Indianapolis vs St. Louis vs. ? (restaurant, cost, better, place)
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We have been through this time and again. Indy inflates its downtown population by reporting areas several miles from the monument circle. There is absolutely NO WAY 30,000 people live within the mile square. Literally no way. You'd have to have 50 residential towers over 30 floors to get to that kind of density. And it only has two.
Cincinnati and Louisville roughly count their downtown only as the CBD, which are roughly a mile square from Fountain Square and 4SL, respectively. Also, while Cincinnati and Louisville may not have as much new construction downtown as Indy, they have lots of rehabbed buildings with residential. SO you may not realize that both those cities have residential on almost every block downtown. Two of Indy's largest residential developers are very active in Louisville. Many areas which most Louisvillians would consider downtown are not even close to being considered as part of the downtown population. A classic case in point is River Park Place, which currently has a tower crane up for a ten story residential tower and will have about 2,000 residents not even close to being counted as part of downtown. Also both Cincinnati and Louisville have urban populations across state lines which are effectively downtown but technically not. They are still downtown neighborhoods. Seriously come check out downtown Jeffersonville, IN on a warm night. You will be literally SHOCKED.
I am not debating Indy doesn't have the slightly busier downtown....it does because Indy put all its eggs in one basket. Cincinnati and Louisville are neighborhood cities. Why I think Indy is in trouble in its urban core long term compared to the other two is it will take decades to build the neighborhoods that Cincinnati and Louisville have. However, those two cities downtowns are getting VERY active, especially depending on events/conventions/concerts.
My figures aren't coming from Indianapolis sources but from point2 homes.
I will say downtown life isn’t really a big selling point for me either way. Downtown St. Louis is pretty meh to me. I don’t really spend any time there. I like interesting neighborhoods that have their own strips of entertainment, shops, etc. Although I have tended to be a loner out here and that may have to change if I do have to move alone. So the notion that Indy is more focused on downtown is kind of drawing me away.
We have been through this time and again. Indy inflates its downtown population by reporting areas several miles from the monument circle. There is absolutely NO WAY 30,000 people live within the mile square. Literally no way. You'd have to have 50 residential towers over 30 floors to get to that kind of density. And it only has two.
The sourced data is counting roughly everything in the downtown interstate loop over to the White River, including IUPUI. Within that range, I don't think saying there are 30K residents downtown is unreasonable.
I would agree with you in that there is a downtown group that counts a sliver along Meridian/College as far north as 38th Street to be downtown. That is just silly.
I will say downtown life isn’t really a big selling point for me either way. Downtown St. Louis is pretty meh to me. I don’t really spend any time there. I like interesting neighborhoods that have their own strips of entertainment, shops, etc. Although I have tended to be a loner out here and that may have to change if I do have to move alone. So the notion that Indy is more focused on downtown is kind of drawing me away.
If you ever visit, check out the areas that were recommended to you away from downtown and decide for yourself. Don't let a bunch of cornball homers sway you one way or another.
I find St. Louis to be the more interesting city with more neighborhoods to my liking. Can you simply move to a neighborhood further from where your potential and social milieu are? I'm assuming you're probably living in the city in the southern portion of the city or the western portion of the city. Maybe just more that way.
A wildcard for an interesting neighborhood(s) really close to Effingham might be to go to Champaign/Urban as together they're a sizable college town with companies that have spun out of the college. That usually means there are couple of interesting neighborhoods for a small city.
We didn't like Indy at all. 85% of it is just really rough, industrial, disconnected areas full of corporate chains with no local feel to it. Downtown is growing and becoming more interesting, but nothing that special. Broad Ripple and Rocky Ripple are pretty nice areas, but not "houses around $700" affordable. Nothing remotely good for someone looking for an "artistic" or "funky" atmospheres.
Louisville could be a great choice. Cincy would probably be the best, albeit a little far for what you're looking for.
I didn't like it either. St. Louis has more interesting neighborhoods outside of downtown. Indianapolis has a small downtown and not much urban character.
I didn't like it either. St. Louis has more interesting neighborhoods outside of downtown. Indianapolis has a small downtown and not much urban character.
Indianapolis has its own urban character. You've never been able to quantify your crusading with empirical evidence, but I am willing to listen.
I love visiting Indianapolis. St Louis seems like your best bet. But there again I am a lot more familiar with St. Louis.
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