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The main thing with the Tri Cities is sunnier weather than Spokane or Pullman. Don't underestimate the gray winters in some parts of E WA. People get tired of the gray and Tri Cities has two things they don't- more sunshine and warmer temps in parts of the year.
Gotcha, I see now. Maybe that area is okay(at least say Kennewick,followed by Richland and Pasco), but not sure why it didn't jump out to me more when I street viewed it. If there are any nice neighborhoods in any of the 3 cities in the Tri-Cties(WA) that perhaps I overlooked, I wouldn't mind someone posting a street view of that said neighborhood.
I can see now(but didn't earlier) slightly better weather being a draw to those in eastern Washington moving to the Tri-Cities, so thanks for mentioning there is more sunshine there, vs. say like Spokane and Pullman.
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Originally Posted by annie_himself
Grand Junction is known as a meth town in Colorado. Pueblo might be better.
I can't speak for Grand Junction, since I haven't been there. As for Pueblo, I went there once as part of a church work camp trip in the late 90s. It felt like a pretty average city, but I don't know if I'd call it a hidden gem of a place to visit or live in. Personally I don't think I'd call Pueblo as anything special of a city to visit if you hadn't been there before, but to each their own. To me, it's just kinda sits there, but I don't think there are enough industries or things(i.e. outside recreation things) to do there that would spur a crapton of people to want to move there. At least Colorado Springs has a military base, and it being closer to mountains to draw at least some outsiders to move there. I'm not sure if Pueblo has as many special calling cards, to encourage people to move there.
Can't comment too much about Grand Junction, since other than it's downtown(which I street viewed once, since Amtrak has a station there), I hadn't looked up Grand Junction much. I'd like to street view Grand Junction further, one of these days. And do more research on that city, myself. I have noticed occasionally on C-D that Grand Junction doesn't have a great reputation, a la Pueblo. But so far in my Colorado research, I think I'm the most wary of Greeley. It's an agricultural feedlot town, for those who aren't so familiar with Greeley themself. Even the 1990s book Fast Food Nation, confirmed this is true about Greeley.
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Originally Posted by TheTimidBlueBars
One town that interests me is Aberdeen, 45 minutes southwest of Olympia. It's not a town that seems like it'd be conventionally appealing --- run-down, high-crime, tons of empty and boarded-up storefronts (even before COVID), dreary weather, boring landscape by PNW standards. The county has the dubious honor of the highest youth incarceration rate in the nation. Yet over the past few annual census estimates, it's reversed its decades-long trend of population loss and become one of the fastest-growing counties in the state. I didn't see much revitalization when I was there, so maybe it's just new construction going up at the fringes of town? I guess I can see the low-cost area having a certain appeal for people who can permanently work remotely but need to occasionally get to an airport on short notice.
Once in my own, I did street view Aberdeen, WA. It seemed like a typical isolated small town, though neither was it the best nor the worst small town I've seen myself. If Aberdeen has reversed it's population decline very recently(vs. past decades), that's good to hear. Back to when I google street viewed Aberdeen, it seemed okay but nothing too special of a small town. I remember on the other hand, that Port Angeles jumped out more to me for being a small town in western Washington.
Maybe one day, I'll once again google street view Aberdeen. Maybe it's a better small town, than I realized at first glance?
Last edited by SonySegaTendo617; 03-04-2022 at 09:36 AM..
People are mentioning this city as a hidden gem but when I drove through last week it seemed to me to be surprisingly depressing. Along along the brown muddy-looking river it seemed that there was a high concentration of chemical plants with the billowing smokestacks...and I read later that it's called Chemical Alley. From the highway I could see some kind of coal processing site close to town. Much different than the Chamber of Commerce photos.
Plattsburgh NY due to its close proximity to the Adirondack Mountains, Lake Champlain, Burlington VT and its affordability and some growth in some industries.
It's not mentioned often in discussions around cities in North Carolina, but Wilmington is one city that I think has lots of promise and a good foundation for its future.
Hudson looks like it had a big population decline, since the early 20th century. Hope the new investments in this town(per that linked thread above), help to bring life back to this town again.
Anway, pushing both of those aside and assuming someone either works remotely or just does not need to work, here are some towns and cities "tucked away" and not so popular:
Flagstaff, Arizona
Rutland, Vermont
Camden, Maine
Madison, Connecticut
Wilmington, North Carolina
Jonesborough, Tennessee
Helen, Georgia
Wait, what? Flagstaff and Camden are enormous tourist destinations. How can they be "not so popular".
Rutland is a pretty good example. It has a big heroin zombie and poverty problem but the downtown area has some good attractions. The ski resorts allow for some pretty good dining. I've been to a number of things at the Paramount Theater. I like Table 24. Little Harry's has been there forever.
New Bedford MA makes the list if you're only looking at the downtown/waterfront area and bits & pieces of the South End and West End. Fast Ferry to Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket. Slow ferry to Cuttyhunk. A ton of al fresco dining options and live entertainment. The Whaling Museum and the national park cobblestone street area. Commuter rail to Boston is coming in 18 months. The city has good bones from being the wealthiest place in the world, per-capita, from the whaling industry before the Civil War. From the highway, you see triple decker tenement buildings and there are bad sections of the city with dealers, junkies, hookers, and gangs. If you're at the harbor waterfront, it's very gentrified. Just be city-aware about valuables in your car.
Yale gentrification has progressed to the point where New Haven can make the list. Again, you have to be selective about what part of New Haven.
It's not mentioned often in discussions around cities in North Carolina, but Wilmington is one city that I think has lots of promise and a good foundation for its future.
True, and I think Salisbury is a good candidate for a smaller town.
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Originally Posted by GeoffD
Wait, what? Flagstaff and Camden are enormous tourist destinations. How can they be "not so popular".
I've never heard of Camden, ME until today. What's it got that makes it an enormous tourist destination?
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Charleston WV
