North Carolina is suited for Chinese, Middle East, or Russians tourist. I think were good for college, Esports, Comic-Con, Big entertainment musical festivals, and Political Conventions (If Raleigh got smart and decided to host a RNC or DNC). I think Dix Park is an area similar to Grant Park in Chicago, and I wouldn’t be surprised if Central Park is not a big as ours. But we could have multi ethnic festivals or a T-Rex I’d ride that. I have to brainstorm on some things, but I’d make a great holiday festival I want a train show so badly I’d kill for it.
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Dix park has a long ways to go. Finally some construction is starting, but I still find it run down and creepy. Seems more suburban than urban due to its location.
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Central Park is nearly 3 X the size of Dix
And also at the time Central Park was built, it was not a very urban part of Manhattan. It took decades to become what it has.
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Raleigh is no New York. Typical new south growth model. Nothing wrong with that, but will never have the bones of pre automobile legacy cities.
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Sure. I don’t disagree. Wasn’t comparing to NY. Just an example that it takes lots of time. It will probably be more like 50 years before Raleigh sees the full benefit of Dix park.
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I’m rather jealous that @GucciLittlePig had a longer post than me so, I employed chatGPT to generate some content for me. The ask?
Why is Raleigh an amazing place to visit?
and then, why not ask….
Why should I avoid visiting Raleigh?
Why is Raleigh an amazing place to visit?
Sure thing! Raleigh, North Carolina is an amazing place to visit for a number of reasons!
First, Raleigh is the state capital of North Carolina, so there’s lots of history and culture to explore. You can visit historical landmarks like the State Capitol Building and the Governor’s Mansion, or check out museums like the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences or the North Carolina Museum of Art.
Second, Raleigh is known for its thriving food and drink scene. There are tons of great restaurants and breweries around town, offering everything from Southern cuisine to international flavors.
Third, Raleigh is home to several beautiful parks and green spaces, including Umstead State Park and Pullen Park. These offer great opportunities for hiking, picnicking, and other outdoor activities.
Finally, Raleigh is a great place to visit because of its welcoming and friendly atmosphere. The locals are known for their southern hospitality, and you’ll feel right at home as soon as you arrive.
In conclusion, whether you’re interested in history, food and drink, outdoor activities, or just meeting friendly people, Raleigh, North Carolina is an amazing place to visit!
Why avoid visiting Raleigh?
While Raleigh North Carolina is a great place to visit, there are some reasons why you might want to avoid it as well. Some of these reasons include:
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Weather - Summers in Raleigh can be very hot and humid, which can make it uncomfortable to explore the city.
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Traffic - Like many larger cities, Raleigh can experience heavy traffic, especially during rush hour.
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Cost - While Raleigh isn’t as expensive as some other cities in the US, the cost of living can still be relatively high, which might make it difficult for budget-conscious travelers.
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Limited public transportation - While Raleigh does have some public transportation options, they can be limited in terms of their routes and schedule.
Overall, while there are some reasons why you might want to avoid visiting Raleigh, it’s still a great place to explore and experience everything that North Carolina has to offer!
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All my long rants about things to do downtown start with “Sure thing!”
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resurrecting this thread…
While this video is about the Canes game the other night, the more interesting part to me is that this Canadian is a Canes and Panthers fan. He says Raleighwood in the video and even understands the culture of the franchise and the context around the team’s brand and fan experience. I am encouraged by this.
(20) Carolina Hurricanes BONKERS Comeback - YouTube
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Raleigh wood is nice but she’ll of another city. I have a good name. The City of Osks is a perfect brand all we need to do is slap that on it till work. Though OakTopia isn’t bad.
Has anyone made the argument to them that Raleigh’s skyline is absolutely pathetic for a city its size and it acts like an advertisement for the city’s civic health?
A city that has civic pride and a sense of place has a dense downtown with lots of buildings like Seattle or Portland. It says something about the cultural health of a place.
Tall buildings are a committal investment in the community. They signify that it is a place worth staying in. They signal that the downtown is healthy enough that people are willing to work and live there. They signal that the economy is growing there.
When a city has something obviously unhealthy going on in its civic culture it shows. Cities that don’t give a damn about themselves show it in their skylines. Virginia Beach, Fresno, Bakersfield… the message is this is a place to stay temporarily but nobody wants to stay here long enough to justify anything taller. Or if a city is economically depressed like Mobile, Shreveport. The gaps in the skyline are like missing teeth. Or if a city is politically dysfunctional like Albany, or DC, it shows that. It always says something.
Or Paris, Charleston, New Orleans, or (pick almost any European city). I’m tapping the sign that says “the City is not the Skyline” again
*I think the rezoning should go through but the skyline myopia annoys the shit out of me and I respond out of reflex
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That is fine. I think a dense low slung city is appealling. Raleigh does not have the room to achieve the downtown density appropriate for its size purely from that though. Its hemmed in by single family homes in a tight radius.
Your post would be stronger if New Orleans, Paris, and indeed most Euro cities nowadays didn’t have skylines that were already much larger than Raleigh’s though. Spend some time in the lab on that one.
Charleston is also a much smaller city. Though on that note… Better not look at Greenville. It might be too embarrassing.
The city is not the skyline for sure, but in order for downtown to have the critical mass of population that makes it work as an active, walkable, amentiy rich place, it needs more people housed vertically.
Raleigh doesn’t have miles and miles of dense urban neighborhood like Paris or older American cities on which to realize crtical mass. It has 1.18 square mile of official downtown boundary that’s nearly encircled by immediate single family suburbia.
Within that 1.18 square mile, vertical housing also allows us explore how we better balance with parks, community spaces, parklettes, etc. If we continute to flatten our skyline on purpose, developers will seek to fill every square foot with cheap 5over1 constrruction like we have seen time and time again downtown.
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I think y’all get my point, if you’re looking for “an argument” to help add height this one needs some work. I also romantic about tall buildings and I think that argument is pretty flimsy, and I expect the average person/city councilor to be less sympathetic.
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Could compile examples from many major cities in North America of buildings that height next to single family homes. It’s not particularly noteworthy. 400ft also isn’t particularly tall. People often list Richmond as a “low slung” city of dense neighborhoods. 400ft is Richmond and Phoenix height. It aint exactly Houston or Philly.
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You don’t even really have to go to other cities. Just look at the intersection of Hardimont & St Albans to see a juxtaposition of tower to SFH that’s much closer. While the tower isn’t as tall as what’s proposed for N. West Street & Peace, it’s literally across the street from a house.
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I’m getting pretty jealous. Omaha, Detroit, and Cleveland all have new 600 foot plus towers going up. All cities that lag Raleigh by any growth or economic metric… It feels like we should be able to get one here.
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I’m jealous of other cities’ urban experiences: not necessarily their towers. I just know that it’s going to take more towers for us to get the critical mass necessary to elevate our experiences.
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BUT… How many of those cities have major (IE Fortune 500) Headquarters located IN their cities?? Our biggest employers are in RTP or the burbs (Holly Springs/Clayton pharmaceutical companies…) We have yet to land a “unicorn” headquarters to locate to DTR with the deep pockets (and ego) to want a signature tower in our city.
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It won’t happen because it goes against their conservative values as a bank, but First Citizens building a signature tower downtown would probably be the most likely one.
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