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I don't know who has more culture between Asheville/ Wilmington and Newport News and Hampton because I've never been there.. But IMO the Hampton Roads Metro is better than the Charlotte Metro unless we're talking about white collar jobs.. I've been to Charlotte, I wasn't too impressed. Downtown looked nice, but that's all there is to it.. Go by metros and it's NoVa vs. Charlotte. Norfolk- Virginia Beach- Newport News vs. Raleigh- Cary. and Richmond Vs. Greensboro- Winston Salem. Roanoke vs. Asheville- Brevard. I pick Virginia in every one of those.
When was the last time you came to Charlotte? If it has been within 2 years, I am actually shocked that you were not impressed. Although I am envious that we do not have an uptown mall like the MacArthur Center. Great place. But we do have Southpark which has a miniature downtown around it.
Actually I think it was about three years ago, so I'm sure with all the new developments and happenings its improved quite a bit.. I went to a Panthers Vs. Eagles game, uptown LOOKED nice, but it didn't seem like there was much to it. Yeah, you've been to MacArthur Center? I've heard of Southpark mall, and there's supposed to be a great view of the skyline from there..
I used to go to NSU back in early 2002-2003. Great school and after I got used to the city, I learned to really like it. But if you came to Charlotte now, you're mind would most likely change about how behind and suburban Charlotte is. And just imagine how it will look in a few more years when the Wells-Fargo (it will always be Wachovia to me) Cultural Campus opens and the NASCAR Hall of Fame. I'm not a big fan of NASCAR, but if it will help Charlotte I just might become one.
Is there a metro area in NC that can compare to NoVA (and yes, that is Virginia)?
It's not like a person from Richmond, Hampton Roads, or NoVA is going to be confused & overwhelmed should they go to Charlotte...like a small-town visitor to a huge metropolis. Not sure but some aspects of NoVA might appear foreign to NC city visitors though.
NC and its cities have made some significant gains over the past decade or so and should be respected for that.
However, it seems some overzealous NC proponents take those gains out of proportion.
Some NC city fans (particularly Charlotte fans) feel their city has reached the status of a NYC, Chicago, LA, Houston, Philly, Atlanta, DC metro, etc. when that is not the case.
Maybe this is due to the "2nd largest financial center" thing.
But I think we can all see that the financial world is an uncertain one. I would only bet that NYC stays the top financial center in the US. As for 2nd...that title may not last very long.
All I'm saying is that I think some are buying a little too much into the hype.
Charlotte's growth is not unparalleled. NoVA experienced massive growth too (without all the hype and based on a more stable foundation than Charlotte). And Charlotte's growth has not made it some super metro far beyond NoVA.
Raleigh/Durham is growing at faster rates in recent years than Hampton Roads & Richmond but that growth has not resulted in a comparison between the metros looking like a comparison between DC & (no offense) Roanoke.
A foreign visitor to the US would not see a massive difference between most NC and VA cities.
For all of the NC cities massive growth and success over the past decade the difference between NC cities and VA cities is small.
Maybe all that growth was just a sign that, at some point, NC cities were playing catch-up. If NC cities have been gaining & gaining over the past decade while VA cities are falling off the radar (according to some) then why are things so comparable between them.
Just a thought.
I don't think it is far off comparison to say that NC cities were playing cathc up to some of the nation's more robust urban centers. I don't think VA has any city that is similiar to Charlotte. At the same rate NC does not have anything siimiliar to Hampton Roads or NoVa. For that matter I don't think any state in the nation has anyplace similiar to these areas. I think the best comparison then would be Richmond vs Raleigh-Durham. Or maybe even Richmond vs Charlotte. I don't think that is a fair comparison because Charlotte is twice the size even though there urbanized area is about the same.
In defense of Charlotte, a common myth I want to bust is we are just a banking town. We have a huge distribution center here making us have a pretty large major trading area. CMS actually has more employees than Bank of America so banking is not our highest employer. We also have a growing energy sector here, so we are way more than just a banking town. There is not really hype about Charlotte just people proud of the progress.
In reading the previous post I just realized that there are no major port cities in North Carolina (no Wilmington doesn't count), unlike most every other state on the East Coast (Miami, Savannah, Charleston, Norfolk, Baltimore, Philadelphia, Newark (NJ/NY), Bridgeport, Boston). I wonder if this is because of the Outer Banks?
Is there a metro area in NC that can compare to NoVA (and yes, that is Virginia)?
The Triangle. Both are growing rapidly, are home to many high-tech companies, and are multinodal. I know they have their differences as well, but I think they are pretty comparable areas.
In reading the previous post I just realized that there are no major port cities in North Carolina (no Wilmington doesn't count), unlike most every other state on the East Coast (Miami, Savannah, Charleston, Norfolk, Baltimore, Philadelphia, Newark (NJ/NY), Bridgeport, Boston). I wonder if this is because of the Outer Banks?
NC's coastline is pretty rugged and irregular compared to other East Coast states.
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