DZH Does North Carolina - Raleigh

[DZH22]

This is also posted in Urban Showcase, but I figured it was going to die a quick death there since so many people regularly update their threads that the turnover is like a few hours!

Raleigh is a nice little city. Hope y'all enjoy, and sorry about the length.

Couple observations... The masts in the background of a couple pics are literally 2000' tall! (I have some unposted close-ups if anyone is interested) These were taken on a Saturday, late afternoon into the evening. The first pic was taken through the windshield of my car when they skyline kind of took me by surprise around a bend. Also, I thought of posting them in the next larger size (1280 wide instead of 1024) so feel free to leave me feedback regarding that.

[spencer114]

This is a really nice collection. Thanks for sharing.

[spencer114]

I also like Raleigh the most of NC cities. Charlotte has some great buildings but the vibe is just better for me in Raleigh. I'm also a fan of Greensboro.

[eweezerinc]

Wow. That's a light I haven't seen Raleigh in before! Things have changed a lot in the last five or six years.

[Bobdreamz]

Very nice pics of Raleigh. Looks fairly dense.

[Durhamite]

Very nice. Raleigh has some nice ITB (inside the belt or I-440 neigbhorhoods) as well. Although not captured in these photos, the big change in downtown Raleigh is on Glenwood Ave., which has become the defacto music, bar, club scene in town.

This is what makes the Triangle an interesting place, Raleigh's capitol city stature, Durham's grit and Chapel Hill's college town environment. It's by no means an urban oasis but there's plenty of character in the Triangle.

[IberiaCLT]

Originally Posted by spencer114

I also like Raleigh the most of NC cities. Charlotte has some great buildings but the vibe is just better for me in Raleigh. I'm also a fan of Greensboro.

Weird. People who like Raleigh generally also like Greensboro where as people who like Charlotte seem to prefer Winston-Salem.

I don't know what vibe Raleigh has that you refer to. Are you talking about the downtown areas or the inner ring neighborhoods as well? I ask because you mentioned the queen city.

I'm curious as to why you think Raleigh has a better vibe? Is it the college town vibe? A la a smaller Austin tx?

Nice pictures by the way. it's good to see someone rep. Raleigh here.

[WeimieLvr]

Originally Posted by IberiaCLT

Weird. People who like Raleigh generally also like Greensboro where as people who like Charlotte seem to prefer Winston-Salem.

I don't know what vibe Raleigh has that you refer to. Are you talking about the downtown areas or the inner ring neighborhoods as well? I ask because you mentioned the queen city.

I'm curious as to why you think Raleigh has a better vibe? Is it the college town vibe? A la a smaller Austin tx?

Nice pictures by the way. it's good to see someone rep. Raleigh here.

I like all of them too, but then again I find something to like about any city I visit...I guess I'm just a skyscraper half-built kind of guy.

[krazeeboi]

Originally Posted by spencer114

I also like Raleigh the most of NC cities. Charlotte has some great buildings but the vibe is just better for me in Raleigh. I'm also a fan of Greensboro.

I'm guessing you tend to like more college-oriented towns and cities.

[spencer114]

I like cities full of tattooed kids and aspiring musicians. I do tend to like college towns but I don't necessarily like to have anything to do with the colleges in said towns.

I can't really put my finger on Greensboro, it just has a nice, safe (as in a den or crate kind of safe) feel, a real personal, human scale to things, and "artsy" little business's around downtown (I was last there pre-recession, not sure if that has changed).
I like cities with huge skyscrapers and important corporations too, but don't like it when the ratio of corporate to kitsch gets out of balance.

[Dale]

I like cities where kids dare to be different. That's why I prefer cities that don't have huge numbers of heavily-tattooed kids who aspire to be musicians. I'm just a non-conformist, I guess.

[krazeeboi]

Originally Posted by spencer114

I like cities full of tattooed kids and aspiring musicians. I do tend to like college towns but I don't necessarily like to have anything to do with the colleges in said towns.

I can't really put my finger on Greensboro, it just has a nice, safe (as in a den or crate kind of safe) feel, a real personal, human scale to things, and "artsy" little business's around downtown (I was last there pre-recession, not sure if that has changed).
I like cities with huge skyscrapers and important corporations too, but don't like it when the ratio of corporate to kitsch gets out of balance.

OK, college-oriented towns and cities, lol.

I like Greensboro too. I've always enjoyed my visits there. I think Elm Street in particular is quite underrated.

[tailsock]

great pictures! you've done a great job of capturing the jist of what my city has to offer. Glenwood South and Midtown (North Hills area) would have been a great addition if you had time. Glad you enjoyed

[Durhamite]

Originally Posted by krazeeboi

OK, college-oriented towns and cities, lol.

I like Greensboro too. I've always enjoyed my visits there. I think Elm Street in particular is quite underrated.

Got that right, elm street is sneaky cool with boutique shops, bars, restaurants and clubs...gotta love Natty Greene and that microbrewed buckshot. Poor ole Greensboro got caught right in the middle of two high-growth behemoths (Raleigh and Charlotte).

In the 1970s and maybe early 80s, the Triad had a larger MSA than Charlotte and the Triangle. Of course today's redefined MSA in Gboro doesn't include Winston and Raleigh's doesn't include Durham....go figure?

The rebirth of "downtown" in NC the last 20 years is on an order of magnitude greater than most other places. Raleigh, Greensboro and Durham were practically ghost towns.

[rickydavisfan21]

Originally Posted by Durhamite

Got that right, elm street is sneaky cool with boutique shops, bars, restaurants and clubs...gotta love Natty Greene and that microbrewed buckshot. Poor ole Greensboro got caught right in the middle of two high-growth behemoths (Raleigh and Charlotte).

In the 1970s and maybe early 80s, the Triad had a larger MSA than Charlotte and the Triangle. Of course today's redefined MSA in Gboro doesn't include Winston and Raleigh's doesn't include Durham....go figure?

The rebirth of "downtown" in NC the last 20 years is on an order of magnitude greater than most other places. Raleigh, Greensboro and Durham were practically ghost towns.

Same can definitely be said about Charlotte as well. It just too bad it doesn't have the stock of historic buildings that the above mentioned cities do :-(.

[WeimieLvr]

Originally Posted by Durhamite

Got that right, elm street is sneaky cool with boutique shops, bars, restaurants and clubs...gotta love Natty Greene and that microbrewed buckshot. Poor ole Greensboro got caught right in the middle of two high-growth behemoths (Raleigh and Charlotte).

In the 1970s and maybe early 80s, the Triad had a larger MSA than Charlotte and the Triangle. Of course today's redefined MSA in Gboro doesn't include Winston and Raleigh's doesn't include Durham....go figure?

The rebirth of "downtown" in NC the last 20 years is on an order of magnitude greater than most other places. Raleigh, Greensboro and Durham were practically ghost towns.

Greensboro is also victim of a much larger and more urban downtown about 20 miles to the west...Winston-Salem's downtown puts downtown GSO to shame.

[spencer114]

Not really.

[WeimieLvr]

Originally Posted by spencer114

Not really.

Oh yes...I live near both at the moment, and spend a good bit of time in both. Greensboro's downtown is basically one street (Elm) while Winston-Salem is several blocks and much more vibrant. There is honestly no comparison between the two as far as size/urbanity, but which one is better is obviously a matter of opinion.

Anyway, don't wanna derail this thread about Raleigh.

[spencer114]

Not in Atlanta any more?

The Triad is an interesting place. Not sure why, I just have a soft spot for Greensboro.

Raleigh is a city that I never "got" until I started dating a local. I've enjoyed watching it evolve and really like the locals that I met.

[krazeeboi]

Originally Posted by WeimieLvr

Oh yes...I live near both at the moment, and spend a good bit of time in both. Greensboro's downtown is basically one street (Elm) while Winston-Salem is several blocks and much more vibrant. There is honestly no comparison between the two as far as size/urbanity, but which one is better is obviously a matter of opinion.

Downtown W-S is definitely more historic and dense than downtown Greensboro, but I like the youthful vibe found on Elm and the recent investments that add to the quality of life, namely the ballpark and Center City Park. I guess I'm somewhat partial to downtowns that might not have had a lot to work with but are doing some notable things with what they do have.