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Kenosha, WI is technically closer to the center of Milwaukee than Chicago but is increasingly being more and more influenced by Chicago and will soon be swallowed up by Chicagoland. It takes up to Racine to be in Milwaukee's sphere of influence.
Dayton, OH is close to both Columbus and Cincinnati though is tied much closer to Cincinnati.
If I remember correctly, Youngstown has more ties with Pittsburgh than it does Cleveland.
Edit: I just noticed you're in Chicago. Sorry, you already knew all of that .
Dont be sorry... and indeed I do. Just like we claim Lake Geneva as our own, we do the sane with Mars Cheese and Lakeview outlet and maybe even Apple Holler. Like you, I place the Chgo-Milw dividing line between Kenosha and Racine. And having a Metra station really keeps Kenosha tied to Chicago. And isnt Pleasant Prarie badically a Chicago suburb?
I was actually considering responding for Toledo. I grew up in one of it's suburbs and we leaned more on Detroit than Cleveland. The difference being a mere 20 miles. It also seemed to be in the unique position of being closer to Ann Arbor than Columbus so there was a pretty even split of Michigan and Ohio State fans. I spent considerably more time on Michigan's campus growing up despite my parents being Buckeye alumni.
Downtown Detroit is 56 miles closer to downtown Toledo than downtown Cleveland. Both of Toledo's pro sports teams are affiliated with the major league Detroit team. The only part of the Toledo area that "leans Cleveland" are far flung places like Fremont and Sandusky. Toledo has always felt more like a southern extension of Michigan.
Downtown Detroit is 56 miles closer to downtown Toledo than downtown Cleveland. Both of Toledo's pro sports teams are affiliated with the major league Detroit team. The only part of the Toledo area that "leans Cleveland" are far flung places like Fremont and Sandusky. Toledo has always felt more like a southern extension of Michigan.
You're totally right . I'm so embarrassed. No wonder we defaulted to Detroit. I even checked on Google Maps and somehow read the mileage wrong. It never felt like it was much farther to get to Cleveland than Detroit but I guess if I wasn't going downtown I was usually in Lakewood or Strongsville plus I was starting out south of Toledo. Perhaps it was just easier to speed on the Ohio toll road? Before things were concentrated in downtown Detroit you had to go north to get to the the Silverdome and the Palace. It seemed to take just as long. From BG the gap is down to 40 miles.
And the sports thing is big. Growing up with hockey most things went toward Detroit except for the state tournament before Nationwide Arena was built. Fond memories rotating between BGSU and the arena in Brooklyn, OH. The Storm (I moved away long before the Walleye) and the Mudhens are tied to Detroit.
Edited to add: I just checked, the difference from BG to Pontiac (old Lions stadium) and BG to Strongsville is nine miles. I guess that's why I always considered them the same.
Interesting question. I don't have experience living between cities like this, although when I lived in the DMV I had friends who were about halfway between Baltimore and Washington but seemed to orient very clearly around DC.
Quote:
Originally Posted by edsg25
Baltimore/Washington
And I'm zeroing in on the following (although other examples may be found):
• New York, Boston
• New York, Philadelphia
• Philadelphia, Baltimore
• Chicago, Milwaukee
• Tampa, Orlando
• Los Angeles, San Diego
• San Francisco, Sacramento
Just thought i'd add a few more pairs that you might agree with. They're all over a million MSA (OK Tulsa should be cracking that any day now) and it's 2 hrs or less from city center to city center.
San Antonio, Austin
Buffalo, Rochester
Birmingham, Atlanta
Indy-Cincy-Louisville (any combination of two or maybe somewhere between all three!)
Tulsa, OKC
Phoenix, Tucson
Just thought i'd add a few more pairs that you might agree with. They're all over a million MSA (OK Tulsa should be cracking that any day now) and it's 2 hrs or less from city center to city center.
San Antonio, Austin
Buffalo, Rochester
Birmingham, Atlanta
Indy-Cincy-Louisville (any combination of two or maybe somewhere between all three!)
Tulsa, OKC
Phoenix, Tucson
I think Atlanta and Birmingham are the one pair that are not really close to each other - the downtowns are a little over 140 miles apart, so under most circumstances driving in 2 hours is not feasible. Aside from the obvious fact of being in different states, they are also in different time zones. Pretty much anywhere in Alabama in between the cities would look towards Birmingham as the key urban center (except maybe some sparsely populated areas by the border), and anywhere in Georgia would look towards Atlanta.
All the other pairs look like good examples to me.
We have friends who live just west of Tampa, in Lakeland, FL. They LOVE it! It's right in between Tampa and Orlando, with access to all of the unique recreational assets both metros have to offer.
Polk County (which includes Lakeland, Winter Haven, and numerous other places) is virtually guaranteed to be a major long term growth center for Florida. The topography in many sections is rather hilly by Florida standards, with scores of natural lakes both large and small, and this inland area doesn't have the same level of storm surge and flooding threats as the coast. Western Polk around Lakeland seems more connected to Tampa, and eastern Polk, particularly Haines City and Davenport, to Orlando.
Interesting post. I was actually thinking of this from the perspective of someone who used to live between Boston and Providence. In spite of Boston being bigger, Providence arguably had the larger sphere of influence in my area simple due to accessibility. Providence is and always has been easier to get in/out of. So working, hospitals, big shopping, nightlife, etc. was mostly Providence growing up. Boston was for bigger one-off things (like a Sox game, big hospital event, field trip, etc.). So we were in Massachusetts, part of Metro Boston, but actually more aligned with Providence.
I live in Somerville now (I walk to the T and can see the skyline from my deck), but still make an effort to go to Providence as much as possible. I was there two weeks ago for my birthday weekend (Drinks at LongLive Beer Works, dinner at Red Fin Crudo, bar hopping after, and spent the night at the Biltmore) and I'll be there tomorrow night for an event.
Providence has come a long way from when I was a kid. I lived out of state for a while and came back to a whole new city. it is definitely more accessible than Boston. cheaper too lol. I do love Boston though. I think about moving there sometimes since I work closer to Boston than Providence but just can't justify the cost. There is no way I can get a place as big in Boston for what I pay in Providence.
Kenosha, WI is technically closer to the center of Milwaukee than Chicago but is increasingly being more and more influenced by Chicago and will soon be swallowed up by Chicagoland. It takes up to Racine to be in Milwaukee's sphere of influence.
Dayton, OH is close to both Columbus and Cincinnati though is tied much closer to Cincinnati.
If I remember correctly, Youngstown has more ties with Pittsburgh than it does Cleveland.
Edit: I just noticed you're in Chicago. Sorry, you already knew all of that .
Kenosha is and has long been the northernmost station of one of Chicago's Metra commuter trains.
The Finger Lakes Region of Western New York State is claimed by both Rochester and Syracuse. Seneca Falls is roughly the midpoint (about 45 miles between each city). Both cities' radio and television stations reach all of the area between Canandaigua and Auburn. I would say the cutoff between which direction Finger Lakes' residents travel would have to be just east of Tyre/Seneca Falls. There's quite a gap (>10 miles) between Exit 41 (Seneca Falls/Clyde) and 40 (Skaneateles/Auburn/Oswego) Also, Route 318 the eastern terminus of which is near the Montezuma Wildlife Refuge provides easy access to the westbound I-90. East of there, I'd think most people would travel to Syracuse for shopping/entertainment/etc.
Interesting question. I don't have experience living between cities like this, although when I lived in the DMV I had friends who were about halfway between Baltimore and Washington but seemed to orient very clearly around DC.
Just thought i'd add a few more pairs that you might agree with. They're all over a million MSA (OK Tulsa should be cracking that any day now) and it's 2 hrs or less from city center to city center.
San Antonio, Austin
Buffalo, Rochester
Birmingham, Atlanta
Indy-Cincy-Louisville (any combination of two or maybe somewhere between all three!)
Tulsa, OKC
Phoenix, Tucson
Buffalo/Rochester I've always thought of as an interesting case especially since the two cities are only 75 miles apart. Route 98 would tend to be the natural fault line between the two regions, and I believe Wyoming, Orleans, and Genesee Counties can get media from both cities. Having lived in both regions, I've always thought that Orleans County skewed more toward Rochester, while Genesee County leaned more toward Buffalo (especially Pembroke, Darien Lake, Batavia) When I was younger, I always found it surprising for Buffalo's local news to cover stories in places in eastern Genesee County like Bergen and LeRoy when I lived due north of those towns in Western Monroe County and couldn't get 2,4, and 7.
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