What US cities are doing the things (or have done the things) that make them serve as models for all American cities.....and what have they accomplished that makes you think, "I wish my city would do that."

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Strictly for purposes of examples, I'll use my home town of Chicago: Millennium Park has shown how an eye popping, interactive park can serve as a draw for city, suburbanites, and tourists alike....and also cause a high rise housing boom around it to take in the view.

I would say Indianapolis is becoming (almost) a role model for other Midwest cities.

Boston's Big Dig really worked. It may have gotten terrible press for its great expense, but ask anybody who lives or visits here and has been to the airport. What used to take an hour to three hours now takes 20 minutes. The fumes from the cars travelling are filtered from underground so as not to harnm the environment (supposedly). Many acres have been freed up and are going to cultural and civic use.

In my opinion this is an incredibly progressive city.

Atlanta and Miami for the south. Atlanta is trying to strengthen its tourist importance (Aquarium, Nascar Museum, new Coca Cola Museum) and Miami is trying to strenghten its retirement and condo living. They are trying to attract people to settle down there which is spurring condo growth in the U.S. along with Chicago.

EDSG--Millenium Park is world class! Its a great representation to the world that Chicago can build nice parks like any other large city.

I was just browsing Millenium Park's website. It looks incredible! I haven't been to Chicago in years. The park puts the city at the top of my list for places to visit soon.

You most definitely have to include Baltimore in this list. You'd be hard pressed to find a city any place that has capitalized on it's waterfront setting better than Baltimore has. There is now a 7 mile waterfront promenade lined with shops, condo's, offices, and apartments that is open to the public. It really is a special urban setting.

It's ironic that the city came into existence because of it's huge harbor, and that very same harbor is turning out to be the natural resource responsible for it's rebirth. Population loss has stopped, incomes are rising, and the job base is expanding again.

Also, Baltimore has been the start of many innovative urban programs. The $1 house program, where you buy an abandoned house for one dollar with the caveat that you must renovate it to code within a few years is an example. Yep, we've gotten it together in Baltimore!

PART OF THE PROMENADE (Next year I'll be living on the 30th floor where the white crane is!
http://www.baltimoreguy.com/images/Photographs%20Volvo%20Page%2001%2020.jpg

MILLION DOLLAR PIER HOMES GOING UP
http://www.baltimoreguy.com/images/Photographs%20Balto%202006%20Page%2002%2015.jpg

ENTERTAINMENT AND RETAIL
http://www.baltimoreguy.com/images/Photographs%20Balto%202006%20Page%2001%2001.jpg

MORE AND MORE HOUSING
http://www.baltimoreguy.com/images/Photographs%20Balto%202006%20Page%2011%2026.jpg

^^very impressive. Don't forget to mention that the Orioles' Camden Yards also set the trend for bringing back baseball only stadiums.

Baltimore is underrated. From what I've seen of the Inner Harbor, it looks awesome.

Cities that have undergone are undergoing a major renissiance, such as Providence, apparently Baltimore, and according to what I've heard, Cleveland. Overall though, I think of it like this too.... While New York is the greatest city in America... I'd have to say Chicago is probably the greatest AMERICAN city. It sounds contradictory, but it makes sense if you think about it.

Chattanooga has also done wonders with its riverfront.

Boston's Big Dig really worked. It may have gotten terrible press for its great expense, but ask anybody who lives or visits here and has been to the airport. What used to take an hour to three hours now takes 20 minutes. The fumes from the cars travelling are filtered from underground so as not to harnm the environment (supposedly). Many acres have been freed up and are going to cultural and civic use.

In my opinion this is an incredibly progressive city.

callano, how safe has the big dig been accident wise? does having on and off ramps underground present the type of safety issues that some of us fear would happen?

The Astrodome :)

Phoenix and Las Vegas are serving as excellent examples to the rest of the nation as how to sprawl out and use as much land as possible, constanly building out, without a thought of building up.

Seriously though,
I would have to say Chicago is an excellent example of how to make the best use of public spaces. The Lakefront, especially downtown, is a shining beacon of what can be done with public lands. And apparently Baltimore is good at this too.

And all U.S. cities should look to New York as an example of how successful public transportation can be when done right. Obviously those cities may not have the density that NY does to support such an extensive system, but it is still an excellent example.

callano, how safe has the big dig been accident wise? does having on and off ramps underground present the type of safety issues that some of us fear would happen?
I haven't heard of any major accidents inside the tunnels or on the off ramps. The main problem has been that there have been leaks in the walls due to a contractor who knowingly sold the state faulty cement. But that's an entirely different story.

But, no, no major accidents. What, specifically, do you think might happen?

I will say it feels pretty futuristic to be speeding 65 miles an hour in an underground freeway. Of course as a kid I always imagined the future above ground and in the air. But this is pretty cool when your diving for miles under ground.

IBut, no, no major accidents. What, specifically, do you think might happen?.

mainly as i said...on and off ramps....i just can't imagine that occurring underground with sufficent view. probably i'm wrong....it just seems so, well, scary.

Milwaukee and how we are redeveloping land once covered by an underused freeway (Park East) has been looked to by other major cities in the U.S. The city is also serving as a model on bettering an urban riverfront, as well as a lakefront.

Baltimore, Baltimore, Baltimore, and maybe even Baltimore too.

Image, Harbor/waterfront, residential development, commercial/entertainment, etc. Not much that they haven't done. Still some really rough areas, but what city doesn't, really? Only blemish I see is that ill-gotten football team, though they were wronged themselves in the past.

Also props to Milwaukee, San Francisco, Seattle, and any other city that has removed an obstructing expressway from their waterfront. From what I hear, Louisville and Buffalo may be next in line.

A sampling of relatively older, dense cities that have reversed population declines or kept growing:

New York City

Chicago

San Francisco

Seattle

Boston

Denver

Portland, OR

Oakland

Minneapolis

Miami

Newark

St. Paul

Jersey City

Providence

I agree with all of those except for Newark. And although Boston is a great city, it's actually losing population.... fast.

I agree with all of those except for Newark. And although Boston is a great city, it's actually losing population.... fast.

After many decades of decline, Boston regrew during the 1980s and 1990s. True, most recent census estimates show that Boston has lost some population since 2000, but that's largely a function of gentrification and soaring housing costs that have pushed many working-class and middle-class class families outward in search of affordable housing. Even still, the 2004 estimate for Boston of 569,000 was higher than the 1980 census figure of 563,000.

For many of the same reasons, San Francisco has also experienced a post-Internet bubble estimated loss since 2000 also. But if you go to Boston or come to San Francisco you can clearly see that both have clearly been on the upswing.

Actually of all these cities, Newark’s revival is among the most remarkable, and so it comes as a surprise to some. After many decades of decline, Newark stabilized its population during the 1990s and since 2000 has jumped from 273,000 to 280,000. For many decades Newark was notorious for organized crime, experienced one of the biggest racial riots in 1967, and became a symbol of much that had gone wrong with urban America.

However, as anybody who’s been there lately can share with you, Newark has been on the upswing, with the NJ Performing Arts Center serving as a catalyst for the revival of downtown, and working-class neighborhoods, particularly the Ironbound, are being revived by new immigrants. Newark, a gritty compact city of 24 square miles, also has become a major transportation center in the Northeast with the huge containerized marine terminal and Newark Airport a thriving hub.

new york, baltimore, providence, chicago, albany & providence...all come back kids. i don't think indy ever went into decline (did it?) and a very under-rated city. everyone i know who has been there said it was a beautiful city.

After many decades of decline, Boston regrew during the 1980s and 1990s. True, most recent census estimates show that Boston has lost some population since 2000, but that's largely a function of gentrification and soaring housing costs that have pushed many working-class and middle-class class families outward in search of affordable housing. Even still, the 2004 estimate for Boston of 569,000 was higher than the 1980 census figure of 563,000.

For many of the same reasons, San Francisco has also experienced a post-Internet bubble estimated loss since 2000 also. But if you go to Boston or come to San Francisco you can clearly see that both have clearly been on the upswing.

Actually of all these cities, Newark’s revival is among the most remarkable, and so it comes as a surprise to some. After many decades of decline, Newark stabilized its population during the 1990s and since 2000 has jumped from 273,000 to 280,000. For many decades Newark was notorious for organized crime, experienced one of the biggest racial riots in 1967, and became a symbol of much that had gone wrong with urban America.

However, as anybody who’s been there lately can share with you, Newark has been on the upswing, with the NJ Performing Arts Center serving as a catalyst for the revival of downtown, and working-class neighborhoods, particularly the Ironbound, are being revived by new immigrants. Newark, a gritty compact city of 24 square miles, also has become a major transportation center in the Northeast with the huge containerized marine terminal and Newark Airport a thriving hub.

seeing a decline in population in either Boston or San Francisco and attaching negatives to it can truly show the absurdity of statistics. Boston and San Francisco are both magnets for young and affluent, often people without families or, at least, without children. This can reduce population without giving any indication of decline at all.

I agree with all of those except for Newark. And although Boston is a great city, it's actually losing population.... fast.
Most of the problem with Boston is finding affordable housing. there used to be an excess of areas where people could find reasonable rents. Now that just does not exist. Ren control was abolished a few years back and property taxes are extremely high. New york, Boston and San Francisco run neck and neck for most expensive cities.

As much as I love this city, it's pretty hard, fiancially, to live well here. The one thing we have going for us is a very low sales tax.

new york, baltimore, providence, chicago, albany & providence...all come back kids. i don't think indy ever went into decline (did it?) and a very under-rated city. everyone i know who has been there said it was a beautiful city.


Baltimore has done an outstanding job with the Inner Harbor, the Camden Yards ballpark and other physical projects centered along the waterfront and in downtown. But as of 2004, it has continued to lose population. Same story with Albany NY, despite decades of huge physical renewal. Providence by contrast has turned around both population-wise & physically. Another great model of a smaller, older, compact city rebounding.

Indianapolis is one of the cities that merged with its county in the 1960s. So with sprawled out boundaries, it's not really in the class of dense cities. Even after the merger, Indy lost population in the 1970s, gradually regaining population since the 1980s. Downtown Indy is pretty impressive.

But there aren't any single model that exists - there are several models that encourage certain factors. Factors that range in importance depending on the need - economy, cost of living, quality of life, traffic congestion, cultural, tourism, etc. I don't know of any US city that has been able to be a model for all those factors - the key is finding what factor is more important to you.

But then there are living models, that have been used to pattern after & modern models that is a recreation or repackaging of specific interests. Boston, Charleston, Savannah & New Orleans are historic models - they haven't done anything recently that would have neccessarily made them a current model. But they have always been used to pattern design after. Then there are cities that have become modern models for various reasons - Baltimore, Portland or even Charlotte.

Baltimore has been copied & recopied by a number of cities & have since spawned models themselves because of their downtown tourism work. Portland is the modern model of transit oriented development. Charlotte is a modern model of economic growth. But what is your preference? Most would say it isn't Charlotte, but still - it's possible to at least recognize Charlotte's positives (even if you would consider it a negative) & attempt to retrofit it for another city's needs. That's what city models are, just as fashion models don't wear a swim suit, dress, wig, watch & trenchcoat at once - you have different models that model different purposes. But you can accessorize, compare the different models & attempt to improve on & create a composite of various models - hopefully creating an ideal city.

Miami- on how to make a huge metro sandwhiched between a National Park and the Ocean, making the metro vertical!

But there aren't any single model that exists - there are several models that encourage certain factors. Factors that range in importance depending on the need - economy, cost of living, quality of life, traffic congestion, cultural, tourism, etc. I don't know of any US city that has been able to be a model for all those factors - the key is finding what factor is more important to you.

But then there are living models, that have been used to pattern after & modern models that is a recreation or repackaging of specific interests. Boston, Charleston, Savannah & New Orleans are historic models - they haven't done anything recently that would have neccessarily made them a current model. But they have always been used to pattern design after. Then there are cities that have become modern models for various reasons - Baltimore, Portland or even Charlotte.

Baltimore has been copied & recopied by a number of cities & have since spawned models themselves because of their downtown tourism work. Portland is the modern model of transit oriented development. Charlotte is a modern model of economic growth. But what is your preference? Most would say it isn't Charlotte, but still - it's possible to at least recognize Charlotte's positives (even if you would consider it a negative) & attempt to retrofit it for another city's needs. That's what city models are, just as fashion models don't wear a swim suit, dress, wig, watch & trenchcoat at once - you have different models that model different purposes. But you can accessorize, compare the different models & attempt to improve on & create a composite of various models - hopefully creating an ideal city.

i think what makes baltimore special is that it took the idea for waterfront redevelopment with festival shopping from san francisco and boston....and really made it into a major concept.

i think what makes baltimore special is that it took the idea for waterfront redevelopment with festival shopping from san francisco and boston....and really made it into a major concept.
James Rouse, the pioneer of Festival Shopping, was from Baltimore and his company was based here. He used Lexington Market in Downtown Baltimore, the oldest continiously operating market in the country (1782), as a model for Faneuil Hall which he built in Boston right before he constructed Harborplace in Baltimore.

His son is becoming quite the trend setter himself. He is a partner in a company named Struever Bros. Eccles & Rouse which has become a major east coast developer. They have massive projects going on in Baltimore now. Harbor East is a huge $1,000,000,000 mixed use complex containing retail, movie theaters, Four Seasons hotel, Marriott Hotel, Hilton Hotel, and thousands of condos, and offices. It's about 2/3 finished. Harbor point which is an $800,000,000 mixed use complex just getting started. And the State Center remake which will consist of 2,000,000 square feet of offices, retail, and thousands of residences. They also have lots of projects in the Carolinas and in Providence Rhode Island.

THE NEW TREND THEY HAVE STARTED IS: TAKING ON MASSIVE PROJECTS AND LITERALLY REBUILDING ENTIRE NEIGHBORHOODS FROM SCRATCH. THEY INCLUDE A WIDE VARIETY OF USES SO THAT THE NEIGHBORHOODS BECOME 24 HOUR DESTINATIONS. THEY CENTER THEIR DEVELOPMENTS AROUND PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION. This is the new urbanisim, which is really the "old" Jane Jacobs urbanism. Sorry. I don't want this to become a Baltimore Development thread, but I did want to provide some examples.

Company: http://www.sber.com/developing/default.asp

Harbor East: http://www.harboreast.com/leasing/index.htm

Harbor Point: http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/bal-te.md.harborpoint19may19,0,2570006.story?coll=bal-home-headlines

State Center: http://www.bizjournals.com/baltimore/stories/2006/03/20/daily13.html

Tide Point: http://www.tide-point.com/overview/index.html

HARBOR POINT - LOWER LEFT, HARBOR EAST - MIDDLE, DOWNTOWN - BACKGROUND
http://www.harboreast.com/images/aerial_1.jpg
I might add, the development that is happening in Baltimore is spread throughout the city. Only about half of it is downtown or by the harbor. State Center is North of Downtown. Around the Johns Hopkins Hospital in east Baltimore, which is about 3 miles from the water, there is a massive bio-technology park and residential neighborhood currently under construction. In addition, Hopkins is replacing all it's care facilities. These two east side projects alone total $3 Billion in new investment.

On the west side of the city, the University of Maryland has a large bio-technology park under way and they too are replacing facilities. In short, an article in the newspaper recently stated that there is $11.5 Billion in new construction occurring in the city in a 3 year time period. That is quite an impressive amount of investment for a city this size.