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We should probably be defining what a big city is before we decide whether or not it's a big city. Pittsburgh is fairly well-known domestically and has a fairly large population in its metro and a dense urban core. It also has fairly good transportation links to the rest of the country (river and highways) and an international airport. For me, this qualifies as a mid-size city (which is pretty big).
Location: Concrete jungle where dreams are made of.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by OyCrumbler
Oh heavens, that must make your opinions so much more valid!
I was stranded in Pittsburgh during a snow storm, didn't rent a car, so we walked around everywhere and took taxis. How is that not a valid opinion? I spent time in the city and walked everywhere; therefore, seeing a lot I think that's a little more valid than being stuck at an airport for a few hours.
To people in the Ohio Valley including the regions of eastern Ohio and much of West Virginia, this is the nearest major city. In fact, Pittsburgh is the largest city in the Appalachians.
As someone who has to been to the large east coast cities, Pittsburgh doesn't feel as rushed and the people overall are a bit calmer compared to their northeastern counterparts. But why does a big city have to be push push shove shove and super fast paced?
Pittsburgh is a big city without the big city attitude. I think the hills kind of have a calming affect on the region.
Orlando is also about 2.1 million and I consider it Medium sized. For Orlando there is Miami, for Pittsburgh there is Philadelphia. These are large cities. Medium cities have a good ratio of amenities and attractions, but they are not large and all encompassing. They usually lack an aspect of notoriety or are not as cosmopolitan.
Do you feel there can only be one big city per state, even a state as large as Pennsylvania is geographically? It is one of the largest eastern states. Pittsburgh is not an outpost of Philadelphia. Pittsburgh is separated from Philly by a mountain range. Pittsburgh and western PA were not part of the original colony, and do not share the same history. When we took a trip from Pittsburgh to Philly one year, after we crossed the mtns, DH, an impartial observer from Omaha, NE, with no axe to grind, said "well, this part of Pennsylvania is certainly different from the western part of the state". There have been numerous discussions on the Pittsburgh forum about whether Pgh is an eastern city, a midwestern city, or something else; whatever it is, it's not east coast like Philadelphia.
Quote:
Originally Posted by OyCrumbler
We should probably be defining what a big city is before we decide whether or not it's a big city. Pittsburgh is fairly well-known domestically and has a fairly large population in its metro and a dense urban core. It also has fairly good transportation links to the rest of the country (river and highways) and an international airport. For me, this qualifies as a mid-size city (which is pretty big).
I would agree with that definition. I would add we could say the 50 largest metros in the US are "big cities".
Pittsburgh does not qualify..nor will it for years to come..
The metro yes.. is "big" 1,000,000+
"City" boundaries are political and nothing more. Urbanized area should be used instead as a benchmark as it includes the dense urban core of the region.
Using your logic, Jacksonville Florida would be a much bigger city and at the same time a much smaller metro than Pittsburgh. This is because Jacksonville's "city" boundaries are massive, including most of the sprawl of the metro inside its city limits. But you would be laughed at by most people if you considered Jacksonville to be a "big city".
Urbanized area constitutes the scientific boundaries of the city by using population density. In that statistic Pittsburgh would have over 1.5 million within the "urbanized area", which is more than Jacksonville's entire metro. So would that now qualify it as being a "big city" to you?
For me, it appears to be a perspective issue, like someone else said, as well as a terminology thing. I can see how someone from very large cities like NYC, LA or Chicago, might view Pittsburgh as small. Conversely, if you come from a town thats smaller than Pittsburgh then you might or live in a town nearby Pittsburgh it would probably seem huge. (I'm think of how Anchorage is the big city in AK.)
Do I think of Pittsburgh as a major city? Yes, however, I would be hesitant (in my own daily speech) to describe Pittsburgh as a "BIG city."
Quote:
Originally Posted by SewickleyPA
But you would be laughed at by most people if you considered Jacksonville to be a "big city".
"City" boundaries are political and nothing more. Urbanized area should be used instead as a benchmark as it includes the dense urban core of the region.
Using your logic, Jacksonville Florida would be a much bigger city and at the same time a much smaller metro than Pittsburgh. This is because Jacksonville's "city" boundaries are massive, including most of the sprawl of the metro inside its city limits. But you would be laughed at by most people if you considered Jacksonville to be a "big city".
Urbanized area constitutes the scientific boundaries of the city by using population density. In that statistic Pittsburgh would have over 1.5 million within the "urbanized area", which is more than Jacksonville's entire metro. So would that now qualify it as being a "big city" to you?
Also, what people don't realize is that Jacksonville's boundaries are the same as Duval County. So, the urbanized area of Jacksonville is actually smaller than it's own limits due to being the same as Duval County. I believe the change came in the 1980's to make Jacksonville/Duval County one and the same.
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I think that's a little more valid than being stuck at an airport for a few hours.
