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We're talking about the area west of Piedmont....the urban part of Midtown Atlanta.
Yes, but the comparison is Midtown Atlanta and Uptown Dallas. We can't pick and choose which parts to use to make one seem better than the other. On a whole a larger percentage of Uptown Dallas is more urban in development. You have the mansions of Ansley Park and highrises a block away. That can't be denied. Midtown Atlanta is a much larger area than Uptown Dallas and has a lot more of a stark contrast between urban and "suburban" development. Uptown Dallas tends to be more uniform throughout most of the neighborhood with some small exceptions like the historic Victorian housing on the lower end of the State-Thomas section.
Don't get me wrong I absolutely love Midtown Atlanta (I used to live a block from Peachtree), but those saying that that there's no comparison between the two and that Midtown is a lot more urban are not making factual statements.
You won't find that in Midtown Atlanta. True, you'll find gaps and surface parking, but for the built up areas, they don't have set backs that big. Almost all of the buildings in Midtown Atlanta are up to the street creating a streetwall on both sides.
The Crescent is an absolutely beautiful mixed use complex and really set the tone for Uptown's future development into an upscale neighborhood. This is one of the oldest developments in Uptown.
There are many sections of Uptown that look just like the photos you shared of Midtown Atlanta and there's sections of Midtown like you will see in Uptown Dallas. You can really find photos of both neighborhoods that look like the ones you posted for each one.
I will say that Atlanta's zoning restrictions are a lot more relaxed than Dallas. Buildings in Uptown are only allowed to certain heights. Setbacks and parking requirements do get in the way at times, but overall the neighborhood is compact, walkable and vibrant.
The Midtown Mile is far from Midtown's first stab at street level retail (or it's largest), it's merely the latest and in a small area that previously was almost all office (originally all residential) up until last decade. 10th Street, Peachtree south of 10th all the way to Downtown, Piedmont Avenue, Juniper Street, Crescent Ave were all "mixed use" before it became a buzz word and have just grown as Midtown has focused on reenergizing the neighborhood.
While the business district portion of Midtown (between Spring Street and Piedmont) had a real rough go of it in the 20th century, the neighborhood itself has always been vibrant. In 60s it was the city's counter culture hub, in the 80s it gained it's identity as a gayborhood, and recently it became the hub for upwardly mobile young folks. It's interesting to see Piedmont Park on the weekends when the weather is good and all of these groups (whom all have their various sections of the neighborhood) hanging out in the park .
The only thing that the Midtown Mile brings to the table that's new is big box retail like you see in SoHo or the Mag Mile. Don't get me wrong though. I think it's a great project and what has been built so far has been really great (especially the new location of Intermezzo).
Now, if you made a comparison between West Village and Atlantic Station I'd agree 100%.
But the difference is that West Village is incorporated into the existing neighborhood and not isolated and built on top of a giant parking garage. It's a similar concept, just a different execution. If you took Atlantic station and had Peachtree run through it and built it right by the Belt Line system, it would feel like a totally different place. West Village has the trolley system, subway station, urban trail access, etc. that give it more of an intown feel.
I'm sorry but I can't imagine people not using a car Uptown. Houston would have to completely rebuild the neighborhood. Dense West Ave type developments aren't going to fix a thing, in my opinion. It's far too destroyed by the car.
There's already a cluster where people live, work, and shop. And coming down Westheimer near the mall at 5:30pm all you see is cars and maybe 20 pedestrians. Most of the residential doesn't even cater to the pedestrian.
Uptown will always be a car centric district and to be honest I'm ok with that. I walk a lot Uptown but I'm used to it. I've lived here a few years now and can navigate the crosswalks without fear. But I can understand how most people would be afraid as Westheimer is quite wide and most drivers are very aggressive. Uptown is very upscale and the people living here really don't want to walk anywhere because most people living Uptown don't work Uptown so having a car is very necessary to get to Downtown, Medical Center, Energy Corridor, and the other business districts. I usually only walk when I'm going to the mall or Starbucks. Not sure if I'll be walking to Whole Foods as I don't like carrying bags of groceries through Uptown. I'll probably walk if I'm just picking up a few items. I think the only areas of Houston that will become more and more pedestrian friendly are the inner loop districts. Any changes Uptown can make to improve mobility is great in my opinion. It won't be anything drastic but I'll take anything I can get. Westheimer and Post Oak could definitely use an upgrade to improve the traffic mess it currently is. At some point something will have to be done. I just hope it's done sooner rather than later.
Uptown will always be a car centric district and to be honest I'm ok with that. I walk a lot Uptown but I'm used to it. I've lived here a few years now and can navigate the crosswalks without fear. But I can understand how most people would be afraid as Westheimer is quite wide and most drivers are very aggressive. Uptown is very upscale and the people living here really don't want to walk anywhere because most people living Uptown don't work Uptown so having a car is very necessary to get to Downtown, Medical Center, Energy Corridor, and the other business districts. I usually only walk when I'm going to the mall or Starbucks. Not sure if I'll be walking to Whole Foods as I don't like carrying bags of groceries through Uptown. I'll probably walk if I'm just picking up a few items. I think the only areas of Houston that will become more and more pedestrian friendly are the inner loop districts. Any changes Uptown can make to improve mobility is great in my opinion. It won't be anything drastic but I'll take anything I can get. Westheimer and Post Oak could definitely use an upgrade to improve the traffic mess it currently is. At some point something will have to be done. I just hope it's done sooner rather than later.
You make good points. I'm afraid Westheimer and Post Oak have been lost to the car for now. They should have "TMC'd" Uptown.
Yes, but the comparison is Midtown Atlanta and Uptown Dallas. We can't pick and choose which parts to use to make one seem better than the other. On a whole a larger percentage of Uptown Dallas is more urban in development. You have the mansions of Ansley Park and highrises a block away. That can't be denied. Midtown Atlanta is a much larger area than Uptown Dallas and has a lot more of a stark contrast between urban and "suburban" development. Uptown Dallas tends to be more uniform throughout most of the neighborhood with some small exceptions like the historic Victorian housing on the lower end of the State-Thomas section.
Don't get me wrong I absolutely love Midtown Atlanta (I used to live a block from Peachtree), but those saying that that there's no comparison between the two and that Midtown is a lot more urban are not making factual statements.
Except Ansley Park isn't Midtown. That's it's own neighborhood so why are we even discussing that?
FYI: Regarding Atlanta's Atlantic Station and some of what was written here about it last night, it IS on the Beltline route. There is already a built station on the north edge of the complex waiting for the rail to be built & linked into it.
That Beltline linkup was a great bit of foresight in planning that the developers of Atlantic Station took from being just a concept on paper & put into what will be the reality for the future.
I also think that the transit link potential was a selling point in getting the whole project off of the drawing boards & up & into reality years ago.
It's very clear which district is more walkable. How about showing some pictures like I did?
I've always considered Ansley Park part of Midtown, although it clearly has its own strong identity.
When considering Midtown, you have include West Midtown as well, which extends over to Howell Mill Rd and includes Georgia Tech and Atlantic Station. I would define its boundaries as Howell Mill, North Ave, Monroe Dr, I-85 and Deering Rd.
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Originally Posted by atler8
I also think that the transit link potential was a selling point in getting the whole project off of the drawing boards & up & into reality years ago.
That's correct. Atlantic Station was planned with a streetcar route linking it to Midtown/Arts Center Station via 17th street. Unfortunately, construction began right at the height of the recession of 2001-02 and the line was scrapped. As of last week though, the streetcar route is back on the books and will be built in the next few years along with a another line along the Beltline.
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