Big Cities. Are they over-rated?

[MichaelWinicki]

Certainly some loving living within a busy-24hours-a-day city.

It's not for me.

Life goes by fast enough without the constant "life is always on" type of environment.

Not to mention (and someone used the word in a previous post) stifling.

I enjoy the slower life of a small city that's a reasonable drive of a larger city... In other words I can visit but don't have to live there.

The absolute worst would be living in the suburbs and having to commute into the city.

I did that for a couple years... And this was a smaller city than SF, NYC, Boston, Atlanta, Dallas or Houston... And dealing with the 45 minute drive one way and the traffic was too much.

Heck if you do a one-hour commute one-way (certainly not unusual for many) then you're pissing away 20-days a year doing virtually nothing.

Nah, life is too short for that.

 

[bigdnlaca]

I don't know much about Boise but I do know a lot of Californians are moving in the other west coast states since the prices of everything went up a lot in the 90s.

However, I think part of the reason why people know about Boise is the rise of the football program at Boise St. A lot of h.s. kids (especially L.A.) makes trips to other Pac 10 (12 now) schools outside the state of California because U.S.C., UCLA, Cal, and Stanford can get their best players nationally. I remember a time when a lot of Oregon players were made up of California kids who weren't good enough to play in the schools in Cali. However, there were other kids that were only good to play in the Big West or WAC conference and this is where people find out that these other "small" cities aren't that bad.

As far as the question, I think the main big cities are a little overrated because there are a lot of suburbs that surround them that has the same kind of resources for anyone's lifestyle with less traffic and less people. Maybe the only things the big city offers are businesses, big buildings, and more accesses to different freeways.

 

[MichaelWinicki]

it's not flat and ugly. I live in rolling hills full of tree canopies, yet big enough and populated enough to have a decent range of entertainment close by.

There's that too.

A lot of this country is flatter than a pancake.

I like the hills.

 

[CouchCoach]

Ya know, a lot of it is where are you in your life? Upwardly mobile, young and wanting some new experiences and how does the cost of living compare and I mean living, really experiencing what an area has to offer. A person's financial situation has a lot to do with how they live where they live.

Then you've got family to consider. I was born and raised in Little Rock and spent the first 24 years of my life there as did my wife and when I decided I wanted out, mainly because I didn't like me where I was, and decided for us that New Orleans would be different, I did not really consider what moving my wife away from her family would do until I would see her face when we would go back to visit.

There are many things to consider when making an elective move and not one forced because of employment issues. Then there's the happiness issue. You are not unhappy where you are but think you might be happier elsewhere. You've obviously been considering this and have discussed it with your wife, and you didn't mention children, which is another issue altogether once they reach a certain age, so what have you got to lose by trying it out? You can always return to Boise where you weren't unhappy and if it's not what you thought it would be, actually be happier in Boise.

 

[Reverend Conehead]

So, I live in Boise, Idaho. I'm willing to bet it's a lot bigger than most people probably initially think. It's one of the fastest growing cities in the nation and you will find it on most the top 10 lists out today. The secret got out in the early 90s and since then the Californians have been coming up in droves. So, it's getting bigger but it's still a pretty medium sized metro. It's a great place to live. I love it but I have been here pretty much my entire life. I often find myself drawn to bigger cities, you know, something different. I just absolutely love them. They all have very different energies. I often think of moving if I could find work. The wife LOVES the Oregon Coast (as do I. If you have never been you should go) so I may have here talked into Portland as a stepping stone. Portland is a little rough around the edges but I don't mind it. Other places I love are Seattle but its too big and the traffic there is INSANE. I also love Salt Lake City and I really loved Phoenix (even though almost all of it looks the same. Suburban sprawl).

Anyways, I'm just curious big city dwellers, how do you like it? Do you get tired of traffic? Crime bad? Is it overrated or is it great? What can you advise for me?

One thing Boise has going for it is it has a lot of the big cities amenities but without the big city hassles. Still, something tells me I want the experience.

I used to live in Nampa near Boise and hated it because of so much crime, but I liked Boise a lot better. I'm in Omaha, NE now and really like it. It's a cross between a small town and a city a lot like Boise and is quite beautiful and has a good music scene. I used to live in Denver, which was a nice big city, but traffic frustrated me

 

[Chrispierce]

I agree about Boise because I know the place but I do not think SZ and his wife are only together because they don't live in a larger city.

Ouch dude. It sounds like you've been bitten. I moved from Texas to NY and that was not the case.

No,no,no. You guys are mistaking what I said. I’m not about talking some outside areas around NYC,or the peninsula outside of SF. I’m talking about “Manhattan,and SF”. Like commercial and movie urban. If you’re younger,and you move to either location? You are braking up with whoever you’re with at some point. It’s just the nature of things. Never fails,and why I always tell people in advance.

 

[viman96]

So, I live in Boise, Idaho. I'm willing to bet it's a lot bigger than most people probably initially think. It's one of the fastest growing cities in the nation and you will find it on most the top 10 lists out today. The secret got out in the early 90s and since then the Californians have been coming up in droves. So, it's getting bigger but it's still a pretty medium sized metro. It's a great place to live. I love it but I have been here pretty much my entire life. I often find myself drawn to bigger cities, you know, something different. I just absolutely love them. They all have very different energies. I often think of moving if I could find work. The wife LOVES the Oregon Coast (as do I. If you have never been you should go) so I may have here talked into Portland as a stepping stone. Portland is a little rough around the edges but I don't mind it. Other places I love are Seattle but its too big and the traffic there is INSANE. I also love Salt Lake City and I really loved Phoenix (even though almost all of it looks the same. Suburban sprawl).

Anyways, I'm just curious big city dwellers, how do you like it? Do you get tired of traffic? Crime bad? Is it overrated or is it great? What can you advise for me?

One thing Boise has going for it is it has a lot of the big cities amenities but without the big city hassles. Still, something tells me I want the experience.

I live in PDX It is a great town for beer, food, wine, coffee, cocktails and so much more. There is a lot to do outdoors. The state has multiple mountains for skiing and climbing. There is the beach, huge sand dunes, the forrest, rivers, lakes, etc...And if you are a car nut like me there are incredible back roads to drive that will rival any place in the US or abroad. You get four seasons but in a mild climate. Get outside of the Willamette Valley like Bend, Or and you will have as much sunshine as any where in the country. FWIW I have live all over the US and abroad and in several big cities to very small towns.

 

[JIMMYBUFFETT]

I've never lived in a big city so I couldn't say, but I do spend a lot of time in Boise and would love to live there one day. I also spend a lot of time in the Phoenix/Scottsdale area and really love that city as well.

 

[Runwildboys]

Cities suck........The one redeeming quality is the eye candy, walking around in short skirts in the Summer. I'm still rooting for Godzilla.

 

[Corso]

Cities suck........The one redeeming quality is the eye candy, walking around in short skirts in the Summer. I'm still rooting for Godzilla.

Awesome.

 

[MichaelWinicki]

I enjoyed the Raleigh-Durham area. Pretty area of the country. But traffic is even getting bad there now.
I also lved in New Orleans fir several years. Good times and very unigue. But better for visiting than full time living. Too dirty and too much crime.

I was visiting a local fan group (for my vicinity) on Facebook...

Someone from this area that moved down to the Raleigh area was spouting off about how there's so much growth there (which is true) and how little growth is going on around here (which is true).

Then he posts about how they're expanding one of the local super-highways from 3 to 4 lanes... And inferred that was a good thing!

To me that was like saying they made their pizza with nuclear waste– That's about how appealing that kind of traffic and congestion is to me.

 

[Corso]

My own thang...
When I lived in LA, I lived in an area (West Hollywood, on Hollywood Blvd) where everything was basically within walking distance.

4 blocks to work. 1 block to the grocery store.
2 blocks to clubs and restaurants. 3 blocks from Graumann's Chinese Theater.
Half a block to church. Screw your religion, there was 3 denominations all within that half-block.
Jewish, Christian and Muslim. I actually saw recently that the Christian church has been converted to a night club...

Only time I got in a car was to go to the piers, or the beach, but I never hit the highways. I hit the streets.

Savvy people know how to traverse.

 

[MichaelWinicki]

My own thang...
When I lived in LA, I lived in an area (West Hollywood, on Hollywood Blvd) where everything was basically within walking distance.

4 blocks to work. 1 block to the grocery store.
2 blocks to clubs and restaurants. 3 blocks from Graumann's Chinese Theater.
Half a block to church. Screw your religion, there was 3 denominations all within that half-block.
Jewish, Christian and Muslim. I actually saw recently that the Christian church has been converted to a night club...

Only time I got in a car was to go to the piers, or the beach, but I never hit the highways. I hit the streets.

Savvy people know how to traverse.

To me that's the way to live in cities... But I can imagine the housing costs for something like that.

 

[Corso]

To me that's the way to live in cities... But I can imagine the housing costs for something like that.

500 sq ft - $1450/month and that was 17 years ago.

 

[Corso]

To me that's the way to live in cities... But I can imagine the housing costs for something like that.

I was blessed to make a salary that gave me the ability to experience that real, big city life, but even that's not near living in the deep of NYC.
LA is still a bit spread. NYC is a monstrous crowd, til you get to the subs.

 

[GMO415]

Been working in one for over 20 years and I'm done with it.

 

[DFWJC]

I was visiting a local fan group (for my vicinity) on Facebook...

Someone from this area that moved down to the Raleigh area was spouting off about how there's so much growth there (which is true) and how little growth is going on around here (which is true).

Then he posts about how they're expanding one of the local super-highways from 3 to 4 lanes... And inferred that was a good thing!

To me that was like saying they made their pizza with nuclear waste– That's about how appealing that kind of traffic and congestion is to me.

Its a great area of the country, but I-40 is getting really ugly traffic-wise.
I think most long-termers there dont like the accelerated growth and the crud that comes with it

 

[MichaelWinicki]

Its a great area of the country, but I-40 is getting really ugly taffic-wise.
I think most long-termers there dont like the accelerated growth and the crud that comes with it

I've heard the same about the Denver area... word for word. In addition the amount of homeless wandering around the downtown area is staggering.

 

[Chrispierce]

I have some very basic rules for what constitutes “urban city.”
#1 Vertical and density
#2 Brownstone alley’s with strategically placed misc litter
#3 Steaming manhole covers
#4 hookers and vice cops
Those are my top 4 qualifications...

Been trying to get a 3-6 month lease in some filthy apartment in Chinatown forever. No go...Chinese only,and that’s their final answer. Just wanted to hang my washed socks and underwear out the window to dry like everyone else there,and stumble home broke and busted,from playing poker for 2 straight days in the underground card rooms,and arguing with some old lady in mandarin over the price of duck soup. Dream killers!!!

 

[Cowpolk]

Born in Dallas (Oak Cliff) Hate the place moved To Grand Prairie 30 years ago it is better but I want to be out in the country far away from any city with a population over 2000 people