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Huntsville's level of influence is being greatly overblown in this thread.
I voted Savannah, Mobile, Augusta, Huntsville.
Savannah and Mobile are historic port cities with heavy cultural influence.
Huntsville is a significant economic engine for North Alabama, but it has no cultural (or even economic) influence outside of its immediate area and no real history. It has no real political influence statewide either, unlike Mobile which has produced multiple powerful politicians both on the state and national level.
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.
Baldwin County is large geographically, and a large share of residents live in areas that are not close to Mobile. In fact the southeast part of the county (e.g. Gulf Shores) has closer proximity to Pensacola. The proportion of workers commuting between Baldwin and Mobile counties is not high enough for both counties to be included in the same metro area, even though they certainly have significant connections.
Baldwin County is large geographically, and a large share of residents live in areas that are not close to Mobile. In fact the southeast part of the county (e.g. Gulf Shores) has closer proximity to Pensacola. The proportion of workers commuting between Baldwin and Mobile counties is not high enough for both counties to be included in the same metro area, even though they certainly have significant connections.
Baldwin County already meets all the requirements to merge into Mobile MSA, including a 25% commuter rate. Even the beaches have a relatively high commuter rate of 15%+ percent
Huntsville's level of influence is being greatly overblown in this thread.
I voted Savannah, Mobile, Augusta, Huntsville.
Savannah and Mobile are historic port cities with heavy cultural influence.
Huntsville is a significant economic engine for North Alabama, but it has no cultural (or even economic) influence outside of its immediate area and no real history. It has no real political influence statewide either, unlike Mobile which has produced multiple powerful politicians both on the state and national level.
Sounds like bias and jealousy from someone that lives in a different part of Alabama mad because Huntsville gets national attention and no one else in the state besides Birmingham really does.
Sounds like bias and jealousy from someone that lives in a different part of Alabama mad because Huntsville gets national attention and no one else in the state besides Birmingham really does.
Bias? Maybe. Jealousy? No.
I was unaware that Huntsville gets "national attention" since it gets little to no attention down here as far as I can tell.
I was unaware that Huntsville gets "national attention" since it gets little to no attention down here as far as I can tell.
Huntsville has strong economic links with areas such as metro Washington DC, Houston and Colorado Springs due to NASA and aerospace/defense contractors. Such organizations probably do not have much visibility elsewhere in Alabama. But they do give Huntsville significant recognition in many geographically distant parts of the US.
Sounds like bias and jealousy from someone that lives in a different part of Alabama mad because Huntsville gets national attention and no one else in the state besides Birmingham really does.
I don't necessarily think it's jealously because the points are valid. Most people don't think of Huntsville in the same manner as they think of Birmingham, Montgomery, and Mobile. No disrespect to Huntsville, but it's a newer city without the history and influence of the other three. Though, it is moving in the right direction and maintains an excellent job market.
I don't necessarily think it's jealously because the points are valid. Most people don't think of Huntsville in the same manner as they think of Birmingham, Montgomery, and Mobile. No disrespect to Huntsville, but it's a newer city without the history and influence of the other three. Though, it is moving in the right direction and maintains an excellent job market.
That's mainly inside of Alabama that people think that way, and based on what I've seen there's definitely some level of jealousy within other parts of Alabama that Huntsville has outshined many of the other cities in the state. They feel like it's not really an authentic Alabamian city nor rich with Alabama history because its full of transplants so they try to degrade it. No one outside of Alabama mentions anything about Montgomery unless its in regards to state politics. Mobile is thought of regionally for being on the coast and original host of Mardis Gras. But beside Birmingham, only Huntsville really has national recognition because of its work in space and defense. No other Alabama cities really do, and with a 2nd FBI headquarters being built in Huntsville that will give it even more national recognition. I admit outside of the job industry Huntsville really is not known nationally or even state wide for anything else, but the fact that it does have those key industries there sets it apart from some of the other Alabama cities that are similar in size to it.
Last edited by MichiganderTexan; 05-10-2022 at 05:00 PM..
That's mainly inside of Alabama that people think that way, and based on what I've seen there's definitely some level of jealousy within other parts of Alabama that Huntsville has outshined many of the other cities in the state. They feel like it's not really an authentic Alabamian city nor rich with Alabama history because its full of transplants so they try to degrade it. No one outside of Alabama mentions anything about Montgomery unless its in regards to state politics. Mobile is thought of regionally for being on the coast and original host of Mardis Gras. But beside Birmingham, only Huntsville really has national recognition because of its work in space and defense. No other Alabama cities really do, and with a 2nd FBI headquarters being built in Huntsville that will give it even more national recognition. I admit outside of the job industry Huntsville really is not known nationally or even state wide for anything else, but the fact that it does have those key industries there sets it apart from some of the other Alabama cities that are similar in size to it.
I'm not from Alabama. I'm just speaking facts, the other three cities are more popular than Huntsville because of their historical nature. Of course, Huntsville is a gem, but it's been considered Alabama's fourth city until the recent surge. The other cities established themselves first.
I'm not from Alabama. I'm just speaking facts, the other three cities are more popular than Huntsville because of their historical nature. Of course, Huntsville is a gem, but it's been considered Alabama's fourth city until the recent surge. The other cities established themselves first.
Not to me, and I am not from Alabama, either. Huntsville is more New South than the other cities. Housing is decent, jobs are plentiful, and it is attracting more young people. There are many new areas and mixed uses that are thriving like Mid City, Stovehouse, Lowe Mill, North Huntsville, Town Madison, Hays Farm to mention a few (Yes, I am still mad Bridge Street did not get a Von Maur or at least a Macy's). Downtown is thriving and growing as well with new hotels and businesses. Given the criteria the op listed, there is no way Huntsville is last place among this group. Regionally, I see Huntsville's influence in Athens, Decatur, Fayetteville, and Madison. Huntsville's history and German influence have also been understated here.
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