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As someone who was born and raised in Nashville that currently lives in Atlanta and has been to Charlotte, I’d def say Charlotte is the clear choice.
However, Nashville resembles Atlanta in certain ways even if it’s just superficial. Both have four hbcu’s, both have a history in civil rights, both cities have central business districts with downtown/midtown, both have flagship universities in the midtown areas of the city(Georgia Tech and Vanderbilt), etc.
As was stated the biggest key differences are demographics and topography to a lesser degree. Both Atlanta and Charlotte being Piedmont and Nashville being upper south.
As someone who was born and raised in Nashville that currently lives in Atlanta and has been to Charlotte, I’d def say Charlotte is the clear choice.
However, Nashville resembles Atlanta in certain ways even if it’s just superficial. Both have four hbcu’s, both have a history in civil rights, both cities have central business districts with downtown/midtown, both have flagship universities in the midtown areas of the city(Georgia Tech and Vanderbilt), etc.
As was stated the biggest key differences are demographics and topography to a lesser degree. Both Atlanta and Charlotte being Piedmont and Nashville being upper south.
Nashville and Atlanta are also both state capitals as well.
One thing Nashville/Charlotte got right that I wish Atlanta could have emulated was centralizing most of their amenities in their downtown. As such Downtown Nashville and Uptown Charlotte feel like they’re far ahead of Downtown Atlanta at being a live-able district. I think their more centralized focus will also cause both of them to develop a little differently than Atlanta.
The OP said, becoming like Atlanta…I think Charlotte already has. Both are on I-85. Atlanta has I-285 at the spaghetti junction, and Charlotte has I-485.
Entering Atlanta from 85 south, it turns urban in Gwinnett and Dekalb counties. Entering Charlotte traveling north 85 from Atlanta, it turns urban at the edge the Cleveland/Gaston county line into Mecklenburg county. So many similarities.
In Atlanta, you junction with I-20 and I-75. In Charlotte, you junction with I-77.
Then both skylines appear. 85 is just north of uptown, but you do go into the heart of Midtown and Buckhead in Atlanta.
Ecologically and topographically, Atlanta and Charlotte are similar, with Nashville being the clear outlier. West of the Appalachian Plateau, the environment feels so different than it does in the Piedmont, so I personally struggle with comparing Atlanta and/or Charlotte to Nashville.
At the end of the day Charlotte is the most Atlanta-esque of the two but I think Nashville has much more potential to be a big player on the field, like Atlanta, over Charlotte since Nashville doesn’t have to compete with Raleigh for the same slot.
You think all three can't be in competition with each other because they aren't in the same state?
Ecologically and topographically, Atlanta and Charlotte are similar, with Nashville being the clear outlier. West of the Appalachian Plateau, the environment feels so different than it does in the Piedmont, so I personally struggle with comparing Atlanta and/or Charlotte to Nashville.
I agree. Nashville does not really look or feel like either of the cities. Nashville lacks the characteristics of the Piedmont, Deep South, and to a lesser degree, Appalachia. Nashville's amenities are more centrally located, whereas Charlotte and Atlanta have multiple nodes of entertainment, shopping, jobs centers etc. Nashville feels more laidback, blue collar, off the beaten path etc. while Atlanta and Charlotte feel more white collar and corporate feeling. The types of jobs Nashville is attracting tend to be manufacturing, healthcare, and hospitality related (service), with Oracle and Amazon being the exceptions. Nashville is hilly throughout most of the city and sits on the Cumberland River and near multiple waterways. Nashville is definitely not investing as much money on much needed infrastructure improvements like Charlotte. Nashville is way behind Charlotte and Atlanta on making the city more walkable, pedestrian friendly, and mass transit-focused. At this point, I am not really sure how the city is able to attract so much growth without investment in infrastructure. Culturally, I am just not seeing it for Nashville beyond the HBCU institutions and historic elements similar to Atlanta. Charlotte wins.
I agree. Nashville does not really look or feel like either of the cities. Nashville lacks the characteristics of the Piedmont, Deep South, and to a lesser degree, Appalachia. Nashville's amenities are more centrally located, whereas Charlotte and Atlanta have multiple nodes of entertainment, shopping, jobs centers etc. Nashville feels more laidback, blue collar, off the beaten path etc. while Atlanta and Charlotte feel more white collar and corporate feeling. The types of jobs Nashville is attracting tend to be manufacturing, healthcare, and hospitality related (service), with Oracle and Amazon being the exceptions. Nashville is hilly throughout most of the city and sits on the Cumberland River and near multiple waterways. Nashville is definitely not investing as much money on much needed infrastructure improvements like Charlotte. Nashville is way behind Charlotte and Atlanta on making the city more walkable, pedestrian friendly, and mass transit-focused. At this point, I am not really sure how the city is able to attract so much growth without investment in infrastructure. Culturally, I am just not seeing it for Nashville beyond the HBCU institutions and historic elements similar to Atlanta. Charlotte wins.
This sounds like the Austin model of growth lol. Don’t build it and they still come. I also think Nashville will be a good bit more expensive than Atlanta and Charlotte too as it grows.
I agree. Nashville does not really look or feel like either of the cities. Nashville lacks the characteristics of the Piedmont, Deep South, and to a lesser degree, Appalachia. Nashville's amenities are more centrally located, whereas Charlotte and Atlanta have multiple nodes of entertainment, shopping, jobs centers etc. Nashville feels more laidback, blue collar, off the beaten path etc. while Atlanta and Charlotte feel more white collar and corporate feeling. The types of jobs Nashville is attracting tend to be manufacturing, healthcare, and hospitality related (service), with Oracle and Amazon being the exceptions. Nashville is hilly throughout most of the city and sits on the Cumberland River and near multiple waterways. Nashville is definitely not investing as much money on much needed infrastructure improvements like Charlotte. Nashville is way behind Charlotte and Atlanta on making the city more walkable, pedestrian friendly, and mass transit-focused. At this point, I am not really sure how the city is able to attract so much growth without investment in infrastructure. Culturally, I am just not seeing it for Nashville beyond the HBCU institutions and historic elements similar to Atlanta. Charlotte wins.
I agree with this take. I’d say Nashville’s infrastructure woes has a lot to do with Tennessee not having a state income tax, the money to pay for the upgrades has to come from somewhere. Say what you will about sprawl in GA and NC but at least they have the funding to be able to expand the highways as needed. No reason that entire stretches of interstate highways between major TN cities should be only two lanes.
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