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Well, just south of Cincy, the white suburbs of Northern KY are VERY racist. Just wanted to put that out there.
As for why I returned to Charlotte. Well, I do like urban areas that I can afford (and that are growing). In most traditional urban cities like Cincy, urbanity (ie, people density) is falling. Cities in the South are actually growing in urbanity (ie, Atlanta, Charlotte, Tampa, Raleigh etc). I know many die hard "urban snobs" would laugh at the notion of ANYTHING in the South being remotely urban. However, most cities with densities at or above 4,000 people per sq/mi are losing population. Clearly, America is redefining what it is to be "urban" by our choice of cities and regions. In most cases, "real urbanity" (ie, Cincy) is a dying breed.
This is why in traditional suburban cities like Charlotte and Atlanta, you will find growing urban neighborhoods (ie, row houses and condo towers) that rival many dying neighborhoods (with the same thing) in cities such as Cincy.
The bottom line is I like the direction of cities like Charlotte and Atlanta far more than cities like Cincy. In Cincy, NOTHING ever changes. Nothing ever grows. It is like urbanity is being sucked out of the city and shipped to the burbs. In the South, condo towers are being built and mass transit lines are being laid down.
It won't be long before the South surpasses the Midwest in (what I like to call) "functional urbanity". To me, this is when an area actually acts more urban (people walking, using mass transit, living in high density) than it may look. There are MANY urban neighborhoods in cities like St. Louis, Cincy, and Detroit. However, many of these neighborhoods remind me of a beautiful smile that has a few teeth missing. I hope this makes sense.
I will say that I am very intrigued by the recent plans to rebuild Detroit. Believe it or not, there have been serious talks about making Detroit into a "less dense" city with large urban parks and "filler" developments so that the city can reduce its public staff to match Detroit's current population. To me, it sounds like Detroit might be the first Northern city to rebuild its self using the "southern urban" model.
When I first read about this, I wondered to myself will this "new Detroit" need an experienced gasoline truck driver? Call me crazy, but I think Detroit will boom again.
Just out of curiosity, did you choose to live in one of Charlotte's more urban areas or are you in a suburban area? I personally live in a suburban area and I HATE IT!!! Hopefully when the market turns, I'll be moving closer to Uptown. The only thing good about my south Charlotte location is the proximity to the LYNX. Other than that, it SUCKS big time!!! We (me, my wife, and the kids) recently took a bike ride from Independence park, over the Hawthorne/Independence FRWY overpass, into Plaza Midwood. I FREAKING LOVED that bike ride. If you like urbanity, you will LOVE that ride!!! It is not quite what you would see in Cincy, however it is VERY nice (especially the Hawthorne portion of that bike ride).
Why are you bashing Cincinnati to make Charlotte look good???? What you are saying about Cincinnati makes no sense... Nothing ever grows, nothing ever changes? Cincinnati is not only growing in population, but the skyline is changing, and so is the urban fabric. Downtown is bustling, and growing. You talk about Cincinnati as if it were Detroit, Milwaukee, or Flint.
Obviously you haven't been to Cincinnati in a while. I was in Cincinnati this past weekend, and Queen City Square probaly went up another 14 stories since I last saw it.
No, Cincinnati is growing, and is EXTREMELY UNDERRATED. Please don't bash it to make Charlotte look better. Thanks!
Not quite sure what you are saying here. Just stating this as is it, and hoping you will respond so I can understand your point of view a littler better.
First, I voted for Cincinnati just because I like it a lot better. Charlotte is great, but Cincinnati is just better.
Cincinnati is putting in serious thought into its streetcar system. Check out UrbanOhio. Its a hot debate and its not something that is getting thrown out the door either. Cincinnati is not declining like you are stating. It is growing at a really good rate, not only metro area, but in the city as well. If you look at the skyline, it is changing rapidly (like Charlotte's). With the construction of Cincy's new tallest and the multi billion dollar Banks mixed use project, the skyline will look drastically different in 5 years. Its riverfront is getting a brand new park as well between Paul Brown Stadium and Great American Ballpark.
Cincinnati is also one of the top 10 cities per fortune 500 based companies. Cincinnati is home to companies like Procter and Gamble, Macy's, Great American Insurance, Kroger, Fifth Third Bank, G.E. Aviation, Western and Southern Finacial Group, and more.
Detroit is a mess. An urban planner's worst nightmare. A city based on one industry, and no plan to get away from it unless it results in massive job losses. Detroit is declining in population not only in the city, but the metro area. Development downtown is almost non existent, and the skyline hasn't changed in years.
Charlotte hit the boom/bust cycle, but I have faith in Charlotte. Cincinnati is growing steadily, which is SMART growth. Cincinnati has a diverse and growing economy, beautiful scenery, great parks, beautiful skyline, great riverfront, historic bridges, a great housing, and great city neighborhoods.
If anything, as of now, Cincinnati is a city many should be looking to follow.
FYI, Charlotte and Cincy have pretty much the same number of Fortune 500 companies. And Charlotte already has a light rail line running, with additional lines to come including a street car for the East/West line. We also have a large center city park to come, and an urban greenway to open this summer lined with waterside resturants, stores, condos, etc. Your choice for Cincy between the two in appreciated, but I just wanted to point out that much of what you've mentioned above are not areas where Cincy excells over Charlotte.
FYI, Charlotte and Cincy have pretty much the same number of Fortune 500 companies. And Charlotte already has a light rail line running, with additional lines to come including a street car for the East/West line. We also have a large center city park to come, and an urban greenway to open this summer lined with waterside resturants, stores, condos, etc. Your choice for Cincy between the two in appreciated, but I just wanted to point out that much of what you've mentioned above are not areas where Cincy excells over Charlotte.
No, but Cincinnati is just as equal with Charlotte is most of those categories. That is why I had to point it out. I never once said Cincinnati "excelled" over Charlotte in any of them. Just making a point to say Cincinnati doesn't deserve to get pushed out the door, when it can COMPETE with Charlotte.
Charlotte just recently completed its cultural campus which will add to its vibrancy in DT. Now we just need to add DT retail. I also just realized that both of these Queen cities are border cities. But Charlotte is the real Queen City.
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Call me crazy, but I think Detroit will boom again.
