2016 Ohio Population Estimates. (Columbus, Cleveland, Cincinnati: 2015, apartments, condos)

[1watertiger]

Originally Posted by captainclipper

Personally, I've seen that there's a lot less city-suburb friction/distrust/antagonism in Columbus also, as compared to other cities like Cincinnati, Cleveland, Dayton, or Detroit.

I think this has a lot to do with the fact that annexation allowed many otherwise suburban areas into the city proper, as well as the fact that it allowed the city itself to remain dominant in the region. For example, no Columbus suburb is over 50,000 people in pop, but the city itself is closing in on 900,000.

As a result, there's never really been the kind of derogatory attitude of suburban people avoiding "the city" because it's "not safe," talking about "when you cross the border into Columbus," or any kind of balkanization of the suburbs against the city like you see in other rust belt metros. This has also helped from a regional identity perspective, because most people from "Columbus" are actually from Columbus - Versus most Clevelanders or Cincinnatians I've met in college or elsewhere were almost always from a surburb or surrounding township, not the city itself.

At the same time, the fact that it grew by a process of parcel-by-parcel annexation of township land versus a city-county merger (i.e. Indianapolis) has also allowed Columbus to avoid other dangers that would result from that. In particular, the handing of control of the city over to suburban interests as we have seen in Indy and some other places. Also, that has allowed Columbus to remain nimble and not be boxed-in by county lines. Are there any other large cities in Ohio that span multiple counties?

So while it is much criticized, I actually think Columbus' annexation strategy was extremely smart, and allowed it to perhaps unknowingly avoid certain divisions and dangers other metros have faced, which has helped it to be more clearly focused on growth and jobs in a way that is finally paying real dividends.

Thoughts?

Columbus is newer in developing compared to most cities including Cleveland and Cincinnati. It doesnt have the long history yet of great accomplishments/industrialization/cultural amenities. But it also doesn't have a history of disasterous downturns, pollution,crime and poverty.

[Vanderbiltgrad]

Originally Posted by captainclipper

Personally, I've seen that there's a lot less city-suburb friction/distrust/antagonism in Columbus also, as compared to other cities like Cincinnati, Cleveland, Dayton, or Detroit.

I think this has a lot to do with the fact that annexation allowed many otherwise suburban areas into the city proper, as well as the fact that it allowed the city itself to remain dominant in the region. For example, no Columbus suburb is over 50,000 people in pop, but the city itself is closing in on 900,000.

As a result, there's never really been the kind of derogatory attitude of suburban people avoiding "the city" because it's "not safe," talking about "when you cross the border into Columbus," or any kind of balkanization of the suburbs against the city like you see in other rust belt metros. This has also helped from a regional identity perspective, because most people from "Columbus" are actually from Columbus - Versus most Clevelanders or Cincinnatians I've met in college or elsewhere were almost always from a surburb or surrounding township, not the city itself.

At the same time, the fact that it grew by a process of parcel-by-parcel annexation of township land versus a city-county merger (i.e. Indianapolis) has also allowed Columbus to avoid other dangers that would result from that. In particular, the handing of control of the city over to suburban interests as we have seen in Indy and some other places. Also, that has allowed Columbus to remain nimble and not be boxed-in by county lines. Are there any other large cities in Ohio that span multiple counties?

So while it is much criticized, I actually think Columbus' annexation strategy was extremely smart, and allowed it to perhaps unknowingly avoid certain divisions and dangers other metros have faced, which has helped it to be more clearly focused on growth and jobs in a way that is finally paying real dividends.

Thoughts?

I agree Columbus sounds like a mini Chicago it almost has 900k people. Sounds legit.

[1watertiger]

Originally Posted by Vanderbiltgrad

I agree Columbus sounds like a mini Chicago it almost has 900k people. Sounds legit.

"Mini Chicago"? Hardly
Don't let population of a city "proper" skew the reality of a cities actual size. The entire metro of a city will usually determine the size, feel and perception for visitors or residents.
ie- in regards to populations within city limits, Columbus is larger than Atlanta, Boston, minneapolis, Miami, Seattle, Detroit, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Denver, Tampa, etc. etc.. but as anyone who has lived,traveled or visited those cities know the Columbus metro is much smaller compared to the previous mentioned cities. Columbus currently has a much smaller developed urban/suburban footprint. Perception of black and white rankings/ lists are not always reality, especially when comparing cities.

[bjimmy24]

Originally Posted by Vanderbiltgrad

I agree Columbus sounds like a mini Chicago it almost has 900k people. Sounds legit.

If anyone thinks Columbus is actually bigger than San Francisco, Boston, or Washington dc, they simply haven't traveled much.

[Vanderbiltgrad]

Originally Posted by bjimmy24

If anyone thinks Columbus is actually bigger than San Francisco, Boston, or Washington dc, they simply haven't traveled much.

I was being sarcastic but it went over everybody's head

[bjimmy24]

Originally Posted by Vanderbiltgrad

I was being sarcastic but it went over everybody's head

Don't give yourself so much credit. My comment was actually on the same page as you.

"They" not "you."

[SciFiNerd1]

I agree with many posts that Columbus Metro Area is very strong regionally.

Indianapolis Metro Area is a different story. It is not as dense and much more sprawling. Zionsville, Carmel, Fishers, and Greenwood all feel like separate cities. People in Indy suburbs have the mentality to avoid Indy due to crime and poverty. You don't get that sense in Columbus.

[Vanderbiltgrad]

Originally Posted by bjimmy24

Don't give yourself so much credit. My comment was actually on the same page as you.

"They" not "you."

Cleveland is still the king of Ohio and then Cincy, I like Columbus but it is too much annexation and the suburban life for me although I am a big Buckeyes fan.

[Buckeye614]

Originally Posted by Vanderbiltgrad

Cleveland is still the king of Ohio and then Cincy, I like Columbus but it is too much annexation and the suburban life for me although I am a big Buckeyes fan.

The amount of urban growth happening in Columbus right now is actually insane. For a mid-sized metro it actually has several attractive neighborhoods as options for urban living (old north columbus, italian village, harrison west, german village/brewery district, olde towne east, short north, arena district, gay street, merion village, university distrct/weinland park, victorian village, parts of Grandview etc.)

I know that people are going to ***** on this post and tell me how much more urban Cleveland and Cincy are. I am not attempting to make a comparison, just saying that if you don't want to live in the suburbs in Columbus than don't live in the burbs or a far out neighborhood.

[Natural510]

The metro size of the three are all comparable at this point with Columbus' in-fill skyrocketing. Annexation hasn't taken place for a long time so that's not the reason for population increase.