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Seeing Atlanta with 12 votes and Dallas with 2 is interesting. I always thought they were kind of similar in the suburb department though Atlanta’s suburbs have much prettier topography and better housing stock.
Topography yes, housing stock, no. I've lived in both places working with homebuilders and appraisers. And what's slept on with DFW is the area is ringed by lakes, at least 8 within 30 miles of either downtown Dallas or downtown Fort Worth. If you go 50 miles out, you'll add 4 more.
Yea, diversity of options is where DC wins imo. You can be in an urban area like Arlington/Alexandria or a wooded, leafy suburb like Great Falls.
Where's the water recreation? Its part of the Potomac River and that's it. Frankly, Arlington/Alexandria shouldn't be considered suburban. Arlington as most know, used to be part of the District, Its closer to downtown than many areas of NYC, L.A. Dallas, Houston, etc are to their respective downtowns.
Where's the water recreation? Its part of the Potomac River and that's it. Frankly, Arlington/Alexandria shouldn't be considered suburban. Arlington as most know, used to be part of the District, Its closer to downtown than many areas of NYC, L.A. Dallas, Houston, etc are to their respective downtowns.
The Chesapeake Bay? You're awarding Dallas with lake access 50 miles away, so the criteria should evenly extend.
You posting thos doesnt take away from the fact LA still has arguably the nicest collection of suburbs in America. South Orange County and Ventura County especially are hard to beat, let alone other areas like the upper San Gabriel Valley cities.
To each their own. Clearly none of these metros are indisputably the "nicest," given that even the top performer (DC) is still not even close to garnering half of the votes. Unsurprisingly, most of this comes down to individual tastes and priorities.
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Originally Posted by walker1962
Suburbs are nice in Chi town and Philly because its comparing them to core cities with way too many crappy areas.
Patently false. Suburban Chicago and Suburban Philadelphia are both highly desirable and high-demand areas completely independent of any comparison to their respective central city.
Suburbs are nice in Chi town and Philly because its comparing them to core cities with way too many crappy areas.
I’ll let the Philadelphia crowd defend Philly. As they should.
As for Chicago, I’ll just make the assumption you’ve never been. Chicago is absolutely stunning. Nobody, even the most deranged, politically motivated Joe wouldn’t call DT Chicago and it’s core neighborhoods crappy looking or feeling. Absolutely fair to criticize its crime or inequity. But to call it anything other than beautiful is patently false.
The premier suburbs are nice, because they’ve been nice for generations. They were planned communities dating back to the late 19th and early 20th century, with convenience and connectivity to the core in mind. And in the case of the North Shore, the position on Lake Michigan only helped.
To each their own. Clearly none of these metros are indisputably the "nicest," given that even the top performer (DC) is still not even close to garnering half of the votes. Unsurprisingly, most of this comes down to individual tastes and priorities.
Patently false. Suburban Chicago and Suburban Philadelphia are both highly desirable and high-demand areas completely independent of any comparison to their respective central city.
Completely agree. Although I think the poster was trying to insinuate that since Philly and Chicago have many bad parts of the city, it makes the suburbs even more desirable; which is absurd. I’ve lived in both cities, and they are both obviously top tier.
Chicago and Philly also have among the nicest suburbs of any city, along with LA, and maybe Boston, Dallas, Atlanta, and parts of suburban NYC.
To each their own. Clearly none of these metros are indisputably the "nicest," given that even the top performer (DC) is still not even close to garnering half of the votes. Unsurprisingly, most of this comes down to individual tastes and priorities.
That some of us have spoken up for second-tier metros not being discussed here reflects that as well.
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Patently false. Suburban Chicago and Suburban Philadelphia are both highly desirable and high-demand areas completely independent of any comparison to their respective central city.
That's true, but since mwj119 left the door open for a local to talk about the core city, I'm going to walk through it.
Yes, both Chicago and Philadelphia have sections that look like they've been beaten with a stick. But just as Chicago also has some absolutely fabulous core-city neighborhoods, Philadelphia's urban core is one of the best in the country. New Yorkers, especially Brooklynites, are drawn to it because it offers just about everything they like about life in the Big Apple at a fraction of the cost (especially housing); "It's like 80 percent of New York at 20 percent of the cost!" is how one transplant characterized it to my Phillymag colleague Victor Fiorillo. (The transplant, a rapper who moved here in 2006, wrote a totally funny alphabet book that kids and their parents love; here's the interview.)
And I would say that in this city (again, as in Chicago), the nice parts and the okay parts taken together outweigh the crappy parts.
Furthermore, when people looking to move here post queries on the Philadelphia board say they're seeking attractive suburban neighborhoods, a sizable minority of them decide to live in the in-city neighborhood of Chestnut Hill instead. The city's northwesternmost (and highest in elevation) neighborhood is also either its most affluent or its second most affluent after Society Hill in the center, and it has the same attributes that make the Main Line so appealing to so many.
Completely agree. Although I think the poster was trying to insinuate that since Philly and Chicago have many bad parts of the city, it makes the suburbs even more desirable; which is absurd. I’ve lived in both cities, and they are both obviously top tier.
Chicago and Philly also have among the nicest suburbs of any city, along with LA, and maybe Boston, Dallas, Atlanta, and parts of suburban NYC.
Adding on - if the contrast is definitely the reason why Chicago and Philly is up there, what does that make Detroit (even though it is not on the list)?
Detroit has some nice suburbs also but also blue collar suburbs especially in Macomb County. They are not bad but not "nice" (in terms of schools and amenities offered and also aesthetic) either.
For Chicago - the only place you really see the contrast would be the near West suburbs (i.e. Oak Park) vs. West Side (i.e. Austin neighborhood) anyway. North Shore suburbs and NW suburbs are extension of North Side (more white/affluent) while southern suburb are more mix bag - there are some nice SW suburbs but also some suburbs (i.e. Harvey/Flossmoor/Homewood) that is essentially an extension of South Side anyway.
Your point of showing me streetview of a place that I have been to many times being?
That being said yes, it is one of the few quaint old town areas near Baltimore. The floods definitely didn't help, though.
Plus the sprawl part of EC is still way busier. If only the old town is right on US-40 that would make EC even greater (and even more expensive than it is now )
As I try and put together a list for Long Island, it gets a lot more challenging, as many of the suburbs I'm familiar with or have heard a lot about, are quite small and sparse. hopefully someone can help fill in the blanks with their favorites on LI, like those that make up the Gold Coast.
Where's the water recreation? Its part of the Potomac River and that's it. Frankly, Arlington/Alexandria shouldn't be considered suburban. Arlington as most know, used to be part of the District, Its closer to downtown than many areas of NYC, L.A. Dallas, Houston, etc are to their respective downtowns.
Unincorporated Alexandria is suburban for sure and has water access.
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