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Or is it? I don't know. That's what this thread is for.
Threads on the forums often put cities up against other cities, and more times than not people start comparing apples to oranges to bananas. People end up talking about different things rather than making apples to apples comparisons.
So, how about a different take on the "Best" cities in America?
The categories I'm offering up can (and will?) award various cities across America, and not necessarily the traditional cities (NYC, LA, Chicago), the title of "Best".
For "Best", it is still subjective and open to debate. Anything can go into making something the "Best". Transit, stores, restaurants, entertainment, recreation, work environment, parks, education, sports, lack of crime, etc. Once again, anything can go into making something the "Best", but it is up to you to provide the info, experiences, photos, etc. to back up your assertion.
1. What city is the "Best" at the epicenter of it's numbering system (0 N, 0 E, 0 S, and 0 W)?
2. What city has the "Best" Downtown (using the city's defined borders of "Downtown")?
3. What city has the "Best" square mile (You provide an area of the city, and the bordering streets, that is one square mile. It's your choice of where/what square mile is used)?
4. What city is the "Best" inside it's legal boundaries (Arbitrary or not, nothing outside of legal city limits is considered for this one)?
5. What city is the "Best" at the MSA level?
6. What city is the "Best" at the CSA level?
I think using those criteria for a standard comparison gives us:
Apple stems to Apple stems.
Apple cores to Apple cores.
Apples to Apples.
Basket of Apples to Basket of Apples.
Apple Trees to Apple Trees.
Apple Orchards to Apple Orchards.
#5 and #6 could get a little hazy, but #1-#4 is clear cut in terms of where something is and is not.
What are your thoughts?
GOD it all boils down to opinion and you seem like you're looking for hard facts...
It seems to me that New York relies too much on New Jersey
Hahaha nice, I think this is the first time in human history such a statement has been made.
It's funny, I've heard more than one person refer to NJ as being "the real NY state" in the past. The whole convo blew my mind, but in a way it makes sense. I don't really have an opinion on it though.
(1)Well first Philly is not lacking anything; being in close proximity is a benefit not a crutch
(2)Regardless whether legal or not these borders have virtually no impact on day to day life
I think this perspective may be different in the Northeast where many cities are on borders of multiple states etc. People here dont regard state boundaries in the same way many other parts of the contry do so it all may be perspective
(3)And if some academic exercise makes you better about Chicago have at it; reality though is whole other thing
(4)And no worries on your pool, I will be at my shore house; in yes you guessed it, New Jersey
1. It is lacking a stand alone entity. Especially when considering it's place in the, "continous urban development along the Eastern seaboard in the Bos-Wash Corridor" argument that gets brought out a lot. And then I've read people complaining about how it's not fair that Philadelphia isn't given more (credit, GDP, population, etc.) in various polls, charts, graphs, etc. because of it's MSA(?)/CSA borders butting up against New York's. This leads me to believe that the area, anchored by NYC, is more important than the parts of the whole (the exception being NYC).
Voltron, if you will.
2. That could very well be the case, although I gave six (6) different ways to split up a city/area that could put any city, whether it be one of 10,000 or 10,000,000, on a playing field that could "compete" with any other city. If its too much to ask to stick with the very specific categories at hand, there are plenty of other threads in which the measuring stick changes on a constant basis to give the most favorable measurement.
(Sidenote: How much you pay in taxes has no effect on your day-to-day life? If I leave the "arbitrary boundary" of Chicago, a half gallon of booze instantly costs $2.50 LESS than had it been bought inside the limits of Chicago.)
3. I already feel great about my city of residence. But the idea for this thread came to me when I realized that Indianapolis, yes, Indianapolis, might have the most "city" things within a square mile.
The boundaries between North, East, South, and West contain virtually everything modern cities offer. Chicago doesn't have that much in a square mile. I don't think NYC does either.
If anything, this "academic exercise" was put in place to shine a light on the Circle City for this one tiny part of the city. The other five categories I offered up are the domains of other cities, but I think Indy has the best square mile with the variety (not numerical quantity) of activities/areas that makes city life, city life.
4. Cool. I won't have to leave my city (or state) to enjoy the beach... or a pro baseball team, or pro football, or pro basketball, or hockey, or the airports, or a variety of other things.
This video shows some of the things within the one square mile of Indianapolis that I mentioned in a previous post.
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