Will Seattle ever become an Alpha level world city? (move to)

[Seacove]

I would much rather Seattle be that place where people come for work or vacation and are so stunned by it's beauty and character that they cannot believe it is not not well known - then are quiet about it. We have no need to make Seattle more popular or more "alpha". Besides, the Seattle metro is geographically limited and would be environmentally challenged by huge growth. Better to focus on clean industries like software development, film production, etc. which we should do because Boeing looks to be going.

[UrbanAdventurer]

Not unless Vancouver and Portland suddenly fell into the ocean. Put all three of them together and you might have something approaching Chicago or New York City.

It could also be argued that any city that isn't yet never will be. Explosive early-mid 20th century growth and immigration are what made cities like NY, LA and Chicago what they are. But the United States as a whole will in all honesty, be lucky to maintain what it currently has for the foreseeable future. Even highly desirable cities like Seattle will experience only incremental growth and improvements. They wont be building any Empire State Buildings or Brooklyn Bridges in Seattle. We'll have to settle for digging an underground freeway here, knocking a viaduct down there, and hoping they can fix the Mercer Mess. Big projects to be sure, but nothing that will be a game changer.

[orzo]

Originally Posted by SitoUK

Although the Metropolitan areas has something like 3 million inhabitants within its city limits Seattle has around 650K or so. As soon as you leave downtown and adjacent areas everything looks decidedly suburban with a few strip malls and chain outlets mixed in.

I generally agree with this, but you should also note that even outside of Downtown and adjacent neighborhoods, there are some walkable nodes like Ballard, Fremont, Phinney/Greenwood, U District, Columbia City - although those areas certainly have some suburban characteristics. It's nothing like NYC or Tokyo, or even SF which is actually quite urban throughout, but for an American City those types of nodes outside of the core areas (like Seattle has) are pretty rare.

[WAIDOR]

Here's my opinion, Seattle is a world class city, but not an alpha city and it never will be an alpha city. I consider LA, NY, Tokyo, Beijing, Seoul, Paris, London, and Moscow examples of alpha cities. The only one on the list that the Seattle metro area is even close to in population is Berlin. Berlin is different from Seattle because it is the national capital of Europe's most powerful economy. I think Seattle will always be the west coast's third most important city behind LA and the bay area. I do think it is a world class city though. Seattle metro area will always be home to world class companies such as Amazon, Starbucks, and Microsoft and a place where tourists will want to visit. The skyline with the space needle is very recognizable. Anytime a Seattle sports team is on national television the country will see fish tossing.

[west seattle gal]

Alpha? No, I think it will just become more congested.

[DevanXL]

I think merging into an "alpha-ish" city is important for the cities future though. The old modest bedroom seattle past is gone and we need to move forward. As the urban core expands in size and height it creates a more attractive environment for young professionals and corporations to move into the area, creating a world powerhouse economy. Yes you could just travel tokyo or london or new york, for the world class city feel, but to me there is something about it thats feels new and excited and would be good for the area and the next generation. This status would bring attractions the area, more tourism dollars, and creat much better rapid transit situation and address other issues. I think the city could hold 850,000 people without feeling too congested. As long as the city takes the right approach then i think its perfect for the future if the city

[evergraystate]

Originally Posted by JasR30

Will Seattle ever become an Alpha level world city?

LOL nope. No city dependent on just 3 large employers can call itself a world city.

[mrman78]

Originally Posted by SitoUK

I know,t hat makes it even worse I will have to try and cramp as much backpacking in as possible before then....but sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do

Oh no! What happened that is making you leave? A new job or something?

[Tecumseh]

Originally Posted by evergraystate

LOL nope. No city dependent on just 3 large employers can call itself a world city.

I would have to agree with this assessment. I have lived in Chicagoland for the majority of my life and have been to Seattle. I do love Seattle and wish to move there within a year, but Seattle is not Chicago and is much to small. The city is beautiful and has a great history, but it is not large enough and does not have enough going on that it will be a Chicago or New York City. The fact is that it is a large city for the region but that there are not enough major employers or business to compare to larger cities. It is not also a cultural center like New York City, Paris, London, or Tokyo. It is not as influential in many different metas and that probably will not change soon.

[orzo]

Originally Posted by SitoUK

As soon as you leave downtown and adjacent areas everything looks decidedly suburban with a few strip malls and chain outlets mixed in. It's going to take a long time before Seattle can compare itself to places like NYC, London, Berlin or Tokyo.

I agree with you for the most part about the suburban aspect outside of Downtown and adjacent areas, but I am confused by the strip malls and chain outlets comment.

Neighborhoods like Ballard, Fremont, Wallingford, Greenwood, Columbia City, and several others sprinkled around Seattle do have suburban qualities (especially compared to NYC, London, SF, etc.) but the commercial districts of these neighborhoods are pedestrian-oriented and the businesses are local for the most part. Are you talking about Aurora? Because that is the only area within Seattle city limits that really fits your description.

Also, I would also argue that the U District is the one area outside of the main City core that is decidedly urban.