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Region Comparison: the Great Plains versus the Gulf Coast
I think this has the potential to be a pretty good comparison, they certainly seem evenly matched to me and I would also say that these two compare favorably against one another in several instances.
First lets start off with giving a definition of sorts for the areas we are comparing. I understand that with a region like the Great Plains that the official definition remains fluid and can vary, depending on the source, but for all intents and purposes, lets use these (see below).
I presume that these definitions are more than fair but for the sake of the comparison in Texas, lets keep the Great Plains to areas Dallas/Fort Worth and further north in Texas. So the Metroplex and the panhandle of Texas.
If you go back about half a century to maybe seventy years ago, these two regions of the United States weren't much with regards to population or economic activity. Today, they are something and increasingly becoming even more so. These are two of the faster growing areas in the United States today both with regards to population but also with regards to economy, culture, and diversity pool as well.
Each region is economically and logistically anchored by a major Texas metropolis; the Greater Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex for the Great Plains and Greater Houston for the Gulf Coast.
I would also say that both regions are, from a developmental point of view, on a similar playing field and on a similar trajectory. Both areas each have at least 1 metropolis exceeding 6 million people and within 25-30 years would be eclipsing megacity threshold, 1 other metropolis exceeding 3 million people (Denver/Tampa) and in 25-30 years would both likely be as large as Dallas and Houston are today, and other fast growing and/or populated areas above 1 million people such as Kansas City (Great Plains), Omaha (Great Plains), Oklahoma City (Great Plains), Tulsa (Great Plains), New Orleans (Gulf Coast), Rio Grande Valley (Gulf Coast), Naples/Fort Myers (Gulf Coast), Baton Rouge (Gulf Coast) and others. I went ahead and threw Omaha and Baton Rouge into the "1 million and up" category because Omaha is almost there and Baton Rouge isn't too far off either. Plus there are several smaller towns and resort cities in both regions to take into account as well.
If you want, you are free to expand the area of comparison to include areas of the Great Plains in Canada in the provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan and areas of the Gulf Coast in Mexico all the way up to the Yucatan Peninsula.
Both regions have defined food scenes (seafood versus barbecue), defined economic pull (seaports versus intermodal ports for freight rail), defined climate conditions, defined vegetation, and vulnerabilities to major natural disasters such as tornadoes (Great Plains) or hurricanes (Gulf Coast). Among many other things.
So when taking into account the culture, the food offerings, the weather, the topography/scenery, architecture, housing, outdoors offerings, wildlife, collection of cities, collection of smalltowns and resort towns, cool sites to see, cultural institutions, economy, infrastructure, schools, location, nightlife, city amenities, and the like which region would you choose? Why?
So when taking into account the culture, the food offerings, the weather, the topography/scenery, architecture, housing, outdoors offerings, wildlife, cities, economy, infrastructure, schools, location, and the like which region would you choose? Why?
Culture: Maybe it is because it has a longer history, but the Gulf seems to have a more established culture, if that makes sense. If you mean in terms of how people act, I think both regions are among the nicest in the States.
Food Offering: Most would probably go with the Gulf; Houston really is much more diverse than anywhere else in the South or Great Plains, which gives it some of the best ethnic food, while New Orleans seems to have highly regarded local food. For me it was a wash-the Korean (as well as Japanese, tbh) food is a bit lacking in Houston. If Atlanta was included in the Gulf, then the Gulf would certainly win this for me.
Weather: Great Plains, no contest. Yes, DFW is humid but neither I nor my skin can stand the humidity of the Gulf. Also, I'd rather deal with tornado threats than hurricane threats.
Topography/Scenery: Either or. I don't consider the Great Plains or Gulf Coast beautiful. If I have to pick, I would say the Great Plains since I don't like large bodies of water, such as the Gulf of Mexico, but that is just me. I am well aware than most people love the water and coasts.
Architecture: No idea? Probably the Gulf Coast; the modern architecture of either region doesn't thrill me but I do like the Antebellum architecture of the Deep South. Skyline I like more Dallas' than anything in the Gulf Coast.
Housing: I don't know what this means? I'd rather have a home in the Great Plains because of environmental reasons?
Outdoors Offerings: Great Plains. I don't enjoy the beach and while I can manage, I much prefer to exercise or play outdoor sports in less humidity. Plus, if Denver is considered Great Plains here, I guess it is another bonus.
Wildlife: Great Plains. If I cared for the diversity, I would vote for the Gulf Coast without hesitation, but I am more concerned with having less animals that can kill me. Also, less mosquitoes.
Cities: Great Plains. If I ignore weather and the Korean community, I like Houston and DFW roughly the same. The only other city that interests me in the Gulf Region is New Orleans; I liked visiting and I will definitely love to visit again but I could never live there. Not sure why, but I always had a fixation with cities like Omaha, Topeka, and Kansas City on the Great Plains.
Economy: Great Plains. The economy there seemed more stable during the recession and the oil bust than the Gulf Coast and, though I don't know figures off the top of my head, I believe the Gulf Coast/major Gulf Coast cities generally have higher poverty rates. I will admit that, regardless of the Oil Bust, Houston has great incomes, especially taking into account the low cost of living, but the other cities don't seem to do very well except maybe Tampa and Orlando in areas regarding growth.
Infrastructure: I don't know. Based on my experience, the infrastructure isn't very good in Louisiana, Alabama, and Mississippi (and I believe Florida has some of the most dangerous in the nation).
Schools: K-12, I would go with Great Plains. Universities, I would go with the Gulf Region-Rice, overall, does much better than any other school in the Great Plains or Gulf Region.
Location: Great Plains. It is closer to the West Coast and East Asia. The Gulf Region is closer to the Northeast, so I would completely understand if someone else preferred the location of the Gulf Region.
Personal Choice: Great Plains, for the reasons above.
Culture: Maybe it is because it has a longer history, but the Gulf seems to have a more established culture, if that makes sense. If you mean in terms of how people act, I think both regions are among the nicest in the States.
Food Offering: Most would probably go with the Gulf; Houston really is much more diverse than anywhere else in the South or Great Plains, which gives it some of the best ethnic food, while New Orleans seems to have highly regarded local food. For me it was a wash-the Korean (as well as Japanese, tbh) food is a bit lacking in Houston. If Atlanta was included in the Gulf, then the Gulf would certainly win this for me.
Having once lived in both Dallas and Houston in the past, I find them to be pretty much on par with regard to cosmopolitan characteristics and/or diversity. If pressed, the slightest of an edge to Houston but Dallas has spent the last 25 years catching up and statistically has caught up to Houston. Even in actual life, Dallas and Houston feel on par. Houston seems a bit more integrated, but that's the only difference I've noticed between the two personally. Houston only gets the edge because its Latin American population outside of Mexico is much broader and more established. Houston has a very real and large Central American population and a northern South American population (Venezuela and Colombia). Other than that one aspect, the two are pretty even across the board in both diversity as well as most of all the other things. It is sort of just a wash between the two, they cancel each other out IMO.
With regard to culture, just a general sense of place. People in every community have their own knicks and knacks and the way they do things. It tends to show up in the type of food they either create or eat or in the ways they find entertainment. For example, the Fort Worth Stockyards to me, is a cultural district that encapsulates Fort Worth's historical past and foundational culture.
These things tend to show up in art and music too. Think of something as simple as Houston's Chopped & Screwed Hip-Hop scene. Or think something like Houston's food scene, a decent amount of it has gone through fusion, some of the most common being Cajun + Vietnamese (like at Oxheart) or Cajun + Mexican. That's very localized and embodies the areas culture to take a local food scene like Cajun and mix it with an international food scene like Vietnamese or Mexican.
I also think that Greater Denver versus the Greater Tampa Bay Area is a really nice subplot and discussion for this thread IMO.
Last edited by Trafalgar Law; 09-12-2017 at 05:37 PM..
I would not willingly live in either but I have enjoyed visits to the Gulf Coast...beach towns. Inland Gulf Coast has no appeal. Great Plains are numbingly boring to drive through but there are interesting spots if you have the time to look for them and want to spend the effort. Most see it as a place you have to get past -- fly-over if you are able drive over if you are on the ground. Crossing Kansas by Amtrak is ok because you do it at night both ways.
I really like the scenery on the Gulf Coast in Florida and I also like warmth and humidity plus lushness so I do enjoy that.
Quality of life though is excellent on the plains in my opinion. The ease of day to day living, the affordable housing and how well planned and organized most cities are on the plains is really appealing.
I do think I would choose the Gulf Coast though if I had to choose but that is more because I really enjoy warm weather and lush scenery. I like the coast in Florida.
However, the plains from Kansas to North Dakota have an excellent, high quality of life but the weather just isn't very appealing for the winter.
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