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Interesting that Charlotte has remained more stagnant than Atlanta, while the center of gravity is shifting to Raleigh-Durham. It is starting to become Silicon Valley East!
Heard on the radio tonight that Apple is going to build a campus for hardware development, similar to the recently opened Austin campus for software development.
Charlotte is hardly stagnant, by any stretch of imagination.
You aren't doing Houston any favors with this diatribe.
Depending on the day, it’s either Atlanta, which I think of as the true heart of the New South, or DFW, just because of both my proximity and its growth. Houston gets a shoutout here too.
Back around when I moved to Texas in 2005, Charlotte would have been high on the list, but I feel like it’s just not really sustained its momentum; and Nashville has really stolen a lot of thunder lately.
Austin might be a contender, but I don’t feel like Austin has ever been essentially Southern enough to be a Southern city; it’s in that transition area where the South and Southwest come together, and it’s really not enough of either one to be put in either region (ditto nearby San Antonio, and I could totally see the same argument get made about DFW).
The Florida cities here are...kinda their own thing? A lot of Florida is hella Southern culturally, but I’ve never felt like the metros were ever anything but...Florida. Florida is really it’s own weird thing (don’t hate. I like Florida quite a bit).
Atlanta is the O.G. “New South” aka “The City too busy to Hate.” This was a concerted effort by businesses and the Chamber of Commerce to brand the magic that its central nexus location in the Southeast with rail, interstate, and airline crossroads infrastructure afforded, coupled with pro-business policies. It capitalized on its Piedmont (not Deep South) high ground, post-Bellum, “Resurgens”/Phoenix Rising mythology, and beyond just good PR, pulled it through to make it happen.
That said, it is certainly now the Old “New South” as it matured. The other “New South” metros like The Triangle, Charlotte, Nashville, and the GSP area have taken up the New New South mantle with their greenfield vitality. I was born and raised in Atlanta, and call Raleigh home now, with considerable time spent all across the Piedmont. I also have strong family and resident connections to both Texas and Florida, and honestly they really seem more of their own worlds vs “New South.” DFW and Houston seem to have more of a growth and evolution vibe than Atlanta these days. ATL seems to be more mellowing with age.
Depending on the day, it’s either Atlanta, which I think of as the true heart of the New South, or DFW, just because of both my proximity and its growth. Houston gets a shoutout here too.
Back around when I moved to Texas in 2005, Charlotte would have been high on the list, but I feel like it’s just not really sustained its momentum; and Nashville has really stolen a lot of thunder lately.
Austin might be a contender, but I don’t feel like Austin has ever been essentially Southern enough to be a Southern city; it’s in that transition area where the South and Southwest come together, and it’s really not enough of either one to be put in either region (ditto nearby San Antonio, and I could totally see the same argument get made about DFW).
The Florida cities here are...kinda their own thing? A lot of Florida is hella Southern culturally, but I’ve never felt like the metros were ever anything but...Florida. Florida is really it’s own weird thing (don’t hate. I like Florida quite a bit).
Charlotte has DEFINITELY maintained its momentum with the expansion of the lightrail/streetcar system, another added headquarters in Truist Bank, densifying core, increasing gdp, another added major league sports team(MLS), hosting the NBA all-star game, RNC, DNC, added medical school, expanding skyline, etc.... in fact it could really be argued that Charlotte is in its own tier below Atlanta, Dallas, Houston, Miami and above Nashville, Austin, etc...
Charlotte has DEFINITELY maintained its momentum with the expansion of the lightrail/streetcar system, another added headquarters in Truist Bank, densifying core, increasing gdp, another added major league sports team(MLS), hosting the NBA all-star game, RNC, DNC, added medical school, expanding skyline, etc.... in fact it could really be argued that Charlotte is in its own tier below Atlanta, Dallas, Houston, Miami and above Nashville, Austin, etc...
Interesting that Charlotte has remained more stagnant than Atlanta, while the center of gravity is shifting to Raleigh-Durham. It is starting to become Silicon Valley East!
Heard on the radio tonight that Apple is going to build a campus for hardware development, similar to the recently opened Austin campus for software development.
Once again, Atlanta gained over 800,000 people from your previously mentioned arbitrary benchmark of 2008. Charlotte has gained at a significant clip too. This is easily accessible information.
1) Nashville
The "It" city in the US right now. Red hot for growth, entertainment, and has an incredible distinct culture.
2) Austin Not far behind at all, but it has become a bit too "Silicon Valley," expensive, crowded and doesn't have the distinct culture overall, that Nashville has.
3) Raleigh-Durham
Booming tech scene and tons of transplants. Definitely has an exciting vibe. Small by many city standards, even medium-sized cities feel big compared. But it is growing and will be changing rapidly.
4) Northern VA
Booming, growing and has completely changed economically, politically and demographically since the 90s. Will continue to do so. Closely aligns with a northeastern city suburban area moreso than the south currently.
5) Charlotte
Financial powerhouse and economic growth continues. The city is booming and will only continue to emerge as one of the best cities for jobs in the country in the future.
Nashville is everything "new south," and is one of the cities that is the future of the new south.
Nashville has a strong southern culture, a music mecca, tons of entertainment value for anyone, big brands clammering to move there, population growth, economic growth, friendly culture, and feels very "energetic, happening and "now" for a southern city.
**I feel like Atlanta, Houston, DFW and Miami have had their "new south" moments over time already. Houston in the 80s with the oil/gas boom, Miami in the 80s and in the early 2000s with the "it city status" and skyscraper booms, Atlanta over the course of the past 30 + years has shown strong growth and continues to in the entertainment arena, and Dallas-Fort Worth continues to grow strongly as well.
But these 4 metros no longer feel "new" and although they are huge and growing in their own rights, have lost some of that southern culture along the way and now are just huge metro areas, with distinct diverse pockets everywhere.
Austin has outperformed Nashville in every metric with which we can gauge growth.
Nashville is everything "new south," and is one of the cities that is the future of the new south.
Nashville has a strong southern culture, a music mecca, tons of entertainment value for anyone, big brands clammering to move there, population growth, economic growth, friendly culture, and feels very "energetic, happening and "now" for a southern city.
**I feel like Atlanta, Houston, DFW and Miami have had their "new south" moments over time already. Houston in the 80s with the oil/gas boom, Miami in the 80s and in the early 2000s with the "it city status" and skyscraper booms, Atlanta over the course of the past 30 + years has shown strong growth and continues to in the entertainment arena, and Dallas-Fort Worth continues to grow strongly as well.
But these 4 metros no longer feel "new" and although they are huge and growing in their own rights, have lost some of that southern culture along the way and now are just huge metro areas, with distinct diverse pockets everywhere.
All of these cities are Southern and all can be a part of the New South and they all have something unique to bring to the South. The South is not a single monolithic region culturally. The 'New South' nowadays is actually something that is older in concept, than being new in the 21st century. It was a concept of urbanizing and moving on from an agrarian economy post Civil War.
The problem is being in the New South isn't about a city's coming of age. It isn't a moment.
It's about being Southern and embracing it, while moving on from the worse sides of our pasts and about living in large urban centers with more developed economies, better education system, better medical systems, and better infrastructure.
It was coined by Henry W. Grady in Atlanta. It was largely used to encourage growth in education, infrastructure, hospitals, universities, and attract outside capital to the South and get the population to embrace that. That is what the New South is.
Atlanta, Houston, DFW, and Miami didn't lose that because we got really big.
As far the this term and phrase being used, it is Atlanta hands down. Atlanta was the leader and the capital of the South, culturally and economically speaking.
I'm happy to share it with Nashville to a degree, but you don't get to take it away just because your town is coming of age. It is a concept and term that will always belong steeply in Atlanta's history.
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