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Status:
"See My Blog Entries for my Top 500 Most Important USA Cities"
(set 9 days ago)
Location: Harrisburg, PA
1,051 posts, read 978,865 times
Reputation: 1406
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Fountain-of-youth
Montgomery and Columbus need to be added for better balance.
That was addressed in the original post. I think Columbus, Montgomery, Macon would be a tier below the cities being compared here. Not by much, but still enough.
Personally, I wouldn’t mind adding them just so they would be an option for people to choose. But adding two more cities would result in an outrageously long poll with 720 options, or 6!, or 6*5*4*3*2*1. I’m not sure if CD has a max # of polling options (maybe 100?)
Please feel free to share your ranking of all six if you feel like it. I think it could be still relevant to the thread.
Location: Augusta, GA ''The fastest rising city in the southeast''
7,508 posts, read 15,101,643 times
Reputation: 955
Quote:
Originally Posted by Nemean
Savannah, Huntsville, Mobile, Augusta
Savannah is currently the second largest port on the east coast after New York.
Alabama punches above its weight in amount of federal research dollars. It's primarily Huntsville and UAB. Payoffs include putting a man on the moon.
Mobile is a bit more behind the scenes, but its more of an important infrastructure auxiliary city. For example, Mobile is a second access point to the Mississippi River water system from the Gulf when there are issues that block getting shipping through New Orleans. Otherwise, it currently is more of a shipbuilding/planebuilding city. Its historic importance gets a bit underplayed (It had river access to most of the important Native American tribes in the southeast back in the day, so it was important for diplomacy. It was also controlled by France, Britain, and Spain at various points.). Like most of Alabama, the biodiversity aspects of the area get underplayed nationally (most biodiverse state east of the Mississippi), and near Mobile is the most biodiverse part of Alabama.
Augusta might have the Masters, but it doesn't really have mush else historically that distinguishes it. Cybersecurity could me more of an association in the future, but it's really too recent to tell.
There’s also Doctors Hospital which is the largest burn center for miles. Eisenhower hospital on Fort Gordon and two VA hospitals.
Cyber
The state of Georgia built a $150-$200 million Cyber Center downtown. The price keeps changing, because it went from one building to two buildings. With another building coming soon.
The $364 million Cyber Command and NSA are both on Fort Gordon.
That was addressed in the original post. I think Columbus, Montgomery, Macon would be a tier below the cities being compared here. Not by much, but still enough.
Personally, I wouldn’t mind adding them just so they would be an option for people to choose. But adding two more cities would result in an outrageously long poll with 720 options, or 6!, or 6*5*4*3*2*1. I’m not sure if CD has a max # of polling options (maybe 100?)
Please feel free to share your ranking of all six if you feel like it. I think it could be still relevant to the thread.
Not so sure that Columbus and Montgomery would be a tier below but you can make an argument that Augusta and Huntsville shouldn't be the tier with the others since the metro population is above 500,000, especially Augusta. Savannah receives alot of love on City-Data despite the fact that Augusta outperforms it in population, GDP, and has a much larger metro population.
I voted Savannah, Huntsville, Mobile, Augusta, but one could possibly make the argument putting Augusta ahead of Mobile.
If Savannah, Huntsville, Augusta, and Mobile are Tier 2, then I would say that Columbus, Macon, and Montgomery would be Tier 2B.
Augusta technically outperforms Savannah from a GDP and population perspective, but that’s really more of a function of census metro designations and geography. Because of the fact there is a small percentage who commute back and forth between Savannah, Beaufort /Hilton Head, Hilton Head aren’t considered a part of the Savannah metropolitan area, even though the airport is named fir both cities, and they share a media market. If Hilton Head was officially included as part of the Savannah metro area, Savannah would be larger than Augusta in most all metrics.
Although I would say Savannah and Mobile will switch within a few years for several reasons. First, the Mobile Metro is very incomplete, Mobile Metro only has two counties, Mobile and Washington County, Baldwin County (now the state's fastest growing county) is not a part of the metro, although its really not obvious why, as Baldwin County has a 25% commuter rate to Mobile and Both Counties' Urban Areas physically touch each other via the I-10 Bayway and HY 98/90 Causeway. Once Baldwin County joins the Mobile MSA, the GDP jumps from 19 billion to 27.5 billion, surpassing Savannah's GDP of 22 Billion but just behind Huntsville's 31 billion. Although, Savannah's port is larger, Mobile has had the fastest growing container port for the past decade, Port of Mobile Container Port has grown an average of 15% or so every year since 2015, doubling the growth of the next fastest growing ports, and last year the container port grew by 40%, last time I checked Port of Mobile is up 27%+ since last year. Mobile is arguably in a transition phase into a new south city, with a ton being put into bringing the city into the 21 century by the current city administration such as a new international airport right next to the port, 100s of millions being spent on sidewalks/parks/infrastructure/bike paths in just 3, paying off city debts, heavy investment into downtown, a new $2 billion interstate bayway, a new divided highway opening up the northwestern portion of the county, etc
Although I would say Savannah and Mobile will switch within a few years for several reasons. First, the Mobile Metro is very incomplete, Mobile Metro only has two counties, Mobile and Washington County, Baldwin County (now the state's fastest growing county) is not a part of the metro, although its really not obvious why, as Baldwin County has a 25% commuter rate to Mobile and Both Counties' Urban Areas physically touch each other via the I-10 Bayway and HY 98/90 Causeway. Once Baldwin County joins the Mobile MSA, the GDP jumps from 19 billion to 27.5 billion, surpassing Savannah's GDP of 22 Billion but just behind Huntsville's 31 billion. Although, Savannah's port is larger, Mobile has had the fastest growing container port for the past decade, Port of Mobile Container Port has grown an average of 15% or so every year since 2015, doubling the growth of the next fastest growing ports, and last year the container port grew by 40%, last time I checked Port of Mobile is up 27%+ since last year. Mobile is arguably in a transition phase into a new south city, with a ton being put into bringing the city into the 21 century by the current city administration such as a new international airport right next to the port, 100s of millions being spent on sidewalks/parks/infrastructure/bike paths in just 3, paying off city debts, heavy investment into downtown, a new $2 billion interstate bayway, a new divided highway opening up the northwestern portion of the county, etc
The Census Bureau has made some head scratching decisions about separating counties into separate metro areas that actually meet the minimum metropolitan thresholds. Mobile/Baldwin County, Macon/Warner Robins, Raleigh/Durham, are just a few examples of this. Adding Baldwin County to the Mobile metro would have a similar effect that the addition of Hilton Head/Bluffton would have on the Savannah metro.
Even though the Port of Mobile is growing at a good rate, the Port of Savannah is just on another whole different level in the number of container ships handled over the course of the year. Being that Savannah is the nation’s third largest container port, I don’t see Mobile coming anywhere close to surpassing Savannah anytime in our lifetime. In terms of other things, Mobile has a lot of positive things going for it.
The Census Bureau has made some head scratching decisions about separating counties into separate metro areas that actually meet the minimum metropolitan thresholds. Mobile/Baldwin County, Macon/Warner Robins, Raleigh/Durham, are just a few examples of this. Adding Baldwin County to the Mobile metro would have a similar effect that the addition of Hilton Head/Bluffton would have on the Savannah metro.
Even though the Port of Mobile is growing at a good rate, the Port of Savannah is just on another whole different level in the number of container ships handled over the course of the year. Being that Savannah is the nation’s third largest container port, I don’t see Mobile coming anywhere close to surpassing Savannah anytime in our lifetime. In terms of other things, Mobile has a lot of positive things going for it.
Wow, Census Bureau really doesn't consider Baldwin County as part of the Mobile metro? That's really fregging crazy, considering how close Baldwin is to the city of Mobile and the rest of Mobile County.
Also those other examples of ___ city or county not being part of a metro, also are crazy. I.e. Warner-Robins not being part of Macon, and really Durham isn't a part of the Raleigh metro area?!? I long considered Durham, to be part of the Raleigh area myself!
Anyway, how I'd rank them: Huntsville > Savannah > Mobile(though honestly, both this and the previous city are close in how they'd be ranked) > Augusta
My gut feeling is Savannah is probably a slight bit ahead of Mobile, but I haven't had time to research both cities for myself. This is something I will do some looking up on, later.
I'd say Savannah is ahead by a mild gap
It's pretty close between Huntsville and Mobile
Augusta comparatively though is just awakening in the light of the others.
-Mobile is the capital of Lower Alabama, but not the capital of the larger multi-state Gulf Coast (that's New Orleans). It is overshadowed greatly by its coastal peer cities of Charleston and Savannah.
-Savannah is the capital of Coastal Georgia, but not the capital of the multi-state Lowcountry (that's Charleston). However Savannah cleans up in terms of charm and allure.
-Augusta is the capital of the multi-state Central Savannah River Region, but I would argue this is a region many people are not familiar with, and Augusta in general is overshadowed in the state by Atlanta and Savannah. Take away the Masters, and Augusta doesn't get a second look.
-Huntsville is the capital of North Alabama, and while it may historically have been overshadowed by Birmingham, Mobile, and even Montgomery, it was the fastest growing city in Alabama over the past decade and is becoming a mid-sized Southern city hotspot.
I'd say most influential is between Huntsville and Savannah. Huntsville for economy, growth, quality of life; Savannah for tourism and its role in the national psyche.
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