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Indianapolis has always strongly reminded me of a southern metro like Houston or Charlotte where essentially none of the old urban core survived.
As someone who grew up in the core area of Houston and has spent some time in both Indianapolis and Charlotte, I really don't get this comparison at all. Those are 3 very different cities. Sure, Houston has bulldozed a large percentage of it's original urban core and replaced it with gentrification, but it still looks and feels very different than either of those two cities. Not to mention that it's bigger than both of those cities combined. I don't think Houston has a Northern (or Midwestern) "twin". The closest I can think of would possibly be a weird hybrid of Philly, Minneapolis, and maybe certain aspects of Chicago... but even that's a hell of a stretch. Indianapolis? Maybe the suburban sprawl part of the equation, but that is hardly unique to those two places. Charlotte? Maybe the high-growth factor and construction booms, but that also could be any major Sunbelt metro.
In my opinion, the city that most closely resembles Houston would be Dallas.
I'd actually say New Orleans is most similar to New York. Or at least if you compared the two cities a hundred years ago they would have been twins. Both were the premier cities of their region of the country. Both had an economy built up on regional shipping. Both took in large numbers of immigrants from various European nations. There's even a New Orleans white urban dialect (Yat) which sounds like a New York accent. That said, the fortunes of the two cities have obviously diverged. In the present day I agree that Philly is probably the best comparison, as it's a good combination of history and grit.
Really good post. I've been wondering about this NY-esque accent I've been hearing here.
I'd actually say New Orleans is most similar to New York. Or at least if you compared the two cities a hundred years ago they would have been twins. Both were the premier cities of their region of the country. Both had an economy built up on regional shipping. Both took in large numbers of immigrants from various European nations. There's even a New Orleans white urban dialect (Yat) which sounds like a New York accent. That said, the fortunes of the two cities have obviously diverged. In the present day I agree that Philly is probably the best comparison, as it's a good combination of history and grit.
I think you are spot on. New Orleans was one of the top cities a century back, as was Philly. Both fell due to internal reasons and neighboring cities took up the slack (Houston and New York).
I'm going to make the argument that Pittsburgh is Knoxville times 3. Both have hills throughout the city including big hills directly south of downtown. Pgh hills are steeper and 3 times as tall, the river is 2-3 times as wide. Knoxville has 3 rivers as well, though they meet upstream from downtown so I don't know if that counts. Health care, education and science are big parts of the economy though Pgh has 3 times more. Interesting concept of throwing in Chatt for its industrial past.
The people/ culture are very similar - very laid back and unpretentious. Similar racial mix. Biggest difference is Pgh is solidly democrat.
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Columbus has a fantastic/gentrified/urban inner city. I really do not see this in Jacksonville. Columbus might compare better with Charlotte in NC, however Charlotte lacks the progressive/hip/college vibe
Maybe Columbus is better compared to Nashville which has a lot of progressive/hip neighborhoods and a lot of universities.
Minneapolis-St. Paul & Raleigh (or however you spell it) - Chapel Hill
Not the best comparison, because the second city in the "Triangle region" of NC is Durham, not Chapel Hill. Chapel Hill by itself is probably most similar to Ann Arbor, Michigan.
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Originally Posted by Dawn.Davenport
Baton Rouge & Hartford
I suppose I could see this.
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Originally Posted by Dawn.Davenport
Jackson & New Haven
I don't get this at all. Where's the gentrified, walkable core of Jackson which houses a prestigious university?
Not the best comparison, because the second city in the "Triangle region" of NC is Durham, not Chapel Hill. Chapel Hill by itself is probably most similar to Ann Arbor, Michigan.
I suppose I could see this.
I don't get this at all. Where's the gentrified, walkable core of Jackson which houses a prestigious university?
Arizona is in the south of the West.
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As someone who grew up in the core area of Houston and has spent some time in both Indianapolis and Charlotte, I really don't get this comparison at all. Those are 3 very different cities. Sure, Houston has bulldozed a large percentage of it's original urban core and replaced it with gentrification, but it still looks and feels very different than either of those two cities. Not to mention that it's bigger than both of those cities combined. I don't think Houston has a Northern (or Midwestern) "twin". The closest I can think of would possibly be a weird hybrid of Philly, Minneapolis, and maybe certain aspects of Chicago... but even that's a hell of a stretch. Indianapolis? Maybe the suburban sprawl part of the equation, but that is hardly unique to those two places. Charlotte? Maybe the high-growth factor and construction booms, but that also could be any major Sunbelt metro. 
