The Great Plains are definitely underappreciated. I like solitude and wide-open spaces and you definitely get that out there. Like you, I can find beauty almost anywhere (although I rarely find it in the cities).
Best Places to Live 2018 - Where does your city rank?
- Thread starter 12Nole
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So many great reasons??? What does Pitt have that other cites don't offer?
I've taken the bait....do tell.
*edit.....tell me where you think they should rank first. That would be a better first start.
Obviously Mass and Conn would be ranked much higher in my mind if we factor in human architecture. So the areas aren’t as ugly as say Oklahoma, but I was doing the ranking exclusive only to natural, God-only areas and in that I think they fall pretty flat. No towering mountains, forests of gargantuan trees, pristine pure white beaches, huge cliffs looking over crystal clear water, etc... it’s just a lot of low rocky coasts with a smattering of dirty tan ssndy beaches and generic small unimpressive forests. If there’s anything impressive I completely missed it in those two states (again, I like Connecticut and especially Boston in Mass but that has nothing to do with the natural beauty.
As far as Kansas, it’s certainly hurt by me only spending time zipping through it after spending a week in Utah, New Mexico and Colorado, but it’s stunning how as soon as you leave Colorado Springs it changes from amazing mountain vistas to flat boring nothingness. The only three things I liked about Kansas was a fossil museum midway through, sliders at the Cozy Inn and the sign saying I was entering Kansas City.
I said you’re getting screwed because most of the other professions including attorneys like myself get a lot more $$$$ in California than other places. There were a few exceptions but California was usually at or near the top for most professions.
Tech, education, and healthcare focused industries abound, with substantial support from the local government and the population, with all three being strong growth sectors moving forward.
An amazing arts and culture scene
A sports town with few peers
Except for saltwater, virtually every outdoors opportunity you could want
An impressive, burgeoning food scene (with some pubs saying its one of the best foodie spots in the country)
Nonstop flights to/from Europe (including Paris and Frankfurt)
Generally a very welcoming “people” (I lived in philly for almost 5 years before coming here and it’s not even close: people here are just much friendlier)
Incredibly affordable housing and generally low cost of living
Within a 6 hour drive of “big” cities if you get that urge (NYC, DC, PHL)
That’s what I have for a start. As much as I complain about Philly, I did really like living there, and overlooked the bad aspects because of the cool stuff there. When my wife came home 12 years ago and said that she had a tremendous offer from Pitt, I had absolutely zero interest in moving and said that I wasn’t going. I’m certainly glad that I broadened my mind and took a look at this place, because I love it. My wife is contstantly being recruited by universities and I’ve gone from not wanting to move here to never wanting to leave.
Where do you live? I guarantee people can find many things they would not like about it. People are generally happy with where they live and find good things about it.
Also, Dan, I can only talk about what I like here. While I’ve traveled all over, I haven’t live in many places so I don’t feel qualified to enumerate what aspects of Pittsburgh should be ranked higher than in other cities. That said, I speak from experience when I say that Pittsburgh certainly kicks ass when put up against Inverness, FL.
I enjoy my visits to Pittsburgh because of all the things you mentioned above. I also think they do more with less in that area. And lastly, being I have family that lives there, people from Pittsburgh are incredibly prideful and loyal to the city. My sister in law wants to move back to Florida from Pittsburgh, but feels like she will be letting the city down if she were to leave....I crap you not, she puts that much pressure on herself to stay and contribute to the place.
Another thing she does that throws me off is that she constantly complains of the weather and streets and taxes...however, if I say one thing negative about the city she jumps all over me and gets defensive...it's weird.
Anyhow, IMO...there are a lot cities with the same things you mentioned above except with much better year round weather and better jobs and opportunity in the private sector....and many have water too. And Philly is not one of them....that's for sure Pitt > Philly.....but that's not really setting the bar high.
When was the last time you were in Fayetteville? Not sure any sane person would rank Fort Smith or Little Rock over it. LR is one of the most crime-ridden places in the US. Bentonville is a neighboring city of Fayetteville lol.
If you like the beach it obviously can't compare to Hawaii but Hawaii doesn't have hiking in the Ozarks or the natural lakes, biking trails and outdoors activities that Northwest Arkansas has. You have a world-class art museum, low traffic, low crime, 3 fortune 500 businesses and an SEC University all minutes away. Dickson St. is a good time.
I agree the majority of the rest of Arkansas sucks, but that area is pretty nice. It's growing a ton and is a top 25 best-performing area by the Milken Institute.
I can't hear the sour grapes of the low losers raising a ruckus about the sucky towns they are unaware they are living in due to my lofty rank. But I think we might be ranked a bit high, however....
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I had the 2018 winner of the World's Best Cuban Sandwich award for lunch yesterday right here in Los Angeles at El Cochinito. Also, whoever said that California universities are cookie cutter copies of each other is just dumb.
I do enjoy some aspects of the Great Plains as well. But the wind. After the first 48 hours of perpetual wind it just takes a toll. After 2 years of the experience, it was always the first thing I noticed when I landed and the first thing I appreciated when I boarded and it stopped.
I didn’t have to go any further than #5 (Fayetteville Arkansas) to know this list is based on BS. Unlike a lot of people I’ve actually been to Fayetteville and that place isn’t even in the top five places to live in Arkansas (let’s see Hot Springs, Little Rock, Ft Smith, Bentonville are definitely better...but maybe it’s fifth, what can I say Arkansas sucks) let alone the US.
Let’s see would I rather live in Lahaina Hawaii on Maui
Or Fayetteville Arkansas????
Now Im not pro-Fayetteville, but any updates on the volcanic eruptions in Arkansas?
I visited California recently and loved it. I prefer the central coast area around Pismo Beach or Monterey. I don't enjoy living in close confinement around tens of millions of other people so that rules out the major metro areas. I actually looked at some ocean front property in that area and shockingly enough you can get some small lots for less than 1 million (probably cost 15 million near SF or LA). Someday that will be my retirement dream.
My guess is that dialect and accent(s) subconsciously played a factor in the rankings. Pittsburgh's a pretty nice town but hearing the locals talk is excruciating.
I've never spent any time in Pittsburgh, but most people I talk to from there or who spend time there are very high on it. Just on reputation alone it's probably the only NE town besides my hometown I'd consider living in, but I just can't handle the northeastern weather.
So I'm in #47 Atlanta...interesting list in that most of these things count suburbs of big cities as their own "place". This is a better way to do it.
Just this weekend I moved into "downtown" Alpharetta, GA. Really excited about it. In a perfect world I'd like to be in-town in a real city, but there are plenty of reasons that just isn't a fit (still one kid in school, wife can't navigate city streets/traffic, commute, still tied to the SE, etc).
Given the parameters we're operating with, it's pretty much a home run for us. Great high school, super short commute to our offices, lots of community events. Walkscore of 62, with everything but school and "entertainment" highly walkable. That's pretty tough to find in suburbs in the south, affordably at least. Not that this was particularly affordable, but more so than most places. Our first morning we walked down to the farmers market to get vegetables for the week and stopped for breakfast on the way back. After nearly 20 years in the exurb landlocked subdivision life, this is a lifestyle change I desperately needed. Crossing my fingers they eventually bring Marta all the way to Alpharetta...always a lot of opposition to that, but it seems to be softening a bit.
Just this weekend I moved into "downtown" Alpharetta, GA. Really excited about it. In a perfect world I'd like to be in-town in a real city, but there are plenty of reasons that just isn't a fit (still one kid in school, wife can't navigate city streets/traffic, commute, still tied to the SE, etc).
Given the parameters we're operating with, it's pretty much a home run for us. Great high school, super short commute to our offices, lots of community events. Walkscore of 62, with everything but school and "entertainment" highly walkable. That's pretty tough to find in suburbs in the south, affordably at least. Not that this was particularly affordable, but more so than most places. Our first morning we walked down to the farmers market to get vegetables for the week and stopped for breakfast on the way back. After nearly 20 years in the exurb landlocked subdivision life, this is a lifestyle change I desperately needed. Crossing my fingers they eventually bring Marta all the way to Alpharetta...always a lot of opposition to that, but it seems to be softening a bit.
Now Im not pro-Fayetteville, but any updates on the volcanic eruptions in Arkansas?
Eh that’s on the Big Island which ALWAYS has volcanic eruptions so for them it’s not that out of the ordinary. A friend of mine is even currently on the Big Island for their honeymoon (north end not South where the activity is) and it’s not bothering them from what they’re posting.
Maui on the other hand is stunningly gorgeous and hasn’t had an eruption since Columbus (roughly 1400s based on carbon dating) and has erupted only three times in 900 years. That’s completely different than the Big Island which has active volcanoes pretty much all year.
The Big Island is gorgeous in terms of its sheer cliffs, craggy volcanic seaside, black and even green (really more olive/army camo green as it’s olivine/serpentine crystals in the sand that makes it green) beaches, and getting to see a mostly sedate but still active volcano up close. And honestly, I liked Hilo and Kona enough I could see spending a week or two there as a timeshare or long vacay but I wouldn’t want to live on the Big Island long term. But Maui and Kauai are the truly stunning Hawaiian islands imo, as they’re older meaning more soil less volcanic rocks which means denser and healthier rainforests. A lot of the Big Island is pretty barren outside of grass and other hardier plants, while most of Maui and Kauai are covered in lush tropical greenery and brilliant flowers.
And don’t forget arrogant douchebaggery.
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