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How is Miami not a real city?! It has the 4th-largest metro area in the country, it has a ton of business, banks and financial companies, popular in tourism, world's 10th-busiest airport, huge seaport, lots of big arts events, fashion shows, all major sporting teams, diverse population, its got trains, metros, peoplemovers, buses, 3rd-largest skyline in the u.s., major universities, etc. etc. etc. etc. Miami is definitely a real city, so please don't diss it.
Firstly, the "skyline" here is overrated. It's filled with cheap looking condo buildings, unlike real cities such as NY, Chicago and Seattle, that have a nice blend of commercial and residential high rises. While Miami's skyline is dense, it doesn't compare to many other major US cities that actually give a crap about architecture, zoning and all that jazz.
Secondly, Miami lacks the true "heart" of a real city. I was in Boston not so long ago (a city with similar sized metro area) and unlike Miami, Boston has a heart and a real city center. As much as you may hate to admit it, Downtown Miami is a joke....it falls way behind other metro areas of similar size.
Trains? What....one Metrorail line and one Tri-Rail line? Wow...for a metro area of +5M, that's pretty pathetic!
Remember, big in terms of population doesn't make a real city. Miami falls short when it comes to museums, art galleries, education, mass transit, parks and true diversity, when it comes to being in the "big city" league. In fact, Miami is no further ahead than any other major city in FL (Tampa, Orlando & Jacksonville). Miami is one big ego trip...an ego trip that needs to be brought right back down to stark reality! It's not just that I don't like this city....I'm not looking to bash anyone who likes it here, but Miami really needs a dose of reality, IMO.
New England is actually for me....don't know about Colorado -- never been there and not much into skiing, to be honest.
After living in Massachusetts for 4 years, I can tell you that people can be very smug and rude in New England.
Also, (I'm sure Bostonian08 can vouch for me) the drivers in Boston are MUCH more aggressive than the drivers in Miami. However, you don't have as many hit-and-runs in Boston as you do in Miami. Some of the roads in Boston, like 128, 24, and I-93 make the Palmetto and Dolphin look tame.
Have you considered Portland, OR? Just got back from visiting family there, it was a pretty fun town. TONS of microbrews and stuff to do.
After living in Massachusetts for 4 years, I can tell you that people can be very smug and rude in New England.
Also, (I'm sure Bostonian08 can vouch for me) the drivers in Boston are MUCH more aggressive than the drivers in Miami. However, you don't have as many hit-and-runs in Boston as you do in Miami. Some of the roads in Boston, like 128, 24, and I-93 make the Palmetto and Dolphin look tame.
Have you considered Portland, OR? Just got back from visiting family there, it was a pretty fun town. TONS of microbrews and stuff to do.
I've actually driven in MA a few times. Sure, the drivers were pretty aggressive, traffic was bad, but they didn't seem as pointlessly reckless as they are here. Sorry...but none of the roads in Boston compared to the Palmetto or Dolphin....didn't witness too many uninsured "reggaetons" riding it like a Ford, or causing me to almost lose control of my car. Aggressive...yes....reckless....not so much.
I've actually driven in MA a few times. Sure, the drivers were pretty aggressive, traffic was bad, but they didn't seem as pointlessly reckless as they are here. Sorry...but none of the roads in Boston compared to the Palmetto or Dolphin....didn't witness too many uninsured "reggaetons" riding it like a Ford, or causing me to almost lose control of my car. Aggressive...yes....reckless....not so much.
honestly, i can't see how you will be happy in these cities. you can say all you wan't "you can deal with it if it is a real city" but when it comes down to it, you'll realize the people are worse and on top of that you'll be in the freezing cold. :P
honestly, i can't see how you will be happy in these cities. you can say all you wan't "you can deal with it if it is a real city" but when it comes down to it, you'll realize the people are worse and on top of that you'll be in the freezing cold. :P
Firstly, who are you to decide whether or not I'd be happy elsewhere? What, just because I don't like Miami....that makes me an "unhappy" person, right? Oh, because there's really no chance that someone could be a generally "positive" person, but a person who simply doesn't like Miami, right?
Believe it or not, I'm not looking for "have a nice day" fake cheer. I have also had the same argument with so many Floridians...i.e. that I do not care about f'n weather. Let it be cold, let it be damp, let 12 months go by with little or no summer. There's far more to life than freakin' weather and I am tired of having the same worn out, tired argument with people who tell me "oh, but you won't like the cold!!?!?!?!".
Now, this is just my opinion and you can take it or leave it, but Miami isn't a real city, when compared to somewhere like Boston or Philadelphia. Both those cities have infrastructure and true diversity....Miami has neither. Miami is basically an overgrown swamp town, filled with some of the most undesirable people on the planet. You can take that analysis, or leave it...choice is yours.
Firstly, who are you to decide whether or not I'd be happy elsewhere? What, just because I don't like Miami....that makes me an "unhappy" person, right? Oh, because there's really no chance that someone could be a generally "positive" person, but a person who simply doesn't like Miami, right?
Believe it or not, I'm not looking for "have a nice day" fake cheer. I have also had the same argument with so many Floridians...i.e. that I do not care about f'n weather. Let it be cold, let it be damp, let 12 months go by with little or no summer. There's far more to life than freakin' weather and I am tired of having the same worn out, tired argument with people who tell me "oh, but you won't like the cold!!?!?!?!".
Now, this is just my opinion and you can take it or leave it, but Miami isn't a real city, when compared to somewhere like Boston or Philadelphia. Both those cities have infrastructure and true diversity....Miami has neither. Miami is basically an overgrown swamp town, filled with some of the most undesirable people on the planet. You can take that analysis, or leave it...choice is yours.
haha, fine by me :P you solidified my thinking to be honest. to each their own
I can't believe I'm saying this, but if you are sick of dealing with "rude people" and are wanting to move, then consider North Carolina. I've been living in Greensboro since 1990 and having come here from NYC, I can tell you that there is something to be said about the lack of road rage and the overall friendly culture of the south. A significant amount of family and friends (both my husband's and mine) live in South Florida, Latin America and the Caribbean, hence our urge to move. At the same time, I fear that I will greatly miss simple things like a driver letting you merge into traffic and being generous to other drivers in turn, greeting people as I pass by or having light conversations with perfect strangers in the grocery line, or simply waving to residents when driving through their neighborhood. I fear I will miss that a lot.
This is the number one reason I no longer live in Miami full-time. It is not urban enough for me. Miami-Dade County teaches the lesson that density doesn't necessarily equate to urbanity - it just allows greater potential for urbanity, and that you can build all the skyscrapers you want and still not have a real, pedestrian-friendly urban neighborhood. I love South Beach, I love Brickell, I love Coconut Grove, and I love Coral Gables, but they aren't connected as part of a greater urban fabric. Not being able to go to restaurants, concerts, nightlife, and shopping without a car - and not being inconvenienced while doing so - is a deal-breaker criterion that I hold. LA is very similar - it has some urban pockets, but the way in which much of the city and surrounding cities are planned are for the automobile and not the human. I could ramble on, and I'm sure that most people don't really know what I'm talking about, but once you live places that are alive at the street level, you never want to go back to living the auto-dependent suburban US model. So there you have, in a nutshell, why I no longer call Miami my full-time home. It's not a problem of culture, beauty, language, or location.... it's a problem of urban planning. With that said, I still love my three visits per year, and greatly appreciate Miami for its beautiful setting and unique flavor.
Excellent post! When I lived in South Miami when I returned to Miami after college graduation, that was the most urban I had lived other than in Gainesville, FL . I biked and walked and rarely used my car in college (except for that 5.5 hr trip down the turnpike a few times a year), and when I temporarily moved back in with my parents, the act of having to drive everywhere, no matter what I was doing, was a HUGE buzzkill. When I finally found a place in South Miami, I was somewhat back in my element, being able to walk to the grocery store, movies, bars, restaurants, etc. and bike to the Grove, Matheson Hammock, etc. I lived in a microcosm of what I wished Miami could have more of, but as soon as I left the confines of my immediate neighborhood, there was the hell of driving once again. I finally began to truly understand the concept of "Miami time" having otherwise been a very punctual person, because a 5-minute car ride inevitably became a 20-minute stop and start.
And now that I live in yet another land of suburbs, I live in the downtown core and walk and bike to most of the places that I go to in my free time, just like I did in S. Miami. I also see a lot more discussion about smart growth and planning and creating urban centers here in little ole Raleigh. People are aware of the fact that the suburban model is outdated and unsustainable. We're lucky to have many people in the community who are very much involved and interested in the health of their city, as well as educational resources right in the city (NCSU's college of design).
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Originally Posted by kevinkagy
Great post crisp444. Although I love Miami, as someone who is really interested in urban planning, I have to agree with you. But on a positive note, Miami is just like every other American city in that sense (we love our cars), and the trends in Miami are towards a more urban, pedestrian model with support for more bike paths and urban stores and such.
Not to mention there's new urban neighborhoods like Midtown and old, improved neighborhoods such as Brickell, Downtown, Dadeland, Grove, Wynwood Arts District, Design District, etc. which are all moving towards a more urban, pedestrian-friendly model despite Miami's love for parking garages (but this is America after all, we're almost glued to our cars).
The light at the end of the tunnel is that in a couple of years Miami will be much more urban than before. And as it continues to grow, Miami will grow in density and urbanity, not in suburbs. The Urban Development Boundary can only be moved illegally so many times before we seriously hit the Everglades. I see a very positive future for Miami.
Another excellent post. The truth is that Miami has come to the point where it is being forced to be more urban. Let's face it, we've drained enough swamps so people can live in paradise! There really isn't any more room for any more sprawl in Miami without unnecessarily destroying even more natural resources and ecosystems that cannot be replaced. There is no choice but to try to fix the errors that were made over time by allowing "urban" development to take the form we currently see. This is a monumental task for planners, and these planners are not going to be able to take the same "line my pockets" approach that developers have up to this point. They are going to have to do some real planning, because the city's infrastructure is seriously broken, and has been for years.
I think Miami faces many hurdles in becoming more urban. One is that it seems as though there is not nearly enough appreciation for preserving history and building upon what is already there. There is a huge tear-it-down and build new mentality. Of course, in many instances this is a good thing, but in others it is just a travesty. Another hurdle is classism and an infatuation with status. Even if there was decent public transportation in the area, are people really going to forego being seen in their Ferraris to use it? The current infrastructure can certainly not handle increased density with more cars and more drivers, big changes will most definitely need to be made as far as public transit goes in order to keep everyone sane.
Anyway, sorry for hijacking. This topic is very interesting to me, and I rarely hear much discussion of it in south FL. I have heard my family, friends, and co-workers in Miami complain about traffic, construction, etc. but don't hear as much about potential solutions.
Again to the OP, children can be raised anywhere, as long as parents know the potential problems and maintain a good parent-child relationship (be a parent, not a friend - friendship will come once your children are adults).
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. I biked and walked and rarely used my car in college (except for that 5.5 hr trip down the turnpike a few times a year), and when I temporarily moved back in with my parents, the act of having to drive everywhere, no matter what I was doing, was a HUGE buzzkill. When I finally found a place in South Miami, I was somewhat back in my element, being able to walk to the grocery store, movies, bars, restaurants, etc. and bike to the Grove, Matheson Hammock, etc. I lived in a microcosm of what I wished Miami could have more of, but as soon as I left the confines of my immediate neighborhood, there was the hell of driving once again. I finally began to truly understand the concept of "Miami time" having otherwise been a very punctual person, because a 5-minute car ride inevitably became a 20-minute stop and start.
