Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Well, all I can say is that the 2 places are definitely not overrated, but what city do you feel doesn't get enough credit when the credit is there... Such as the history that the two cities hold, the art, or the culture that is found in both Newark and Buffalo.
Newark is my hometown and is amazing. The cuisine from Italian to Portuguese are some of the best I have had in America. And its location and amenities simply can not be beat for a city of its size. Newark will only continue to get better as the years pass.
Newark is my hometown and is amazing. The cuisine from Italian to Portuguese are some of the best I have had in America. And its location and amenities simply can not be beat for a city of its size. Newark will only continue to get better as the years pass.
Newark is my hometown and is amazing. The cuisine from Italian to Portuguese are some of the best I have had in America. And its location and amenities simply can not be beat for a city of its size. Newark will only continue to get better as the years pass.
Hey, i'm in 100% agreement.
I've noticed that Newark is actually getting better as years go by, opposed to the other way around. I really want to see Newark become extraordinary one day, because it definitely has the potential.
both cities are underrated for sure, but i picked newark because whenever people on this site and elsewhere talk about america's most dangerous and blighted cities, newark is always on the short list alongside cities such as east st. louis, illinois and gary, indiana. and while it's true that newark has a ways to go before it's back at the level it was in the early 20th century, the city has improved considerably over the past 10-15 years. even at its worst, newark was always in much better shape than those cities, mainly due to its infrastructure:
-a major rail station (penn station) in the downtown area which is a 20-minute train ride from midtown manhattan and provides service throughout the region via commuter rail and even to other parts of the country via amtrak. the station is also a hub for the newark city subway, nj transit buses, and the PATH, which is a subway line that connects newark with hoboken, jersey city, and manhattan. and the building itself is a historic landmark that dates from 1935 and is listed on the u.s. national register of historic places.
there is also a secondary rail station at the northern end of downtown called the broad street station. while not as busy or prominent as penn station, it's still an important stop along the route between midtown manhattan and the suburbs to the west of newark.
-a major international airport that serves as the #2 airport (more like 1B, actually) for the entire nyc region (newark liberty international airport)
-a major seaport that serves as the primary container shipping terminal for the entire nyc/north jersey metro area (port newark-elizabeth marine terminal). this means that the overwhelming majority of goods that are shipped to the nyc area have to pass through newark.
-ample highway coverage between the downtown, airport, and seaport to industrial and commercial areas throughout the region. some of the most important highways in nj pass through the city (nj turnpike, I-280, rt. 1-9, rt. 22, rt. 21, and the garden state parkway), and there is easy access to nyc as well.
-a convenient location: downtown newark is only 10 miles from downtown manhattan, and the entire eastern side of the city is situated along newark bay at the confluence of the passaic and hackensack rivers. hence the reason why newark was chosen by the port authority of ny and nj as the site of its primary container shipping terminal.
-a major central business district that lies between penn station and the broad street station and contains numerous office buildings for white-collar professional workers, including lawyers, insurance executives, and so forth. newark serves as the headquarters of several companies, including a fortune 500 corporation (prudential).
-a major performing arts center (NJPAC) that attracts some of the biggest names in the entertainment business and hosts the well-regarded nj symphony orchestra
-a major sports arena (prudential center) that hosts a major league professional sports team (nj devils) as well as large concerts and events
-an underrated but excellent museum that is renowned for its extensive american art, tibetan art, and natural science galleries (newark museum)
-several major universities, including rutgers newark, an engineering school (NJIT), a medical school (UMDNJ), two law schools (rutgers and seton hall), etc.
-two major parks (branch brook park and weequahic park), with the former renowned for its extensive collection of cherry blossom trees
-architectural gems such as penn station, sacred heart cathedral, the old mansions in the forest hill neighborhood, newark public library, and some of the smaller buildings in the city's downtown area
-numerous ethnic neighborhoods, with perhaps the most notable one being the ironbound district. the ironbound is one of the most prominent portuguese/brazilian enclaves in the country and is THE place to get the best portuguese, spanish, and brazilian food in the greater nyc/nj region.
with that said, i don't want to gloss over the fact that newark still has some serious problems. drug dealing and violent crime have been major issues in the city for decades, with the exception of the busy areas of downtown, the ironbound, forest hill, and a few other spots. most of the public schools are awful and rank among the worst in the state. there are some heavily polluted brownfield sites in the city, which are the legacy of former industrial uses that closed down or moved elsewhere. there is some seriously ugly architecture in a number of areas of the city; while some of the aforementioned architectural gems remain, many beautiful old buildings were destroyed during the 1967 riots. newark also needs to see a greater influx of middle class residents to help stabilize neighborhoods as well as the tax base.
but the city has all of the bare bones it needs to recapture some its faded glory. that's why i can't understand how so many people compare newark with cities like east st. louis and gary, which were never on the level of newark even in their heyday and were never as prominent nationally. even at its lowest, newark had things that those cities didn't, like major rail stations, an airport, a seaport, a major museum, and plenty of white collar workers and office buildings.
Last edited by pbergen; 09-28-2009 at 05:58 PM..
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
.
