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Dallas has a larger metro area by land area therefore the sprawl makes it feel "big" to some. But that's not a "city" by most urban enthusiasts. Houston same thing. With Atlanta don't even get me started.
I'm going by the question asked in the OP, which was which city makes you most feel like you're in a major, major metropolitan area...
...wait...
Maybe that's subjective as well. The Metroplex has more people than DC, but is it more "major"? Probably not. DC is in the top 5 in the US for "major" with many agreeing that it's top 2.
It's still all opinion and feeling. I guess that someone that doesn't look at things in the same way as most opens themselves for criticism, but I can appreciate the view as being one that many Americans outside C-D would hold.
Cities like Dallas are the cities off the future.
Get used to it
Or of the past and you just don’t know it yet. Places like Uptown in Dallas are still playing catch-up and trying to copy the lifestyle and infrastructure of the coast.
There’s nothing about Irving, Garland, Mesquite, McKinley or even Frisco that tell me places like DFW have figured things out better than elsewhere.
Location: That star on your map in the middle of the East Coast, DMV
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 2Easy
I'm going by the question asked in the OP, which was which city makes you most feel like you're in a major, major metropolitan area...
...wait...
Maybe that's subjective as well. The Metroplex has more people than DC, but is it more "major"? Probably not. DC is in the top 5 in the US for "major" with many agreeing that it's top 2.
It's still all opinion and feeling. I guess that someone that doesn't look at things in the same way as most opens themselves for criticism, but I can appreciate the view as being one that many Americans outside C-D would hold.
It’s very subjective IMO. As they both have their reasons to be considered “major”. Dallas is absolutely a major metro area which is not up for discussion. It’s fourth now and one day will probably be 3rd by MSA. The point is how much sprawl does it take to consider that a “big city feel”. When Dallas passes Chicago in metro population, do you think others will be saying it has a bigger feel? And if so why? Chicago crushes any city not named in NYC in skyscrapers.
I do think that Atlanta, Miami, Dallas, and Houston have more of a traditional "big city feel" than DC. I am not disqualified from this discussion any more than you are.
I’m talking from an academic stance based on urban definitions and urban planning. I apologize for saying you’re disqualified from discussing this. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion. You can say Chattanooga, TN and Jackson, MS have a bigger city feel than DC and you have the right to feel that way. That is your understanding and you probably agree both of those cities have a bigger city feel based on your definition.
It’s very subjective IMO. As they both have their reasons to be considered “major”. Dallas is absolutely a major metro area which is not up for discussion. It’s fourth now and one day will probably be 3rd by MSA. The point is how much sprawl does it take to consider that a “big city feel”. When Dallas passes Chicago in metro population, do you think others will be saying it has a bigger feel? And if so why? Chicago crushes any city not named in NYC in skyscrapers.
Some people don’t like cities where it’s difficult to park, people walking around everywhere, noise and hustle and bustle, uninterrupted urban canyons across the city, and the ability to walk for miles without losing urban design. I think it’s ok because they aren’t used to that. That’s normal for them and they drive their car around so that’s what they prefer. You can’t fought people for liking what they like. They wouldn’t be caught dead “living an urban life” without a car and walking to get groceries etc.
I wonder how many people in this thread don’t own a car by choice in their city?
For me, a "big city" feel is about a large core with big buildings and high pedestrian counts, PLUS a miles of walkable intense urban districts. A focus on walking and transit both adds to the feel and supports the right densities.
Six or maybe eight US cities make that standard...the obvious six plus maybe LA (limited DT, auto-oriented) and Seattle (limited contiguous urban-district area).
At times my definition has expanded, but then I go somewhere like London or Tokyo and it's hard even doing the six or eight.
I like sunbelt cities because I love having a car and still having great amenities close by.
You can have a car conveniently in pretty much every city in America outside of NYC. We are talking American cities like DC and Seattle here, not Tokyo. The converse of having convenient public transit is not true for the sunbelt cities.
My car insurance is cheaper in Seattle than in Houston, and all the grocery stores and big box stores here in the city have parking garages.
But I can also just walk ten minutes to my neighborhood ice cream store with my kids tonight. Or before Covid take a bus (that comes every ten minutes) about a block away from my house to the public ferry terminal ten minutes away and take a ferry across Puget Sound to an island for some brunch.
I like having cars just as much as you, but I also like the exploring, activity and sense of journey of getting around without a car, especially with kids in tow. Is it any surprise that Seattle is one of the least obese cities in the country? and the sunbelt cities the opposite?
The geographic area of high intensity is important, but so is the intensity of the peak spots. That diminishes DC's perceived big-city feel imo. So do the mall and the gap due to the river and suburban-style freeways. Then some gets added back by the array of secondary downtowns.
Yep, I agree 100%. To get a true "big city" feel that feels like "the center of its own universe" the way that OP is asking for, you need density over a large swath of land but also need peak areas of activity/density/urbanity. DC is lacking in high-rises so it falls short in that last part. Atlanta, Dallas and Houston lack in the first part.
Location: That star on your map in the middle of the East Coast, DMV
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mhays25
For me, a "big city" feel is about a large core with big buildings and high pedestrian counts, PLUS a miles of walkable intense urban districts. A focus on walking and transit both adds to the feel and supports the right densities.
Six or maybe eight US cities make that standard...the obvious six plus maybe LA (limited DT, auto-oriented) and Seattle (limited contiguous urban-district area).
At times my definition has expanded, but then I go somewhere like London or Tokyo and it's hard even doing the six or eight.
Absolutely. Which is what elevates places like DC, and demotes the Houston, Dallas, Atlanta bunch IMO. I think Seattle has a good feel in it's DT, and better than those others, but don't know about city wide how it feels "limitless" across multiple nodes.
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