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Sounds like most of you have only been to the area around DFW airport and have never walked around Central Dallas places like Lakewood, White Rock Lake, North Oak Cliff, Lake Cliff, Stevens Park, Kessler Park, Tenison/Samuell-Grand Park, the Arboretum, Knox/Henderson, Highland Park, University Park, Bluffview, Preston Hollow, Turtle Creek, Cedar Springs etc..
What if I were to describe Newnan as my impression of Atlanta?
Okay the climate and tree arguments are silly, due to the simple geographic location of the states that hold the two cities. Dallas is in North Texas (south/western/Texas - hot as hell and less green) or prairie country. Atlanta is in Georgia (southeastern US - hot, humid and green) at the base of a mountain chain (Blue Ridge or North Georgia Mountains) . Atlanta is definately not laid out like an northeastern city. Have you been to Philadelphia? Philly, DC, Boston or NYC are a truely walkable city with excellent public transportation. Neither Dallas or Atlanta have this or anything close. Dallas and Atlanta have all the transplants from the fore mentioned cities.
Now they are both diverse cities. The only difference is the ATL has a far more centralized urban district. Whereas Dallas is all spread out in several diffent areas around the city. Now Paddidngton, have you been to North Oak Cliff or the Lakewood area in Dallas. I'm sure you haven't. For that matter have you really looked at Atlanta there are trashy developements with billboards and chicken stands all over the place. Speaking of 10 lane roads have you looked at the I-75/85 connector running through the ATL, 285 at Spaghetti Junction lately or all the strip mall in Gwinnett, Cobb, Dekalb, and Fulton county?
As someone who lived in the ATL and currently live in Dallas I will tell you that the cities are far more alike than they are different. That is why in most national ranking, good and bad, the two city are usually placed close together. Now it is true Dallas is not cheaper to live in due to previously mentioned property tax and energy bills.
Great to read this. I am from Dallas, have always wanted to move to Atlanta (heard it was like Dallas but more trees and hilly and also it was "the South"..i.e. Southern hospitality, etc). Have lived many other places now and we are now at the jumping off point to be able to return to the States and are down to that exact question...Atlanta or Dallas!!????? Love Dallas but Atlanta sounds wonderful, too. The only thing that scares me about Atlanta is how you always hear about its crime. I hate to hear that. So, I hope people keep opining on this "Atlanta or Dallas??" thing...
BTW Dallas is not Southern, it's not Western -- it's Texan. Something Atlanta cannot ever hope to equal.
What is that supposed to mean? I know you post a lot on the Dallas boards, and get really defensive about Dallas, but going to other boards and trashing the cities isn't going to get you anywhere fast.
As for the OP, I live in the Atlanta metropolitan area, and have visited Dallas many times. While it is NOT "treeless", it is nowhere near as lush and green as Atlanta is. No matter how many pictures people may show, it just isn't. It sits on a prairie, and many of the trees there were planted. The people who have built and developed the city have done a good job with what they had to work with, but I'm sorry, Atlanta is a prettier looking city than Dallas (in my opinion).
That doesn't make it "better" or "worse" than Dallas, because many people do not choose a city based on it's natural setting, BUT if aesthetics are important to you, than ATL would win out in my opinion.
Also, if access to other areas, it's pretty relative. D/FW is midway between the coasts (which would be great for someone like me, who has family in both CA and DC/MD/VA), and air service is good in both cities. ATL has better access to beaches and mountains, and the East Coast. But airfares are competitive enough in both cities to where you can fly for a pretty reasonable price.
And whoever said D/FW is prettier than Houston, I'll give them that. Even though Houston is "greener" than D/FW, it is a lot more industrial looking than D/FW and Atlanta, not to mention the lack of zoning laws in the city of Houston make the city look really random. Dallas looks a bit more "sterile" than Houston.
I will say that Dallas has a better arterial/street system than Atlanta, and they don't seem to be afraid to expand their public transportation system. One of the reasons why traffic is so bad here in Atlanta is because there really aren't many good alternatives to the freeways around here, and a lack of a grid system. Gwinnett County has done the best job of widening it's major streets, but it was pretty much too little, too late when it was done.
D/FW and ATL are about hand in hand in many other aspects. Both are fast growing metropolises with people coming from all over the world with great access to cultural amenities and shopping. Both have their pluses and minuses, but both metropolitan areas are great in their own ways. And if you hate either city, I've heard the airports are quite busy.
And as for the Crime, basically the closer you are to the City, and parts of Dekalb and Clayton Counties, the worse it can be. A lot of gentrification has been happening in the city itself, driving a lot of poor people out. The worst parts of the city tend to be Bankhead or the SWATS, and the West End. Riverdale and Jonesboro tend to be the worst in Clayton County. Parts of Dekalb along the I-20 corridor can be bad, and the farther out in Gwinnett, the safer it tends to be (I'd avoid areas off JCB or Peachtree Industrial). South Cobb has it's rough parts too. I live in Kennesaw/Marietta (Northwest), and you really don't hear much happening out here.
yes I was very impressed by the trees in Atlanta when I visited in the Fall. Very pretty with the colorful leaves. Much nicer looking than Dallas. I'm looking forward to heading down again this Fall.
And as for the Crime, basically the closer you are to the City, and parts of Dekalb and Clayton Counties, the worse it can be. A lot of gentrification has been happening in the city itself, driving a lot of poor people out. The worst parts of the city tend to be Bankhead or the SWATS, and the West End. Riverdale and Jonesboro tend to be the worst in Clayton County. Parts of Dekalb along the I-20 corridor can be bad, and the farther out in Gwinnett, the safer it tends to be (I'd avoid areas off JCB or Peachtree Industrial). South Cobb has it's rough parts too. I live in Kennesaw/Marietta (Northwest), and you really don't hear much happening out here.
Your posting is very informative and it's overall correct. However when you talk about the crime, you mentioned farther out to Gwinnett and Kennesaw, to my understanding, these parts are not Atlanta, which doesn't help explanation on crime situation. I have been living in Atlanta in the past 2 and half years and have heard crime report on the news, I don't feel that the crime is that bad in a big city like Atlanta. It all depends where you live. In downtown, you can see cops patrol everywhere to protect visitors and residents. Such a big city can't risk its reputation in crime control. Certainly crime can happen anywhere, but with a effective crime watch system, it can greatly reduce crime rate.
South-to-West -- is this some of the flat, treeless prairie of Dallas???
LOL! No, that's the beautiful White Rock Lake, which is one of the major pluses about Dallas--it's abundance of lakes. While you're right in that Dallas has its fair share of trees, including the awesome Texas live oaks, it isn't as lush and Atlanta. Also when you leave the city of Dallas, you immediately see some of the prairie terrain when you're away from the Trinity.
I'd like to echo the thoughts on here that the two cities are very similar overall. I posted my following thoughts on the Dallas board a while ago...
Quote:
Originally Posted by south-to-west
The girlfriend and I almost made the decision to move to Dallas from Atlanta last summer, but choseto stay here in Atlanta for career and personal reasons. However, we visit Dallas frequently as one of my best friends from high school lives there. After visiting Dallas and becoming familiar with it, I would say that it's very similar to Atlanta in a lot of ways and the differences are mainly superficial.
Cost of Living: Both places are notorious for having a low cost of living. Lately, prices in Atlanta have skyrocketed, but in Dallas you can get more house and more quality for cheaper. However, taxes and utilities are cheaper in Atlanta. Tie
Public Transportation: Atlanta boasts a heavy rail system that can take you from the Airport to the northern suburb of Sandy Springs via Dowtown, Midtown, and Buckhead. You can also get to several communities east and west of the city. However, that state and the balkanized local governments can't get their acts together to expand and improve the system. Dallas' DART is currently more modest than MARTA, but this is changing soon as many local governments in the Metroplex have embraced DART and it's now expanding. Edge to Atlanta now, but Dallas will have the edge in 10-15 years
Traffic: Atlanta's street patterns are chaotic and make no sense or logic. Often times, there's only one or two options from going from one area to another, causing some of the nation's worst traffic. Dallas on the other hand has a very extensive road network and its surface streets are on a grid. It's also easier to commute longer distances in Dallas than in Atlanta. Edge Dallas
Diversity: Both cities are booming Sunbelt cities attracting people from all over the world. Atlanta has a lot of pockets of different ethnic communities thoughout the Metro Area. I assume that Dallas has much of the same configuration. Tie
Crime: Both cities have bad crime. Comparing the two is like comparing the difference between being shot and stabbed. They both hurt. A very painful tie
Neighborhoods: Atlanta's intown neighborhoods have been experiencing a renaissance over the past 10-15 years with a lot of old houses being renovated and a lot of new homes constructed. Also, each neighborhood in Atlanta has a very distince vibe, not to mention the architecture. I know that the city of Dallas has a lot of tree cover, but Atlanta's is truly amazinng--especially with the hills. Dallas is experiencing the same, but it feels that Atlanta is a little further along. However I did like Lower Greenville and Uptown. I also need to check out Deep Ellum. (BTW, the Texas live oak is a magnificent tree!) Edge Atlanta
Economy: Both metro areas have booming diverse economies and both cities are growing fast. Tie
Weather: Dallas is slightly hotter than Atlanta in the summer and Atlanta is slightly cooler than Dallas in the winter. Tie
Outdoor Recreation: Atlanta is situated near the base of the Appalachains and is located within an hour and a half of world class whitewater rafting, hiking, spellunking, rock-climbing and biking. It's not as good as the Rockies, but it's in Atlanta's backyard nonetheless. This is the only area where Dallas really lags due to its location. It's also the reason why Colorado is considered Texas's largest state park. Edge Atlanta
People: I have a huge network of friends here in Atlanta and after meeting some of my buddy's friends in Dallas and seeing how cool they were, I have no doubt that I could enjoy the same there. Tie
Shopping: We have Lenox/Phipps, Dallas has the Galleria. Contrary to what a previous poster said, the area around Lenox/Phipps is really safe and is very upscale. Atlanta also has Perimeter Mall, North Point Mall, the Vinings area, and Atlantic Station. Dallas has many other options as well. Tie
The comparisons can go on and on, but in reality, the two cities are so similar that I wouldn't have a problem if I had to relocate to Dallas. It all comes down to specifics and where you're more comfortable personally.
Dallas is more like a typical post-WWII sunbelt city, with 10 lane roads, lots of strip malls, big signs for "Taco Shops", and lots of ugly, trashy developments everywhere. There's no concept of making things "nicer", "decent" or even "not trashy", just "bigger" and "even more bigger".
Atlanta is about the exact opposite of that. It's laid out a lot more like old Northeastern cities, with a lot of walkable neighborhoods, classy old homes, rolling hills, trees, etc.
Exactly!!! I remember a scene from the movie Nurse Betty with Morgan Freeman and Chris Rock when Morgan Freeman says to Chris Rock when there car got stuck somewhere in a Texas town and says ' Man I must be in Hell!! Chris Rock responds ' No its worst, your in Texas'..
I wonder what he would have said about Atlanta and its history of slave trade.
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