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I've traveled to all major cities in U.S.. My list of best downtowns/ neighborhoods 1. Midtown Manhattan, 2. Downtown Boulder, 3. Gold Coast Chicago, 4. Downtown San Francisco, 5. Back Bay Boston, 6.Ballard Seattle, 7 South Beach Miami, 8. Lower Manhattan, 9. Pearl District Portland, 10. Downtown San Jose
Location: Austin, TX/Chicago, IL/Houston, TX/Washington, DC
10,138 posts, read 15,939,206 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by durf
I've traveled to all major cities in U.S.. My list of best downtowns/ neighborhoods 1. Midtown Manhattan, 2. Downtown Boulder, 3. Gold Coast Chicago, 4. Downtown San Francisco, 5. Back Bay Boston, 6.Ballard Seattle, 7 South Beach Miami, 8. Lower Manhattan, 9. Pearl District Portland, 10. Downtown San Jose
San Jose over Los Angeles, Dallas, Atlanta, Philadelphia, Houston, Denver, Miami, & San Diego?
Come on durf, you cannot be serious with this.
By the way, I saw your post the other night in the Chicago board where you went on a rant about how crime ridden it is and how miserable Chicago is and why you wouldn't ever live there. Then before I could respond, you deleted it. Any particular reason for hating Chicago so much? Also I notice you hate Houston & Philadelphia too, is there a reason?
OhmShahi, I don't hate any of those cities, but I wouldn't want to live there. Chicago has a very, very high crime issue. Just last one month, 45 people died in gun violence, and that's very serous. The neighborhoods like Bucktown, Wrigleville and Lincoln Park are cool places to hang out. The same goes for Michigan Ave, north of the river. The Loop(Chicago's downtown core) so, so. However, I like the Millenium Park and its theater district. As for downtown LA, Dallas, Miami and Atlanta, they're disaster, even though they're slowly improving. As for Houston, I like the Galleria/ Westhiemer district and the Montrose district. Downtown Houston, as we both know it, it's a work in progress. Philadelphia has alot of shady areas, and they're in downtown area and close to it. There are some nice things to Center City as well, but it's patchy. I do like South St and along the Waterfront. South Philly's is my favorite. As for Denver and San Diego, they have nice downtowns, but downtown San Jose is cleaner and more improved than those. Downtown San Diego has all its activities during the evening at the Gaslamp District and maybe along the Waterfront but everywhere else is dead. Some areas like C Street, which is in the middle of downtown is drug infested violence zone. In Downtown Denver, everything is concentrated on 16th St, which makes downtown Denver artificially vibrant, and there's alot of gaps and parking lots still. There are recently alot of violence in downtown Denver with thugs beating people for no reason at all. It's widespread in downtown Denver, and the cops have to deal with it. San Jose is very balanced with no crime problem in its downtown. Don't get wrong, I still like all those cities. I'm just talking the truth about their downtowns. I'm very well travelled and observant.
Location: Austin, TX/Chicago, IL/Houston, TX/Washington, DC
10,138 posts, read 15,939,206 times
Reputation: 4047
Quote:
Originally Posted by durf
OhmShahi, I don't hate any of those cities, but I wouldn't want to live there. Chicago has a very, very high crime issue. Just last one month, 45 people died in gun violence, and that's very serous. The neighborhoods like Bucktown, Wrigleville and Lincoln Park are cool places to hang out. The same goes for Michigan Ave, north of the river. The Loop(Chicago's downtown core) so, so. However, I like the Millenium Park and its theater district. As for downtown LA, Dallas, Miami and Atlanta, they're disaster, even though they're slowly improving. As for Houston, I like the Galleria/ Westhiemer district and the Montrose district. Downtown Houston, as we both know it, it's a work in progress. Philadelphia has alot of shady areas, and they're in downtown area and close to it. There are some nice things to Center City as well, but it's patchy. I do like South St and along the Waterfront. South Philly's is my favorite. As for Denver and San Diego, they have nice downtowns, but downtown San Jose is cleaner and more improved than those. Downtown San Diego has all its activities during the evening at the Gaslamp District and maybe along the Waterfront but everywhere else is dead. Some areas like C Street, which is in the middle of downtown is drug infested violence zone. In Downtown Denver, everything is concentrated on 16th St, which makes downtown Denver artificially vibrant, and there's alot of gaps and parking lots still. There are recently alot of violence in downtown Denver with thugs beating people for no reason at all. It's widespread in downtown Denver, and the cops have to deal with it. San Jose is very balanced with no crime problem in its downtown. Don't get wrong, I still like all those cities. I'm just talking the truth about their downtowns. I'm very well travelled and observant.
Well yeah, I'm not going to lie, Chicago has crime. But it ranks in the center of the crime lists, it's got 2.8 million people and it's split amongst that number. But not the entire city is crime ridden. Only South side of the city is, and the inner West side. The North side, downtown, outer West side and majority of the suburbs are fine and they're safe.
Like I live in downtown Chicago, I haven't had a problem yet. I sometimes go for a walk at night maybe with a few friends or so. No problems. I haven't had any problems in this city.
Yeah the South side has very violent crime erupt like crazy, but you have the choice of going there or staying away. Most people stay away.
Yes, Houston is making tons of progress it's downtown has in the last decade alone attracted all of it's sports stadiums (besides the NFL stadium)- now constructing soccer MLS stadium, gotten light rail and now expanding it, built more residential units, added more shopping options with Houston Pavilions, added more restaurants & bars, added a few nightclubs, added more hotels, added more grocery and retail stores, added more business buildings, & added a urban park- Discovery green to it's collection of parks already in downtown, it's also added fountains in the park near the theater district, started to work on the Buffalo Bayou Project, all this happening in the last 10 years alone.
So you're right, it is a work in progress- and I do agree it doesn't yet belong in the top 10 downtown lists. But this downtown has been rapidly improving.
I have been to a lot of downtown's too, but I haven't been to all to say that they don't rank well enough, that's something I can only do later on after visiting them all.
I have found San Diego's to be amongst one of the prettiest downtowns I have ever seen. San Francisco was very pretty but you have to watch out for where you are- there is a lot of crime near the Adobe office... but the downtown overall is one of the most lively ones I have been in. And certainly one of the prettiest to look at from those hills right outside of it...
I have been to downtown Denver, it was a nice one, downtown Dallas is also nice and has potential but not lively, I have enjoyed what downtown Los Angeles has but it's not lively enough.
I have never been to Seattle to say anything about that, and I have never been to downtown Atlanta to speak of it.
I have limited experience in Philadelphia's downtown area- just one visit.
What exactly do you mean it has a lot of crime, it can't be bad to the point where it's disrupting daily activities for visitors?
High crime in New Orleans, sure. High crime in the French Quarter or Garden District...not so much. Not going to knock East Village off the list because there is a high crime rate in other parts of NYC are we?
Downtown Dallas is so pitch dead, no life once so ever, not even cars driving there on Weekend. However, they're making progress with just recent groundbreaking of a new, sparkling Museum condo tower in the downtown loop. Downtown Dallas has been so fragmented with even West End and Deep Allum struggling, let alone the Victory Park area in Uptown. I do have hope for Dallas with its mayor. Mayor Lamport is motivated and aggressive. OmShahi, Adobe office in downtown San Diego? I didn't know. As for crime, downtown Philly can be dangerous enough where you can get beeten unconscious. Quite often, they have "flash mobs" rioting the streets of downtown Philly and beating up people for no reason at all. They rob and loot innocent people. They text each other on cell phones and tell each other when to raise hell. Philadelphia has a high homicide rate, and quite a few women get raped at the city's parks and urban areas
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