Does Chicago "feel" Midwestern? (Highland Park, Lake Forest: restaurant, airport, move)

[5Lakes]

Most of the arguments saying Chicago is east coast are just a reflection of the size. Like they think a city with density and mass transit can't be midwestern. Maybe these people think a farm town in rural New England must be midwestern?

[reppin_the_847]

Originally Posted by Craziaskowboi

What's the shame in being a Midwestern city? I've always considered Chicago to be what a Midwestern city becomes when it achieves its maximum potential. It's diverse, cosmopolitan and globally relevant, and it has tremendous civic and economic institutions, but contrary to what any faux-sophisticate poseurs in New York, New Jersey and New England will tell you, a city can be, or have, all those things while still being Midwestern at the heart of it all.

I think despite my earlier comments seeming to contradict your statement, I agree with what you're saying here too. Really the main thing not found in Chicago that's found in the coasts are the glamour / entertainment industries (ie. fashion industry in NYC, Hollywood in LA, major record labels in NYC & LA, etc.). We have a sizable financial industry as we all know (CME Group for Futures & Options, many Prop trading firms, even a major hedge fund in Ken Griffin's Citadel), a huge list of law firms, two top universities in the area (University of Chicago, Northwestern), numerous medical institutions, etc. The amount of manufacturing firms in the area has dropped compared to past decades unfortunately.

[Craziaskowboi]

Originally Posted by reppin_the_847

I think despite my earlier comments seeming to contradict your statement, I agree with what you're saying here too. Really the main thing not found in Chicago that's found in the coasts are the glamour / entertainment industries (ie. fashion industry in NYC, Hollywood in LA, major record labels in NYC & LA, etc.). We have a sizable financial industry as we all know (CME Group for Futures & Options, many Prop trading firms, even a major hedge fund in Ken Griffin's Citadel), a huge list of law firms, two top universities in the area (University of Chicago, Northwestern), numerous medical institutions, etc. The amount of manufacturing firms in the area has dropped compared to past decades unfortunately.

The amount of manufacturing firms has dropped in every major city, except possibly in some Southern cities where states like to spend hundreds of millions of dollars luring heavy manufacturing firms.

[marothisu]

Originally Posted by FAReastcoast

To me, Chicago feels absolutely nothing like Philly, Boston, or DC. You disagree, the world will still revolve.

I think Chicago is its own thing. It definitely doesn't feel like most of NYC. Sure there are establishments where you can get that feel, but the city overall doesn't really feel like it. I think there are bits and pieces you can use to describe other east coast cities. However, it's not that much like most other Midwestern areas. The funny thing is that there will be many visitors from the midwest to Chicago and if you actually talk to a lot of them, they will say it's not like the rest of the midwest. I've lived in many other parts of the midwest - there are areas of Chicago that are kind of midwest, midwest-lite, but at the end of the day it is its own thing. Perhaps it's closest to the midwest, but it's not saying a lot. Visit tons of different places in the midwest from larger cities like Minneapolis to smaller towns. You will see that there's not tons in common - only a little bit.

[marothisu]

Originally Posted by usamathman

First thing he mentioned was how Chicago was beginning to feel more and more like east coast.

I would agree that the city is advancing in regards to the sophistication of the establishments, getting denser in some areas again, and getting a little smarter and perhaps more sophisticated residents - at least since I first moved here I find it apparent in a few areas. However, I think it has decades to go before it feels like Manhattan Nothing wrong with that, and you can get it in some areas, but the two areas are definitely different. The good thing is that Chicago has enough sophistication right now to not push away every person looking for that type of life.

[marothisu]

Originally Posted by Craziaskowboi

What's the shame in being a Midwestern city? I've always considered Chicago to be what a Midwestern city becomes when it achieves its maximum potential. It's diverse, cosmopolitan and globally relevant, and it has tremendous civic and economic institutions, but contrary to what any faux-sophisticate poseurs in New York, New Jersey and New England will tell you, a city can be, or have, all those things while still being Midwestern at the heart of it all.

I think to many people, the term "midwestern" carries a negative connotation of insularity and unsophistication. To an extent it's true, though not always for sure. Though I find that you'll find unsophisticated people anywhere in the country. The city centers are usually the ones that aren't, and obviously because they have diversity and a lot of opportunity to do many things (i.e. events, food, etc).

[WizardOfRadical]

You are focusing purely on superficial things like events, density, and food. Chicago is the epitome of industrial upper midwest.

SF may not be like other CA cities, but it is still decidedly Californian. No city in Japan is quite like Tokyo, but Tokyo is still Japanese, first and foremost. To say Chicago doesn't feel midwestern is straight nuts.

It's flat, the weather is nuts, and there is a large ethnic white/black population-a legacy from it's industrial days. If Chicago is not midwestern, what is?

[UrbanCheetah]

Originally Posted by 5Lakes

Most of the arguments saying Chicago is east coast are just a reflection of the size. Like they think a city with density and mass transit can't be midwestern. Maybe these people think a farm town in rural New England must be midwestern?

But that's the thing. Boston, Philly and NYC are nothing like small rural farm towns or small cities in New England and the Mid Atlantic. Same for Chicago. So if you we are going to compare Chicago to get a better sense of what it feels like it, we are going to compare it to large cities and metros both in the Midwest and the US. Chicago doesn't feel quite like St. Louis, Indianapolis, or Columbus, some of the largest metros and cities in the Midwest. Chicago also compared to large cities like Houston, Atlanta, Phoenix, Dallas and San Antonio also have very little in common. Chicago doesn't feel like West Coast cities either like San Diego, LA, Seattle, or Portland. Chicago does feel more like Boston, NYC, or Philly.

When people think of cities that are dense, very urban, very diverse, and good mass transit they generally think of the East Coast cities. Not the south, not the west, but the east. Chicago just happens to have those characteristics as well, which is just much more prevalent in the East Coast than anywhere else in the US. The only other cities that one thinks of dense, very urban and with mass transit outside of the East Coast are Chicago and San Francisco, hence what makes Chicago feel more like the East Coast in some respects. The attributes that characterize what most large East Coast cities are like, just happens to be very prevent in Chicago as well, and nowhere else really in the Midwest. I am not saying Chicago feels straight up East Coast, but it certainly has a hybrid East Coast/Midwest feel to it.

[UrbanCheetah]

Originally Posted by WizardOfRadical

You are focusing purely on superficial things like events, density, and food. Chicago is the epitome of industrial upper midwest.

SF may not be like other CA cities, but it is still decidedly Californian. No city in Japan is quite like Tokyo, but Tokyo is still Japanese, first and foremost. To say Chicago doesn't feel midwestern is straight nuts.

It's flat, the weather is nuts, and there is a large ethnic white/black population-a legacy from it's industrial days. If Chicago is not midwestern, what is?

I would say cities like Milwaukee, Madison, Indianapolis, Cleveland and Columbus represent the Midwest better as a whole than Chicago does. Those cities are more aligned to whats happening in the Midwest as well as when it comes to demographics, vibes, COL, and pace. Again Chicago does have its Midwest feel to it, but it has a lot of characteristics that are also very East Coast. There really is no other city comparable to Chicago in the Midwest. Chicago really stands out from its region, just as Miami does in its region or San Francisco from its region. That's not to say to that Miami doesn't have a southern feeling to it or San Francisco doesn't have a California feel to it, but they are more hybrid and really don't represent their respective regions. I feel Chicago is the same way.

Now cities like LA and San Diego feel PURELY like California and nothing else. Just as Atlanta or New Orleans (although one could argue) feel PURELY southern.

[marothisu]

Originally Posted by WizardOfRadical

It's flat, the weather is nuts, and there is a large ethnic white/black population-a legacy from it's industrial days. If Chicago is not midwestern, what is?

I've lived in a number different areas of the midwest before - Chicago is the least like the other places and the least midwestern. This isn't to say it shares nothing in common with anywhere else - it does, but it's also a good deal different than a city like Indianapolis, Des Moines, Omaha, Columbus, etc. I have had a good handful of friends from other parts of the country and world, who thought the same thing, but they hadn't actually really seen anywhere else. A few road trips later to a few other neighboring states and those cities and they've stopped saying it.

I'll put you in Indianapolis, Des Moines, Omaha, Columbus (OH), Madison, etc as well as all the suburbs of those and see what you say after the fact.