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10. Seattle (fell off heavily the past several years, but Seattle is building the most transit of any city and is heavily urbanizing)
If you were just looking at built environment, Seattle’s Downtown is probably top 6 or 7, but since the pandemic its gotten a lot less vibrant and safe. It rightly deserves to be demoted to #10 until they can get their act together. The inner and outer neighborhood commercial districts are thriving again, but Downtown is nothing like what it was pre-2020
Wow, it seems the purveyor of this article made the same mistake as Lebron by taking their "talents" to South Beach instead of Miami...
Nice timing this 10 year old 1/24/2012 post from the first page gives me a chance to show how much Miami has grown like crazy in the past decade.
Miami should be up there just from how unique/huge/modern/clean it is alone. This awesome 3 year old video below was even filmed before Miami went through its relative to other cities pandemic super boom and it barely even shows any of Brickell too.
The huge strides that have taken place down there have been nothing short of incredible. My oh my how the tides have turned.
If you need some street level action let me know I'll hook you up with a bunch of beautifully vibrant year-round videos didn't want to flood the thread. (Let's Go Heat)
Bostons downtown definitely trumps DC. DCs strength is not necessarily in its downtown IMO but rather how even the development is over many many central neighborhoods over a widespread area.
Strangely enough, COVID will most likely move DC's CBD into contention for a top 3 downtown. The size of DC's CBD has always been a strength, but the land use has been a weakness. Currently, the downtown CBD is 92% office. Making downtown DC a mixed-use downtown with closer to 50% or more residential will explode the central business district especially evenings, nights, and weekends. The city is being very intentional making sure downtown DC becomes a booming residential area. Looking at the size of DC's CBD right now, it has the potential by sheer land area to be on a different level.
Since COVID, there have been 5 different office to residential conversion announced in DC's CBD which would have been unheard off prior to COVID with the difference in office profit compared to residential profit. DC's CBD is probably the only CBD in the entire world that will improve because of COVID from a vibrancy and mixed-use standpoint:
Strangely enough, COVID will most likely move DC's CBD into contention for a top 3 downtown. The size of DC's CBD has always been a strength, but the land use has been a weakness. Currently, the downtown CBD is 92% office. Making downtown DC a mixed-use downtown with closer to 50% or more residential will explode the central business district especially evenings, nights, and weekends. The city is being very intentional making sure downtown DC becomes a booming residential area. Looking at the size of DC's CBD right now, it has the potential by sheer land area to be on a different level.
Since COVID, there have been 5 different office to residential conversion announced in DC's CBD which would have been unheard off prior to COVID with the difference in office profit compared to residential profit. DC's CBD is probably the only CBD in the entire world that will improve because of COVID from a vibrancy and mixed-use standpoint:
I don't know about top 3. New York and Chicago are obviously locks for #1 and #2 and thats not changing anytime soon, but I think Philly still maintains the best downtown outside of those 2. We'll see tho.
If you were just looking at built environment, Seattle’s Downtown is probably top 6 or 7, but since the pandemic its gotten a lot less vibrant and safe. It rightly deserves to be demoted to #10 until they can get their act together. The inner and outer neighborhood commercial districts are thriving again, but Downtown is nothing like what it was pre-2020
We also haven't defined "downtown." I'm basing my idea on the wider version that includes those thriving/booming neighborhoods just outside the office core. Greater Downtown Seattle has continued to boom during Covid, aside from a couple strikes including a current one that's shut down concrete deliveries for two months and counting...
Covid-related shutdowns and Covid-worsened homeless camps might have some post-Covid carryover, but we can't predict that.
I don't know about top 3. New York and Chicago are obviously locks for #1 and #2 and thats not changing anytime soon, but I think Philly still maintains the best downtown outside of those 2. We'll see tho.
Yeah, we will see. If DC’s CBD were to add about 100,000 new residents in the areas that have been 92% office through office-to-residential conversions (Golden Triangle, Midtown, SW Federal Center, Penn Quarter/Gallery Place, East End/Union Station) moving forward, downtown DC will become something different than its ever been prior to COVID.
New downtown adjacent neighborhood’s built just as intense as downtown DC’s CBD with massive residential unit counts (Mt. Vernon Triangle, NOMA, Union Market, Navy Yard, Buzzard Point, The Wharf, Logan Circle, Dupont Circle, Foggy Bottom, West End) is where the population density currently resides in DC. Downtown DC’s CBD could join their ranks.
Strangely enough, COVID will most likely move DC's CBD into contention for a top 3 downtown. The size of DC's CBD has always been a strength, but the land use has been a weakness. Currently, the downtown CBD is 92% office. Making downtown DC a mixed-use downtown with closer to 50% or more residential will explode the central business district especially evenings, nights, and weekends. The city is being very intentional making sure downtown DC becomes a booming residential area. Looking at the size of DC's CBD right now, it has the potential by sheer land area to be on a different level.
Since COVID, there have been 5 different office to residential conversion announced in DC's CBD which would have been unheard off prior to COVID with the difference in office profit compared to residential profit. DC's CBD is probably the only CBD in the entire world that will improve because of COVID from a vibrancy and mixed-use standpoint:
DC will get there eventually. But I can't front like DCs downtown is better or on the same level with Bostons circa 2022. It's almost in a lower-tier entirely as some have suggested. It's way more simple, approachable, low rise, and navigable. Considerably less housing, less dense and much less shopping. Boston has layers on layers of urbanity in its downtown.. is also a bit more broken up though.
Now, Greater Downtown DC like out a mile or two is very very good today. Bostons downtown is slowly on a negative/decline overall in terms of vibrancy. Too many large labs that don't employ a lot of daily workers, not enough housing going up (after years of booming housing downtown). Rents are too high and too many vacant storefronts are popping up. Foot traffic is down as well. Issues of homelessness/drug use are slowly rising. Maybe in 10 years id put DC's downtown above Boston... depending on how trends play out.
If we're ignoring social issues and just looking at built environment, then I would put Portland and Detroit in the top 10 for sure. One could make an argument for downtown Pittsburgh too.
L.A. doesn't belong. I'd add Austin because of its water front, park on the southside, new hi-rise living, Rose-colored State Capitol Building
Downtown LA has far more residents, more foot traffic, more things to do, and more attractions than Austin. Oh, and LA Live.
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