) connecting its downtown districts to other dense parts of the City, which I believe will dramatically increase development. In fact, Seattle is one of the few places right now that is building an underground/grade-separated transit system (as opposed to at-grade, like most cities).
Personally, I think Philly is overrated - I think DT Chicago and DT San Francisco are definitely more vibrant, dense, dynamic, and have more a big-city feel than DT Philly. Philly is great and belongs in the top 5, but Philly boosters tend to go a little overboard.
Modern cafe culture owes nothing to Seattle, go to France or Italy they demolish Seattle. Seattle is popular for making gourmet coffee popular in a chain format nation wide. I.E. Seattle's Best, Starbucks, etc.
Seattle has many, many great local independant coffee shops - it's a big part of the culture there.
Seattle has many, many great local independant coffee shops - it's a big part of the culture there.
It is in Portland, SF, NYC, Chicago, Minneapolis, etc also. I wasn't sayin git isn't, I siad it was popular for bringing it to the masses, not that it was especially unique.
No axe to grind, I just thought the Seattle vs LM thread was preposterous.
Location: NY-NJ-Philly looks down at SF and laughs at the hippies
1,144 posts, read 1,295,468 times
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Originally Posted by 18Montclair
A worldly person would do have problem finding excellent food, entertainment, shopping and sights in Downtown Seattle. Only an ego-driven hater would disagree.
Most Americans don't like Seattle, doesn't even rank in the top 10 for travel within our country. Therefore, you know people abroad don't think highly of it.
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Its worth whatever the market will bear.
I went once for pleasure and only returned the second time for my cousins wedding. I would not have came back unless for a reason, not worth my time/money.
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1. Its vibrant enough.
2. The shopping in Downtown Seattle is more upscale than what is found in Downtown Philadelphia-not that DT Philly has no upscale stores, but DT Seattle has more.
3. The dining is great as well.
4. Downtown Seattle is plenty walkable.
I only respond in kind.
1. Maybe for you, but not for me. Vibrant enough to visit but not live.
2. I disagree. Philly is more upscale for shopping
3. I do not care for the dining in Seattle as a whole. Good seafood and not much else unique.
4. The nabes are too spread out. This is evident even by native Seattle posters where they admitted Portland of all places was more walkable.
SF has the best DT on the WC, no others are close. LA is so much larger than SD I am not sure I see the comparison, would be like comparing NYC to Philly.
On your next post, I dont really see Seattle in the same ballpark as Philly, a good DT yes, on the level of Philly or SF, no Philly and/or SF hang with each other. Seattle does not hang with a Philly or SF in terms of their DTs
I honestly think DTLA offers more than Seattle and a brighter future for the DT and this does not mean i dont think Seattle has a fine future. It actually is a very good DT, but honestly not in the realm of NYC or Philly for that matter. The amenities offered, population, vibrant continuity, cohesion, arts, PT etc are not close. Nor is Philly to Manhattan for that matter
Though if you're so sure Seattle isn't even close to Philly in terms of downtown amenities, than why even start this thread? Just to hear others affirm what you already think?
And I'd agree that Philadelphia has a better overall downtown than Seattle--it should--considering it's much larger and has been a sizable urban center since the 18th Century. However at the same time Seattle punches well above it's weight in comparison to any city/metro of comparable size. I mean the City of Seattle itself is only just slightly bigger than Portland. The metro has grown significantly in the past 20 years, but still it's not as large(thank god) as the biggest Sun Belt sprawlers...
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