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Of these two, its a hard choice but Im going to lean toward Frisco. I do like Cary NC though.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Guineas
Don’t really understand it. It’s cookie cutter suburban sprawl on flat land. Looks like any other nondescript suburb. If this is the premiere suburb in America, beam me out of here please. I can think of 20 nicer streetcar suburbs around the country where I would much rather live.
You have very valid points, problem is most Americans are not urbanists. They want the newer homes in secluded cookie cutter areas with tried and proven floor plans and access to high paying jobs and upscale restaurants. Thats where Frisco is hitting the mark. They don't care that they have to drive or that is non-unique.
I believe you get it mixed up with The Colony to the west of Frisco lol. I believe the only thing that was up that way was a battery plant that they had to clean up when it closed down and people who had estates with a lot of land that were happy to cash out to developers.
Actually, he's right about Frisco. I recall seeing posts in the Dallas Observer about the cathouse there.
Fair enough. I grew up partly in Plano with family still there so pretty familiar with the area hence my eye roll when I see Frisco described as the “premiere suburb in America.” 8 lane intersections, strip malls in every direction and tract houses on tiny lots with nowhere to walk to. And it’s not even that cheap when you factor in property taxes. Also there’s quite a bit of variability in the schools too within Frisco. Some are pretty mediocre, you still have to pay for the good ones.
Frisco has grown large and is atypical when compared to most suburbs in America but its not one I find highly attractive, even in the DFW area. the northern suburbs of northeast Tarrant County I find more attractive in terms of scenery. Some others border lakes in the area. Frisco is flat and lacks heavy tree cover and has no water recreation within its boundaries. 30 years ago, developers and the city should have thought more about natural beauty and not just use of land for event centers/sports.
I choose Frisco given that its becoming more of an employment center and not just a bedroom community. Companies based there or with large offices include the
The PGA,
Great Batch Medical
Keurig/Dr. Pepper
Oracle
MoneyGram
Level 3
Fiserv
Dallas Cowboys HQ
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I don't know if you really can call Cary just a bedroom community when it has a lot of tech and health jobs to the point that damn near 50% of Cary doesn't leave it to go to work, also I feel Cary is also different...well the triangle is different in that it's not like people commute from the suburbs to the city, but lots of people are all commuting to the same place, RTP. RTP is closer to Cary than Raleigh itself is. I work in RTP and that just means that I drive 6 miles to work with out ever getting on any high way. While if I was in Raleigh itself I would have to get on 40 and deal with traffic.
Neither would be a top pick for me, for the same reason as Guineas, but out of the two I guess I'd take Frisco, just because the DFW metro is so much bigger and more diverse. I think it's important for kids to be exposed to different cultures, lifestyles, and experiences. Better-located airport, too, for taking trips to different cities to expand their horizons. Ideally I'd want to be closer to Dallas, but in Frisco I'd try to live close to the town center, just so my kids could bike and walk places alone or with friends, and not depend on me + my partner in this hypothetical to get around.
I'm also in tech and it'd be easier to find another job in DFW if something happened with my current one (though the Triangle is making strides here too).
The big advantage in Cary would be outdoor recreation, but the impression I get from most parents is that they don't have nearly as much time or energy for that stuff as they'd hoped.
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Honestly the way Cary is built about 90% of neighborhoods are directly connected to the green way system to the point you see tons of kids just out and about both with and without their parents, so I just don't know how you got that impression.
(quick little vids I made, but I bike here regularly, taking the bond park greenway from my house passing bond lake to connect the black creek greenway, then connecting to north cary park to the lake crabtree greenway and umstead park(which looks much better during spring and summer lol)
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Also lots of neighborhoods along with being connected to the greenway have their own nature trails, lakes, etc. In regards to the air port it's probably all of a 1 to 5 mile drive for most of Cary to the airport so I don't know how much more convenient you can get.
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Now I haven't been to DFW but will say that Cary is more diverse than you think and also people need to take into account that it's very hard to isolate any where in the triangle because it just doesn't operate like that. And due to people always moving here not just from up north but from all over the world, you do see a diverse amount of people.
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Last edited by drrckmtthws; 08-29-2021 at 11:54 AM..
I didn't say the best suburb at urbanity. The best suburb for what people who are looking to live in suburbs care about the most. Access to high paying jobs, amenities, safety, good schools, affordability, infrastructure, availability of nice homes.
Personally, my life’s goal isn’t to live in Anywhere USA uncontrolled middle/upper middle class suburban sprawl. I’ve always lived suburban but the places I’ve always chosen had high walkability scores. An amenity is the yacht club and the beach, not some HOA swimming pool where it’s an insufferable 95F for 4 months in the summer. You’re trapped in your suburban plastic box because you can’t leave air conditioning.
Besides, if you have a high paying job, affordability doesn’t matter. The reason the schools are strong in blue chip suburbs is only white collar professionals can afford to live there.
The racial makeup of the two is surprisingly similar; both are about 2/3 White, 1/5 Asian, and 8% Black; 22% foreign-born.
Cary has shorter commutes (23.3 min vs 29.8). Frisco has a slight edge in incomes (per capita $53,191 vs. $50,595), but also has substantially higher housing costs (homeowners pay 33.5% more per month, renters 20.8% more) perhaps reflecting Texas' reliance on property taxes.
Quote:
Originally Posted by bluescreen73
True story - prior to it becoming a Flavor of the Month suburb, Frisco was just a wide spot on Highway 121
Both towns have abysmal Walk Scores (27 for Cary, 24 for Frisco), but get "very walkable" downtown (Main Street in Frisco gets a 73, Academy Street in Cary gets a 70).
Quote:
Originally Posted by walker1962
I choose Frisco given that its becoming more of an employment center and not just a bedroom community.
Cary is home to more businesses (14,906 vs. 13,188). Large businesses in town include SAS Institute, MetLife, Verizon, Siemens Medical Solutions, Epic Games, and (now) Apple.
Apple is opening a temporary campus in Cary while it builds a new campus across the street from Cary's town boundary, a short walk from Cisco, NetApp, Biogen, Lenovo, and Credit Suisse.
Cary is home to more businesses (14,906 vs. 13,188). Large businesses in town include SAS Institute, MetLife, Verizon, Siemens Medical Solutions, Epic Games, and (now) Apple.
Apple is opening a temporary campus in Cary while it builds a new campus across the street from Cary's town boundary, a short walk from Cisco, NetApp, Biogen, Lenovo, and Credit Suisse.
Cary is also home to USA Baseball, the governing body for the sport.
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