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I’ve got an old friend who lives in Bern, which is very nice as well.
In my experience, none of the Swiss cities are bad but I enjoyed Bern less than the others to be honest. It's unfair just how nice that country is as a whole! Clean, safe, prosperous, etc... And then there's the scenery.
I doubt FIFA will permanently move to Miami, as Switzerland is a very neutral site and has been for many decades. It's also a reason why Swiss banks are very popular amongst the rich and wealthy because of Switzerland's neutrality policies. And let's not forget that soccer is the biggest sport in much of Europe, compared to American football right here in the USA, so it's doubtful that FIFA will ever move to Miami. However, this may either open up a full time Swiss consulate for Miami and FL, or force the current consulate serving FL in Atlanta to move to Miami.
According to my research, there's actually more people of Swiss descent in FL than anywhere in the Southern region of the US. Here's the link from the US Census page proving that: https://data.census.gov/table/ACSDT1...45,47,48,51,54.
According to the figures of Southern US, FL leads in population of people of Swiss descent. Here's my list:
FL - 36,061 (0.2%)
TX - 32,902 (0.1%)
VA - 19,575 (0.2%)
NC - 17,406 (0.2%)
KY - 12,111 (0.3%)
MD - 11,251 (0.2%)
GA - 10,774 (0.1%)
TN - 10,597 (0.2%)
SC - 7,993 (0.1%)
AR - 5,696 (0.2%)
OK - 5,681 (0.1%)
AL - 4,145 (0.1%)
LA - 3,990 (0.1%)
DC - 2,458 (0.4%)
WV - 2,774 (0.2%)
MS - 1,196 (0.0%)
It looks like amongst US jurisdictions, it's no surprise that DC has the highest concentration of Swiss descended people with 0.4% since it's a small jurisdiction of about 62 sq. mi. Amongst states, KY has the highest concentration, but in raw numbers, FL has the highest population with about 36K people of Swiss descent, more than anywhere in the American South.
Here's another link of Swiss consulates in America: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_o...rland#Americas. In the US there's the embassy in Washington DC, and consulates in Boston, NY, Chicago, San Francisco, and Atlanta. I've also noticed that the Swiss government had closed their consulates in LA and in Houston (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_o...and#Americas_2). It may be necessary for the Swiss government to reopen the Swiss gov't in Houston, since TX is a huge corporate state and even consider opening up a full time consulate in Miami, FL, with the possibility of closing the one in Atlanta, since both FL and TX both have the biggest Swiss populations in the South.
The ties between Georgia and Switzerland may be stronger than expat population numbers may imply. The Swiss consulate has been in Atlanta for at least 30-40 years probably drawn to Atlanta during its massive growth phase by former U.N. Ambassador Andrew Young and former President Jimmy Carter. More than 66 Swiss companies are located there employing more than 15,000 people. The Southeast chapter of the Swiss-American Chamber of Commerce has its offices there.
Georgia's favorable business climate is well-known and is home to a diverse set of Fortune 500 companies like Delta, Home Depot, Equifax, Coca-Cola, UPS, NCR, IHG and the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta. The company that actually owns the NYSE, Intercontinental Exchange, is headquartered in Atlanta. European neighbors to Switzerland like Germany have significant operations in Atlanta with the North American headquarters of Porsche, Mercedes-Benz and TK Elevator.
Delta just announced the return of flights to Zurich to compliment its existing direct flights to Geneva. It can't be overstated the impact Atlanta's airport has in drawing businesses and events. From a logistics standpoint between the Port of Savannah, the Atlanta airport, and major highways going N/S and E/W, it makes the region an important hub for shipping.
As it pertains to soccer, it was announced last week that U.S. Soccer is moving its HQ and training facilities from Chicago to Atlanta. Atlanta is also one of the 2026 World Cup host cities and may be in line to be the broadcast hub because of the infrastructure put in for the '96 Olympics and, of course, is the global HQ for CNN.
The ties between Georgia and Switzerland may be stronger than expat population numbers may imply. The Swiss consulate has been in Atlanta for at least 30-40 years probably drawn to Atlanta during its massive growth phase by former U.N. Ambassador Andrew Young and former President Jimmy Carter. More than 66 Swiss companies are located there employing more than 15,000 people. The Southeast chapter of the Swiss-American Chamber of Commerce has its offices there.
It just seems that the basis for having the Swiss consulate in Atlanta has a lot to do with ATL being the busiest hub, as well as the other Southern city that had a Swiss consulate (Houston), being shut down by the Swiss gov't years back. It would be fair to allow Atlanta, Houston, and Miami to have their own separate consulates, with Houston representing the states, of AR, LA, NM, OK, and TX, Atlanta representing AL, GA, MS, NC, SC, and TN, and Miami having all of FL and maybe PR and VI. I also believe that having a sole location in Atlanta to represent the entire South for a major country like Switzerland isn't feasible.
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Originally Posted by cparker73
Georgia's favorable business climate is well-known and is home to a diverse set of Fortune 500 companies like Delta, Home Depot, Equifax, Coca-Cola, UPS, NCR, IHG and the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta. The company that actually owns the NYSE, Intercontinental Exchange, is headquartered in Atlanta. European neighbors to Switzerland like Germany have significant operations in Atlanta with the North American headquarters of Porsche, Mercedes-Benz and TK Elevator.
Atlanta does have the Fortune 500 companies, is a state capital, a major rail, road, and air hub, and is the core city to a major metropolitan area. I've always said that Miami needs it's own Federal Reserve and it's own Judicial Circuit, since FL is practically bigger than NY already and it can make the case to obtain both political bodies to be HQed in Miami. Finally, Porsche, M-B, and TK have nothing to do with the Swiss, but Germany.
I just want to know other than the companies, what's the connection between the Swiss and GA because it looks like there's really no direct air link from a Swiss carrier and not denying that Delta doesn't have a direct link between ATL and Switzerland, but I'm assuming Swiss expats will use their own air carriers to get to and from their homes in Switzerland as opposed to using an American one like Delta, meaning that MIA has the Swiss air carrier and ATL doesn't.
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Originally Posted by cparker73
Delta just announced the return of flights to Zurich to compliment its existing direct flights to Geneva. It can't be overstated the impact Atlanta's airport has in drawing businesses and events. From a logistics standpoint between the Port of Savannah, the Atlanta airport, and major highways going N/S and E/W, it makes the region an important hub for shipping.
Not sure why a landlocked country like Switzerland would make great use of the Port of Savannah (unless it ships through maritime channels via France), but the airport is the main reason why ATL has a link to Switzerland, albeit FL has the larger numbers of people with Swiss descent, expats or citizens, followed by TX.
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Originally Posted by cparker73
As it pertains to soccer, it was announced last week that U.S. Soccer is moving its HQ and training facilities from Chicago to Atlanta. Atlanta is also one of the 2026 World Cup host cities and may be in line to be the broadcast hub because of the infrastructure put in for the '96 Olympics and, of course, is the global HQ for CNN.
That's great for Atlanta! And to move the HQ from Chicago to Atlanta is surprising, considering that Chicago has been one of the main American cities for so long. I see Miami being the NY or the South while Atlanta is more like DC, in the fact that there's so many financial firms that have moved to Miami that it's competing with NY and Chicago, while Atlanta, since it's a state capital, and DC, which is a federal capital, both have large black populations within their areas.
It just seems that the basis for having the Swiss consulate in Atlanta has a lot to do with ATL being the busiest hub, as well as the other Southern city that had a Swiss consulate (Houston), being shut down by the Swiss gov't years back. It would be fair to allow Atlanta, Houston, and Miami to have their own separate consulates, with Houston representing the states, of AR, LA, NM, OK, and TX, Atlanta representing AL, GA, MS, NC, SC, and TN, and Miami having all of FL and maybe PR and VI. I also believe that having a sole location in Atlanta to represent the entire South for a major country like Switzerland isn't feasible.
I wasn't aware of the closure of Houston's consulate, but that certainly makes the case for the center of gravity to be Atlanta for the South, including Florida. It's not like there's enough business in just Florida to justify it if Houston wasn't sustainable. More than 80 percent of the American population can be reached in two hours from Atlanta's airport, which will always give Atlanta an advantage of just about any other city in the country. Since part of the consulate's role is to provide services to expats and issue visas to foreign nationals of any country (not just the U.S.), then Atlanta makes sense geographically.
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Atlanta does have the Fortune 500 companies, is a state capital, a major rail, road, and air hub, and is the core city to a major metropolitan area. I've always said that Miami needs it's own Federal Reserve and it's own Judicial Circuit, since FL is practically bigger than NY already and it can make the case to obtain both political bodies to be HQed in Miami. Finally, Porsche, M-B, and TK have nothing to do with the Swiss, but Germany.
I mention Porsche, Mercedes, and TK mainly because the Swiss companies located in Georgia are manufacturing companies as well and have a lot in common culturally and economically.
As for the Fed, again Atlanta is at a geographic advantage because part of the Fed's role is to distribute cash and coins to the banks and collect and process checks (electronic and paper). There are branches of the Atlanta Fed in Jacksonville and Miami (actually, Doral), though, to help with those duties.
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I just want to know other than the companies, what's the connection between the Swiss and GA because it looks like there's really no direct air link from a Swiss carrier and not denying that Delta doesn't have a direct link between ATL and Switzerland, but I'm assuming Swiss expats will use their own air carriers to get to and from their homes in Switzerland as opposed to using an American one like Delta, meaning that MIA has the Swiss air carrier and ATL doesn't.
I assume like most people, Swiss expats will take the airline that provides the right combination of value and convenience. If you're an expat living in Atlanta, getting those international Delta SkyMiles would far outweigh any decision to make a connection to a SwissAir flight. Domestically, I already make that decision between a $100 difference between a ticket from ATL to NYC that may be cheaper on another airline, but I've got all the perks of Delta SkyClub and accumulation of miles to tip the scale in Delta's favor. If an expat did want to fly SwissAir, why connect to MIA when JFK or Dulles are at least headed in the right direction?
Looking at Delta's flights to MIA, from 7am-11pm, there are flights every two hours, so anyone needing to do business with the consulate can easily get back and forth in one day. Hopefully, one day, the Brightline will make its way to Atlanta, which would be beneficial to both cities.
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Not sure why a landlocked country like Switzerland would make great use of the Port of Savannah (unless it ships through maritime channels via France), but the airport is the main reason why ATL has a link to Switzerland, albeit FL has the larger numbers of people with Swiss descent, expats or citizens, followed by TX.
Being landlocked certainly hasn't been a factor in the Swiss's need for a seaport.
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That's great for Atlanta! And to move the HQ from Chicago to Atlanta is surprising, considering that Chicago has been one of the main American cities for so long. I see Miami being the NY or the South while Atlanta is more like DC, in the fact that there's so many financial firms that have moved to Miami that it's competing with NY and Chicago, while Atlanta, since it's a state capital, and DC, which is a federal capital, both have large black populations within their areas.
It's funny you call Miami the NY of the South when that has been Atlanta's moniker for decades. I've always heard of Miami being the capital of Latin American and the Caribbean because of its obvious ties to those regions.
Atlanta certainly has a much larger national and international role in politics, government, healthcare, business, music, culture and media than Miami. Hispanics make up 14% of the metro and South Asians are 7%, and both are growing rapidly contributing to the whole metro being more diverse than South Florida. Don't underestimate what a turnoff Florida's political climate is to business right now while Georgia has managed to walk a fine line and kept the crazies at bay.
From a finance/banking standpoint, Charlotte holds more weight in that category than either Miami or Atlanta. That said, Atlanta has the Fed, and the Fintech scene is huge and well-established. Financial services is Switzerland's largest industry, and guess where 70 percent of ALL GLOBAL financial transactions pass through. Atlanta is called Transaction Alley, and unfortunately the scams and crash of the crypto scene has tarnished Miami's status in the fintech sector.
You make a good case for Miami's future, but I don't think a Swiss consulate is part of it.
I wasn't aware of the closure of Houston's consulate, but that certainly makes the case for the center of gravity to be Atlanta for the South, including Florida. It's not like there's enough business in just Florida to justify it if Houston wasn't sustainable. More than 80 percent of the American population can be reached in two hours from Atlanta's airport, which will always give Atlanta an advantage of just about any other city in the country. Since part of the consulate's role is to provide services to expats and issue visas to foreign nationals of any country (not just the U.S.), then Atlanta makes sense geographically.
The South, unlike the Midwest & the Northeast, is a very expansive region similar to the Great Plains & the Rockies, in that, unlike the Great Plains & the Rockies, you have more major cities in the South plus the distances are far greater between two major cities, as opposed to the Midwest, where you can reach Chicago from Detroit and St Louis in an hour, and from Milwaukee in about 90 minutes, and you can reach NY from Philadelphia in an hour, and Boston and DC in 4 hours, all by car. Try reaching Miami to New Orleans by car, and it will take you up to 7 hours and the same for Atlanta. The South is just too expansive for one consulate alone to serve that region.
Also, 80% of the American population can reach Atlanta, but if a Swiss national has the misfortune of losing a passport, a wallet, or is having problems in the Southern city he or she is in, or if a Swiss company, corporation, or firm wants to deal with the associated city or state, if it's a city like Charlotte or Nashville, I can understand flying or driving to Atlanta, but if it's in San Antonio or Dallas, a consulate should be strongly considered in Houston, since it's the major consular city in TX or if that individual is having problems in Jacksonville, Tampa, or Orlando, then a consulate should be strongly considered in Miami since that city is the major consular center for FL.
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Originally Posted by cparker73
I mention Porsche, Mercedes, and TK mainly because the Swiss companies located in Georgia are manufacturing companies as well and have a lot in common culturally and economically.
OK, however, the South is a very expansive region and while the Atlanta location does cover the entire South, it may be a lot harder to just issue passports to Miami and as far away as Houston, TX.
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Originally Posted by cparker73
As for the Fed, again Atlanta is at a geographic advantage because part of the Fed's role is to distribute cash and coins to the banks and collect and process checks (electronic and paper). There are branches of the Atlanta Fed in Jacksonville and Miami (actually, Doral), though, to help with those duties.
There's going to be a time when FL is going to need it's own Fed Reserve Bank. I understand that the Fed Reserve Banks were established in the 1910's when cities like Cleveland was slightly larger than Detroit, and St Louis was larger than Atlanta and Miami, and San Francisco in 1910 was larger than LA until the 1920's.
Nowadays, Atlanta is larger than St Louis, and FL as a state is larger than NY (which has it's own Fed Reserve Bank serving the entire state, BTW, as well as northern NJ, PR,& VI). I believe there will be a time when Miami may get it's own Fed Reserve Bank, as well as it's own circuit in the Court of Appeals since the state of FL is rapidly growing. It's only a matter of time and even a city like Seattle, which has also grown rapidly from it's 1910 population, could petition for it's own Court of Appeals district and it's own Fed Reserve Bank.
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Originally Posted by cparker73
I assume like most people, Swiss expats will take the airline that provides the right combination of value and convenience. If you're an expat living in Atlanta, getting those international Delta SkyMiles would far outweigh any decision to make a connection to a SwissAir flight. Domestically, I already make that decision between a $100 difference between a ticket from ATL to NYC that may be cheaper on another airline, but I've got all the perks of Delta SkyClub and accumulation of miles to tip the scale in Delta's favor. If an expat did want to fly SwissAir, why connect to MIA when JFK or Dulles are at least headed in the right direction?
You're talking as a domestic traveler. I'm talking in the viewpoint of an international traveler. According to Wikipedia, a connection to Atlanta from Zurich, which is Switzerland's largest city as well as the site of Switzerland's busiest airport (ZRH), doesn't commence until May 31, 2024, while on Swiss Air, the typical Swiss citizen can easily get to Miami, as well as other American cities such as Boston, Chicago (ORD), LA, Newark, NY (JFK), & SF. It's also scheduled to have a connection to DC on March 28th, 2024.
Also, Swiss Int'l Air Lines is the main airlines of ZRH, and ZRH is the hub for that carrier. Delta is an American carrier, and ATL is the hub for Delta. It may be cost effective for a domestic traveler to travel to ZRH, but a lot of Swiss travelers will trust their own airline carrier, which has more American destinations, before they trust a foreign carrier like Delta, which only has one destination (JFK) flying from ZRH at this time.
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Originally Posted by cparker73
Looking at Delta's flights to MIA, from 7am-11pm, there are flights every two hours, so anyone needing to do business with the consulate can easily get back and forth in one day. Hopefully, one day, the Brightline will make its way to Atlanta, which would be beneficial to both cities.
I've had thoughts that Brightline could travel to Atlanta someday, but I'm not sure if the GA gov't is onboard with such plans as of today. Right now, Brightline is going to link up the major cities and that will be complete once 2030 hits.
Nowadays, people want to have the convenience of dealing with a consulate. Flying to Atlanta from Miami & Houston would be seen as very inefficient and constraining for many, if not all, expats. Plus, a lot of consulates are in Atlanta because it serves much of the South and Atlanta is a major regional hub, while there are much more consulates in Miami because it's evolving into a business, economic, & financial center as well as a tourist center.
Being landlocked certainly hasn't been a factor in the Swiss's need for a seaport.
There's not a problem with the Swiss gov't doing business in the city of Atlanta, but the South is a very expansive region of this country. You can get away with placing a single consulate in the Midwest since Chicago is the only major city that has the capabilities of a superior mass transit system, two major int'l airports, and a major corporate center, and the same for NY, which has the same qualities as Chicago, plus it's the media, fashion, and cultural capital of America, and let's not forget the seat of the United Nations.
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Originally Posted by cparker73
It's funny you call Miami the NY of the South when that has been Atlanta's moniker for decades. I've always heard of Miami being the capital of Latin American and the Caribbean because of its obvious ties to those regions.
Atlanta certainly has a much larger national and international role in politics, government, healthcare, business, music, culture and media than Miami. Hispanics make up 14% of the metro and South Asians are 7%, and both are growing rapidly contributing to the whole metro being more diverse than South Florida. Don't underestimate what a turnoff Florida's political climate is to business right now while Georgia has managed to walk a fine line and kept the crazies at bay.
Yes, GA has been known as "the Empire State of the South" for decades, but Atlanta isn't known for the economic and financial firms that have been lately moving from NY and Chicago. It's know for a lot of the Fortune 500 companies such as Coca Cola, Delta, Georgia-Pacific, and UPS, but Miami is more of a financial competitor than Atlanta as this point, only behind Chicago and NY, while Atlanta is more of a corporate center.
And Miami plays not just a major role in national politics, especially considering that Miami Dade County, which is currently the 7th largest county in the country and the largest in FL, and every national election cycle, people pay a lot of attention to what's going on with Miami Dade and how it will turnout in state and national politics, which can affect FL's vote and the electoral college, much more than what goes on in Fulton County and Metro Atlanta.
And you mentioned healthcare, but the Miami Health Center (better known as the Civic Center) is the second-largest health center in the US, only behind the TX Medical Center in Houston (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Health_District_(Miami); https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_Medical_Center). There's really nothing of that magnitude in Atlanta other than Grady Memorial Hospital, which is the largest hospital in Atlanta. And Atlanta is the home of CDC, but it's a gov't agency, not essentially a medical facility.
Finally, when it comes to the states, GA has an advantage when it comes to African American institutions such as the black colleges as well as civil rights. But it's Latino population is heavily skewed towards one ethnicity (Mexican), while FL and especially South FL, has a plethora of Latinos from Cubans, Colombians, Venezuelans, Nicaraguans, Puerto Ricans, and Dominicans). And the Asian population is actually bigger in FL than in GA at this point (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demogr...nd_territories).
You've stated South Asians, but FL has Filipinos in Orlando, Jacksonville, and Pensacola, Vietnamese in Tampa Bay, Pacific Islanders between the Orlando - Tampa Bay corridor (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pacifi...icans#Location), which is currently the 7th largest Pacific Islander American population, and a growing Chinese population. I'm also pretty sure that as FL grows larger, the Asian population will possibly be bigger than IL or even WA.
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Originally Posted by cparker73
From a finance/banking standpoint, Charlotte holds more weight in that category than either Miami or Atlanta. That said, Atlanta has the Fed, and the Fintech scene is huge and well-established. Financial services is Switzerland's largest industry, and guess where 70 percent of ALL GLOBAL financial transactions pass through. Atlanta is called Transaction Alley, and unfortunately the scams and crash of the crypto scene has tarnished Miami's status in the fintech sector.
You make a good case for Miami's future, but I don't think a Swiss consulate is part of it.
I believe that the Fed system is very antiquated at this point. Also, the dollar is being printed like hotcakes, lowering the value of the dollar in comparison to other world currencies. Charlotte is practically the banking capital of the country, and not only that, but it now has 8 Fortune 500 companies last time I checked while Atlanta has about 14 companies, I believe, slightly more than Chicago. Miami's strength is through the int'l banks that are HQed in Miami as opposed to having corporations or companies based in Miami.
A Swiss consulate isn't a part of the present currently, but with the direct, one-seat connections to ZRH, it would be pretty dumb for the Swiss gov't not to consider having a Miami consulate serving the entire state of FL and allowing Atlanta to serve the entire South, and like I said, the South is too huge and too expansive of a region for one consulate to serve.
Location: Miami (prev. NY, Atlanta, SF, OC and San Diego)
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NYC is the banking / finance capital of the U.S., if not the world (along with London)—not Charlotte.
That aside, the Atlanta poster makes some good points though Atlanta / GA hasn’t entirely contained its crazies which led MLB to pull an All Star Game from that city and Miami does have some commonality with Switzerland as it is the only North American host city to the most prominent art fair in the world—Switzerland’s Art Basel. Miami also does have a Swiss Consulate in Brickell.
Last edited by elchevere; 10-09-2023 at 11:03 AM..
NYC is the banking / finance capital of the U.S., if not the world (along with London)—not Charlotte.
That aside, the Atlanta poster makes some good points though Atlanta / GA hasn’t entirely contained its crazies which led MLB to pull an All Star Game from that city and Miami does have some commonality with Switzerland as it is the only North American host city to the most prominent art fair in the world—Switzerland’s Art Basel. Miami also does have a Swiss Consulate in Brickell.
It's an honorary consulate, though, meaning that you can't get a passport directly from that consulate, as you'd have to go to Atlanta. The argument I was making is that the Swiss gov't needs to open consulates in Houston and Miami because theSouth is just too expansive for one city (Atlanta) to serve an entire region when a few more can be able to suffice.
I was stating that Atlanta is the corporate capital of the South, Charlotte is the banking capital, and Miami seems more inclined towards attracting economic and financial firms as well as the largest concentration of int'l banks in America, mainly from Latin America.
It's an honorary consulate, though, meaning that you can't get a passport directly from that consulate, as you'd have to go to Atlanta. The argument I was making is that the Swiss gov't needs to open consulates in Houston and Miami because theSouth is just too expansive for one city (Atlanta) to serve an entire region when a few more can be able to suffice.
I was stating that Atlanta is the corporate capital of the South, Charlotte is the banking capital, and Miami seems more inclined towards attracting economic and financial firms as well as the largest concentration of int'l banks in America, mainly from Latin America.
NYC and London are definitely lightyears beyond Charlotte, and the move of some hedge funds to Florida is a recent development that may not stick. If Goldman Sachs or JP Morgan move to Florida, then that's a different conversation.
As Outkast said, "The South's got something to say," and the growth of Southern cities is definitely changing the sphere of influence in the country. There's actually a marketing brand here called Atlanta Influences Everything that rings true more and more every day.
As I look at the 50-year horizon, I've got to wonder if Miami will be able to sustain anymore growth. The saltwater intrusion and daylight flooding could turn the city into a modern-day Venice. The threat of sea-level rise is spurring gentrification of higher-elevation areas that people used to avoid like Little Haiti and Overtown. The city is facing the potential displacement of millions of people as they seek dry land farther inland and maybe decamp for places like Orlando like they did after Hurricane Andrew.
NYC is the banking / finance capital of the U.S., if not the world (along with London)—not Charlotte.
That aside, the Atlanta poster makes some good points though Atlanta / GA hasn’t entirely contained its crazies which led MLB to pull an All Star Game from that city and Miami does have some commonality with Switzerland as it is the only North American host city to the most prominent art fair in the world—Switzerland’s Art Basel. Miami also does have a Swiss Consulate in Brickell.
The All-Star Game was a blip on the events calendar here. The economic impact was about $100 million, which is on par for other events the city hosts like Dragon Con. The three-night stands by both Beyonce and Taylor Swift this summer probably had just as much impact.
I lived half my adult life in various Florida cities and know the politics pretty well. As crazies go, I'll take our more pragmatic Republicans in Georgia over the mess in Florida. I can't imagine Georgia's governor attacking Delta or Home Depot the way DeSantis has gone after the state's largest employer and tax payer. Our governor wouldn't turn the state's premier honors college into a so-so state school the way DeSantis has ruined New College where 30 percent of the new students are athletes. The Villages, an ultra-conservative retirement community, has some of the highest STD rates in the country, so maybe the CDC should open up shop in Central Florida. Watch out for all those yard flags with pineapples and bath luffas on car antennas signaling the swinging lifestyle there.
NYC and London are definitely lightyears beyond Charlotte, and the move of some hedge funds to Florida is a recent development that may not stick. If Goldman Sachs or JP Morgan move to Florida, then that's a different conversation.
As Outkast said, "The South's got something to say," and the growth of Southern cities is definitely changing the sphere of influence in the country. There's actually a marketing brand here called Atlanta Influences Everything that rings true more and more every day.
Or better yet, the age old mantra after the Confederacy lost the Civil War to the Union troops, "The South Shall Rise Again"!!! And whether you're from VA, NC, SC, & GA, and as far away as LA & TX, the South is starting to take over by a lot these days in almost every sphere!
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Originally Posted by cparker73
As I look at the 50-year horizon, I've got to wonder if Miami will be able to sustain anymore growth. The saltwater intrusion and daylight flooding could turn the city into a modern-day Venice. The threat of sea-level rise is spurring gentrification of higher-elevation areas that people used to avoid like Little Haiti and Overtown. The city is facing the potential displacement of millions of people as they seek dry land farther inland and maybe decamp for places like Orlando like they did after Hurricane Andrew.
I also have to wonder whether Atlanta will continue to expand into states such as AL, TN, and SC, with a lot of the unhealthy growth and sprawl expanding to the state limits and even encroaching those states as in the case of the Atlanta CS which encroaches into Chambers County, AL. Especially with no commuter rail plans drafted by the local, county, and GA state gov't's. There's growth, but with no regional mass transit (MARTA isn't enough) for exurb Atlanta, and possible drought and water issues, Atlanta will struggle if you can't get those two issues straightened out.
Yes, the Miami CSA does have sprawl, but it's also a linear growth south of Miami to Homestead and north of Miami to regional cities such as Ft Lauderdale and West Palm Beach. And even though the Miami CSA did start out as an auto centric region, the roots of Miami, Ft Lauderdale, and West Palm Beach can be noted by Henry Flagler (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Flagler), the railroad magnate for Florida East Coast Railroad (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Florid..._Coast_Railway), as well as a developer for West Palm Beach and Miami.
Had Flagler not extended his railroad further South into WPB, Ft Lauderdale, and Miami, then Jacksonville would've been the largest metro in FL, not Miami. The fact that Flagler had the foresight to do such a feat as extend his railroad into southern FL actually spurned a lot of growth, to the point where Miami is a top 10 MSA and soon to be top 10 CSA.
Atlanta's roots do start out as a rail hub, and the original name of Atlanta was Terminus, and although it's now a major air and road hub, what was originally a major rail hub isn't as apparent during the first time it was founded and during railroading's bustling times during the late 1800's to the 1960's. Miami, Orlando, and soon to be Tampa and Jacksonville are having or going to have a major revival once Brightline reaches those towns.
Lastly, everybody's talked about Miami's flooding problems, as if it's the only city that's having them. Over 18 years ago, NO was flooded, and today, it's still surviving and thriving. Amsterdam and Rotterdam have lower elevations in the negative and those cities in the Netherlands are the first and second, respectively, largest cities in that country. Other cities, such as NY, Boston, Philadelphia, Baltimore, and DC, have low elevations similar to Miami in many spots close to the water. If Amsterdam and Rotterdam are still thriving to this day, and NY is the financial and economic capital of the country, with much lower points around the city than Miami and South FL ever has, then Miami will survive through the rest of this century and beyond!!!
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