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100%. DC's downtown is impressive in scope, but it's extremely office dominated and lacks the same finely-grained mixed-use vibrancy as Philly. It just feels monolithic and sterile by comparison.
The neighborhoods, like Georgetown, Adams Morgan, and Dupont, are where DC keeps its true vibrancy.
In that way, and to some varying degree, DC and Boston are similar. Boston would probably fall somewhere in between DC and Philadelphia, IMO. Has some of the mixed-use urban environment, but the neighborhoods are really where it's happening
It's amazing how sensational the national media is, particularly when it has come to Philadelphia sports fans. Careless, though isolated, property damage does not equate to a "riot."
Getting to actual facts, only eight (EIGHT!) arrests were made in Philly post-Superbowl. Not exactly what one would refer to as a crisis.
Apparently, the scene was actually more off-the-rails at UMass-Amherst:
Turns out the police in Massachusetts had to shoot blanks to deter rioters from throwing TVs and laptops:
“Videos of police in riot gear, telling students to disperse showed up on social media as rioters threw beer cans, glass bottles, TVs, laptops and traffic cones.
There were reports of two smoke grenades and a UMass spokesperson said no rubber bullets were used to disperse the crowd, although a video did show what seemed to be police shooting blanks.”
100%. DC's downtown is impressive in scope, but it's extremely office dominated and lacks the same finely-grained mixed-use vibrancy as Philly. It just feels monolithic and sterile by comparison.
The neighborhoods, like Georgetown, Adams Morgan, and Dupont, are where DC keeps its true vibrancy.
And there's nothing wrong with an office centric downtown, as most city cores are that way because it's the highest form of use. Beats having a run down indoor mall there. It's a pretty vibrant office environment during the day in contrast to most residential areas that are dead during the day and night. These Office areas also make great club/entertainment districts as some the hottest clubs in DC are in these urban office cores. Try having that in a predominately residential area with the noise at 2am, and watch the NIMBYs come out screaming and complaining.
And there's nothing wrong with an office centric downtown, as most city cores are that way because it's the highest form of use. Beats having a run down indoor mall there. It's a pretty vibrant office environment during the day in contrast to most residential areas that are dead during the day and night. These Office areas also make great club/entertainment districts as some the hottest clubs in DC are in these urban office cores. Try having that in a predominately residential area with the noise at 2am, and watch the NIMBYs come out screaming and complaining.
"run down indoor mall": We used to resemble that remark, but PREIT and Macerich are giving the thing a total makeover. Come back around this time next year.
As for the clubs: There is a zone here roughly bounded by Walnut on the north and Locust on the south where residences, offices and clubs coexist, and with the conversion/construction of new multifamily between Chestnut and Walnut - and even along Market - the boundaries between these zones here are increasingly blurry.
Not to mention that they also blur in Old City, where there are also a bunch of nightspots that occasionally irk the neighbors.
I'd say that Philly still does 18-hour mixed-use in its core better than DC does. (The best examples of that in the District are Georgetown, Dupont Circle and Adams Morgan, and I'm not sure how the last of those scores on the club scale.)
100%. DC's downtown is impressive in scope, but it's extremely office dominated and lacks the same finely-grained mixed-use vibrancy as Philly. It just feels monolithic and sterile by comparison.
The neighborhoods, like Georgetown, Adams Morgan, and Dupont, are where DC keeps its true vibrancy.
Agree with all points here. Yet many of these aspects of DC which sresemble sunbelt cities. Houston’s CBD is sterile and after hours and weekends is empty to boot. The vibrancy can be found in the car-centric adjacent neighborhoods nearby such as Midtown and Montrose. Metro doesn’t go to Georgetown.
"run down indoor mall": We used to resemble that remark, but PREIT and Macerich are giving the thing a total makeover. Come back around this time next year.
As for the clubs: There is a zone here roughly bounded by Walnut on the north and Locust on the south where residences, offices and clubs coexist, and with the conversion/construction of new multifamily between Chestnut and Walnut - and even along Market - the boundaries between these zones here are increasingly blurry.
Not to mention that they also blur in Old City, where there are also a bunch of nightspots that occasionally irk the neighbors.
I'd say that Philly still does 18-hour mixed-use in its core better than DC does. (The best examples of that in the District are Georgetown, Dupont Circle and Adams Morgan, and I'm not sure how the last of those scores on the club scale.)
You forget Chinatown, as well as the addition of CityCenter and the department stores and upscale shopping around it (not even talking about CityCenter itself which is high-end luxury), that area of DC proper is really continuous mixed-use or becoming so, DuPont imo, has been surpassed by 14th Street, P street and U street which is a contiguous urban fabric from the downtown office core all the way up 13th/14th to Columbia Heights.
Agree with all points here. Yet many of these aspects of DC which sresemble sunbelt cities. Houston’s CBD is sterile and after hours and weekends is empty to boot. The vibrancy can be found in the car-centric adjacent neighborhoods nearby such as Midtown and Montrose. Metro doesn’t go to Georgetown.
Lol I hope you are not talking about D.C. proper. I like Philly and think it's undervalued but D.C. couldnt match the industrial badlands of Philly proper.
I would say DC is a pretty clear favorite when it comes to cosmopolitan feel, prestige, wealth, and cultural activities. But, I can see how people would prefer Philly. It has a more organic urban feel, amazing architecture, a living downtown, tight knit neighborhoods, and tons of character.
It's amazing how sensational the national media is, particularly when it has come to Philadelphia sports fans. Careless, though isolated, property damage does not equate to a "riot."
Getting to actual facts, only eight (EIGHT!) arrests were made in Philly post-Superbowl. Not exactly what one would refer to as a crisis.
Apparently, the scene was actually more off-the-rails at UMass-Amherst:
There was certainly riot-like activity taking place. The videos of Philly looked a lot like Baltimore did in 2015.
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