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Charlotte, North Carolina + Nashville, Tennessee + Tampa, Florida
And in the blue corner
Las Vegas, Nevada + Phoenix, Arizona + San Diego, California
As usual which team is the best in these categories
Amenities
Architecture
Cost of living
Crime
Culture
Diversity
Downtown
Food
Friendliness
Future outlook
Good place to live/visit
Nightlife
Outdoor activity
Population density
Public transportation, otherwise access to the commercial/industrial areas
Quality of life
Schools
Skyline
Shopping
Things to do
Weather
Last edited by JMT; 01-31-2023 at 12:13 PM..
Reason: Political debate belongs in the Politics forum.
Both have their strengths and weaknesses. Both have one city on the water, one city where entertainment/tourism is their main draw, and then you have the inland cities that aren't touristy per se (PHX and CLT) but are definitely growing fast.
I prefer the pacific vibe of Southern California to Tampa, but I like the warmer waters of the gulf more so than the Pacific.
For me, the entertainment is more well-rounded in LV than Nashville, although both are kind of one trick ponies.
Charlotte is a smaller metro with a better skyline than Phoenix. Both have mountains, but PHX has mountains in the city and many more much closer. I prefer the drier climate to the South's humidity any day.
I do like Nashville's skyline more than Las Vegas' skyline, San Diego over Tampa, and Charlotte over Phoenix.
Interesting lineup. Personally, Charlotte + Nashville are the strongest duo (Tampa doesn't add much), and San Diego is the strongest standalone contender.
A quick ranking of red and blue (I may think on this and update later)...
Amenities - tie, each trio covers amenities across the board.
Architecture - red (neither group is a standout).
Cost of living - Slightly blue
crime - red
culture - red
diversity - blue
downtown - Slightly blue (San Diego carries this)
food - red
friendliness - red?
future outlook - red
good place to live/visit - tie (subjective based on preferences).
Nightlife - red
outdoor activity - blue
Population density - red?
Public transportation, otherwise access to the commercial/industrial areas - tie? (neither group is a standout).
Quality of life - red
schools - red
skyline - red
shopping - blue
Things to do - Edge blue
Weather - red (vegas and phoenix are too hot for my liking). [/quote]
Well this is an interesting thread. For the record I don't think this thread is fair because Phoenix is significantly larger than the other three cities in the Southeast and also the economic hub of the Southwest. Now if you took out one of those cities and replaced it with Atlanta... it'd be much more comparable and fair. Phoenix's 5-6 million versus Atlanta's 6-7 million... OR, you can do Miami which I think as of now is a wee smaller than Atlanta in terms of overall population.
OR you could replace Phoenix with Tucson which is the closest mid-sized city to the other three in the Southeast while still being in the Desert Southwest. Tucson still though is not the size of those SE cities and I believe a mil smaller. A better comparable would be something more Denver sized but Denver is outside of the region. And the interior Southwest is not very populated for a reason, so we are missing cities within that 2-3 million or so range.
I'm not super experienced with the SE cities outside of Tampa which I've visited several times now but I know the SW cities very very well so I will still play this game with the options provided and what I've seen (on the internet) and heard about Nashville and Charlotte.
Amenities = Southwest. I'm assuming this is based on things like nightlife, and "things to do" which are also separate categories in here, so I'm confused why this category is here as a group. But I think overall this goes to the Southwest.
Architecture = Southwest. I personally find SE architecture outside of the historic cities to be more bland in the suburbs than the SW. Tampa does have the Floridian plantation style and quite a bit of mid-century moderns in the suburbs which I really enjoy with the more tropical flora, on top of more Mediterranean architecture. For the Southwest, I feel that San Diego has the best combination of Craftsmans, Mediterranean/Tuscan, Spanish colonial and even modern architecture. Las Vegas also has a lot more "desert modern" design which I find very aesthetically pleasing and unique. Phoenix is the most bland of the three I think, but even cookie cutter Spanish colonial is better to me than cookie cutter siding homes they build in suburban Charlotte. Nashville being generally older has some interesting buildings in it's core like more brick buildings but Tampa and Charlotte are way too new to have anything stand out to me on a larger scale. For the record I'm not counting skyscrapers, all of these cities are relatively new in terms of vertical growth and generally just have glass rectangles for skyscrapers and there are none of those in any of the cities listed in both SW and SE to stand out to me. Phoenix has a couple MCM high-rises in the Midtown area but again, one or two interesting isolated buildings are not enough to say a whole city is architecturally exceptional, and yes I am aware Phoenix has a plurality of Frank Lloyd Wright buildings. Neither of these cities are architecturally exceptional outside of historic builds and all of these cities are very new in the grand scheme of things unfortunately.
Cost of Living = Southeast. The entire West is expensive. Phoenix is more expensive than Atlanta, and Atlanta is more expensive than Charlotte. Las Vegas is more expensive than Phoenix. And San Diego is on another plane here it's easily the most expensive on this whole list across all cities. Tampa is probably the most expensive SE city, and Nashville is probably more expensive than Charlotte. Tampa and Phoenix have a similar COL, with a potential for Tampa to be more expensive for more "hidden costs" (property insurance, property tax etc.) which I think are all higher in Florida than they are in Arizona.
Crime = Unsure about this one, I'll let someone else provide info on this.
Culture = It's really hard to rank culture. I'm personally going to give it to the Southeast since I find Southerners to be a lot more open-minded and friendly. Vegas and Phoenix are very transient and many natives from there are cold and not as open to transients since many know they are going to leave after a couple of years. San Diegans, especially the wealthier ones closer to the coast, are a lot more judgmental and superficial which is an attitude that also exists among Angelenos. Inland Californians, like say San Diegans closer to El Cajon, are much more amenable. However with my personal experience of Californians over decades and Phoenicians having lived there for decades and Vegas having traveled there for decades Westerners are really a lot more stand-offish than Southerners and Midwesterners. Even wealthy Southerners like where I live in East Cobb of Atlanta or Buckhead are just anecdotally more pleasant to be around than wealthy Westerners.
Diversity = Southwest. San Diego is a very diverse city and Las Vegas gets tourists from all over the world. Phoenix is about 50/50 White and White-Latino. The Southeast cities provided do not have that level of diversity. Now if Miami or Atlanta (closer to Phoenix comparables) were in this list maybe I'd say otherwise...
Downtown = Southwest. Tampa and Charlotte appear to have subpar Downtowns. Nashville looks like the best option out of the three. In the Southwest you have a major economic hub with one of the weakest Downtowns for it's stature but then you have Vegas which is directly linked to the Strip and then San Diego also has a strong Downtown. It's just not the same. Now again, if Miami or Atlanta were in here I'd potentially say otherwise. Miami and Atlanta beat Phoenix by tenfold individually if not more than that and would replace one of the weaker cities making this a more fair comparison.
Food = Southwest. Californian cuisine is very good in southern California as a whole, and Las Vegas is known for a good culinary scene. Phoenix's is kind of weak, and doesn't have the unique Sonoran cuisine that Tucson has which has won international awards for. Tampa has never stood out to me as being culinarily strong, and I am not sure about Nashville and Charlotte but I am not sure how they can beat Las Vegas a rich person's sandbox and the diverse city of San Diego. Again if Atlanta or Miami were in here... potentially things would be different. Both Atlanta and Miami have good culinary scenes from what I've seen.
Friendliness = Southeast.
Future outlook = Southeast. Tampa, Nashville, and Charlotte are doing very well economically speaking. The Southwest is hindered by being near LA, and also struggling with sustainability issues. Phoenix and Vegas are growing significantly but not to the attention and degree of the Southeast, and San Diego has hit a barrier with cost of living and being too close to LA to really gain it's own strong independent market.
Good place to live/visit = Uh, this is a preference. Depends on what you value. I think the Southwest wins on this list for visiting, and for living I'd say the Southeast, unless you are rich and can afford a good lifestyle in San Diego. Tie.
Nightlife = Southwest. Nashville does not even at all compare to Las Vegas. Now if Miami was in here...
Outdoor activity = Southwest. There's just a lot more options and public land to take advantage of. Tampa has better beaches than San Diego (both still have good beaches by the way), but then you got better mountains and what not in the Southwest versus the rest of the Southeast.
Population density = Southwest. Due to droughts the Southwest cities have had to build burbs in a near rowhome style to reduce water usage, unlike the Southeast which still has a lot more sprawling suburbs with larger lot sizes. Resource scarcity can really change a thing or two. Now if Miami was in here...
Public Transportation = San Diego is probably the best city out of this list, but the best state is probably North Carolina with multiple Amtrak routes that help to serve Charlotte. All of the cities as a whole are subpar here and should be better. Nashville has banned light rail at the state level like Indiana, and Tampa is eventually going to get Brightline which will help connect the greater Orlampa region. Phoenix still doesn't even have Amtrak, and has nuked public transit expansions multiple times even after the voters approved it to be built (don't let me get on my soap box). But Phoenix does have one of the best light rail lines in the US serving the immediate Sky Harbor airport Downtown, Tempe and one of the longest. Vegas has the Musk Loop so they get points taken away for that. I'm not sure if Charlotte has anything going on. I'm going to give this a tie because San Diego does very well here, but would very easily go to the Southeast if Miami or especially Atlanta made this list.
Quality of Life = Personal preference. I think all the cities on this list can qualify as providing a high quality of life, it's just a matter of if you can afford it. Tie as a result of that.
Schools = Not sure which set of education we are referring to. K-12 or college? I'll put it as an unsure since I think the answer between those two may vary.
Skyline = Vegas--I mean uh, the Southwest. Maybe if Miami was in here.
Shopping = Southwest. Lots of high-end shopping in Vegas and Phoenix (Scottsdale). San Diego also does pretty well for itself. None of the Southeast compares here. Even if Atlanta or Miami were on this list, it wouldn't make up for the power duo of Vegas and Phoenix.
Things to do = Uh, personal preference again... probably the Southwest with the options provided. Again, this is not a fair comparison with Phoenix being on here and no Atlanta or Miami.
Weather = Southeast. San Diego is nice and all, but can get boring after a while in my opinion but I get why people love it so much and it's the reason why San Diego is expensive. And I moved out of Phoenix for a reason, summers are hot dry and long I couldn't take it anymore. Vegas is similar enough to Phoenix except even drier. Southern rainstorms are my favorite, I love warm rain. If Tampa was cooler in the summer I would've moved there I think, I like the tropical weather it's just unbearably hot in my opinion for half the year unless you are getting a sea breeze even then you got one palm tree in your way and it's hot again. Winters in Tampa are good. Here in Atlanta, which is similar enough to Charlotte, I get a mild four season climate. I wish Atlanta had cooler summers and rainier winters (I like rainy winter days here more than our cold and dry days) but for the most part I think this is the best option out of all the major cities in the US. Nashville being further inland will be drier, but also have more temperature extremes especially in the winter. Any votes for the Southwest for others on this I'd understand, I'd rather deal with Phoenix again than live in the Midwest or the Northeast for example. Phoenix summers are at least a foe I know well and can handle.
Phoenix is a legit big city in terms of population and things to do in a way that the other 5 aren't quite. As an example it has major teams in football, baseball, hockey, and basketball. No other city being compared can claim more than two of those. Charlotte can claim 3 if you add soccer but it's still fewer.
Nashville is probably the top for music but Las Vegas is on another level as far as things to do, especially shows.
Phoenix is a legit big city in terms of population and things to do in a way that the other 5 aren't quite. As an example it has major teams in football, baseball, hockey, and basketball. No other city being compared can claim more than two of those. Charlotte can claim 3 if you add soccer but it's still fewer.
Nashville is probably the top for music but Las Vegas is on another level as far as things to do, especially shows.
Phoenix under performs for its size in other metrics however. Charlotte and Nashville out perform their perspective tiers in many metrics...
Phoenix under performs for its size in other metrics however. Charlotte and Nashville out perform their perspective tiers in many metrics...
This doesn’t make up that Phoenix is a metro of 5 million in terms of amenities and has a lot more to offer than everywhere else. Economy is only a small portion of our lives and if you base everything on GDP your life is depressing. Phoenix may not be my personal cup of tea but it is my hometown and it being a black sheep on C-D doesn’t mean it’s not a major city and has a lot to offer.
Southeast would drag the southwest if you replaced any one of these three in the SE with Atlanta or Miami. Like I said in my previous post I don’t think these are comparable trios because of that purposeful exclusion of a major SE city while a major SW city is in here.
This doesn’t make up that Phoenix is a metro of 5 million in terms of amenities and has a lot more to offer than everywhere else. Economy is only a small portion of our lives and if you base everything on GDP your life is depressing. Phoenix may not be my personal cup of tea but it is my hometown and it being a black sheep on C-D doesn’t mean it’s not a major city and has a lot to offer.
Southeast would drag the southwest if you replaced any one of these three in the SE with Atlanta or Miami. Like I said in my previous post I don’t think these are comparable trios because of that purposeful exclusion of a major SE city while a major SW city is in here.
I wasnt just referring to economy but transportation, amenities, fortune 500s, etc..Charlotte and Nashville are major cities. I actually like Phoenix, however it leaves some things to be desired for its size. No slight all.
Last edited by QC Dreaming 2; 01-29-2023 at 07:40 PM..
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