Cities with best and worst lake, ocean or riverfronts.

such an anglophonic thread,
nice waterfronts in Portugal: Póvoa de Varzim D), Porto (Ocean and riverside), Cascais, Lisbon. Terrible ones, Setubal.

For my city

Avenida dos Banhos section


seaport section





(this one was taken by me)

sometimes it gets really crowded


In Povoa you can even tour the waterfront.
http://www.segportoway.com/PovoaVarzim/

Horace718 said:

I think that the obvious answers for best would be Sydney, Miami, Santa Barbara but what are some others?

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Just from personal memory...
Barcelona would be a fantastic example, Rotterdam a great one, Istanbul a great one with fantastic possibilities, Antwerp would be a fine one too, London a nice one, Nice is fantastic. Curious about Stockholm/Copenhagen, never been there, but some of the pictures are just jaw-dropping.

Three of the best North American lakefronts include Chicago, Toronto, and Milwaukee. Chicago and Milwaukee both have pretty good riverfronts as well. Cant get too much better than San Francisco though for an oceanfront.



Milwaukee River

Vancouver and Sydney are two of the best sea-side cities in the world I think. San Francisco seems to ignore its Pacific Coast which is a little strange considering it's an awesome beach.

Auckland is improving, but unfortunately we still have a lot of port activity that prevents public access to our harbour.

A good example-Aterro do Flamengo in Rio de Janeiro:





A bad one-Tiete River in São Paulo.

Yeah, Sydney has some water...

Amsterdam could have had a beautiful waterfront but they ruined it by building the Central Station right in front of the old centre in the late 19th century, a huge mistake. Today the city is virtually cut off of the water by the railway lines.



Fortunately the city has its canals to compensate the loss

MIAMI, It doesn't get any better than Biscayne Bay and the Miami river.

Horace718 said:

I have heard that Toronto is attempting to model their lake front off of Chicago's.

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You heard incorrectly. Chicago is a model only in that Toronto is only getting around to the task now, while Chicago started a century ago. The redevelopment of Toronto's waterfront went through a design competition won by West 8.

It is a Toronto specific design, as it should be.

Mariachi McMuffin said:

Three of the best North American lakefronts include Chicago, Toronto, and Milwaukee.

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Toronto? The only way that is true, is if the rest of the continent's city waterfronts are a complete embarrassment. Toronto paved over most of its rivers stemming from the lake and built freeways and houses on top of them. We have ravines, but it's not like we were blessed with a stunning natural setting like San Francisco or Hong Kong. We destroyed one of the few natural assets we were bestowed with. We too could have had something akin to the Chicago River.

The Don River is testament to what should be one of the most spectacular urban stretches of waterfront. It has been destroyed to the point that little wildlife survives in it, its width is a fraction of what it used to be, and no one lives down there. Instead of embracing it, we built a highway next to it, then turned our backs.

This is the story of Toronto's relationship with our waterfront whether it is the inland rivers feeding from Lake Ontario, or the lakefront itself. Even the hugely popular Sunnyside Pavilion on the waterfront was severed from the park that served as it's life line. People used to flood through the park on their way to this lakefront hot spot. Toronto decided to put a highway in between them. The CNE grounds suffered the same fate. If you saw passed photos of Dufferin Gate and then other photos from today, it is enough to make you cry. This was once all vibrant public waterfront space.

Only recently has Toronto taken steps to reclaim this great natural asset. About a third of it has been reclaimed, but there's still a long road ahead of us. It will take decades to get there. The Don River Valley and the vibrancy of Sunnyside Pavilion may not ever be what it was.

There are stretches of our waterfront that are fabulous, but Toronto certainly doesn't have a waterfront to make any 'best' list. Better late than never, but in my life time, I'll never get the opportunity to enjoy the Don or the Sunnyside Pavilion the way they should be enjoyed.

To my grandparents generation: THANKS A LOT!!! What were you thinking back then? We shouldn't have to spend 50 years cleaning up the mess you left us.

hno:

I don't think the blame should go straight to the forefathers. Back in their time, the waterfronts were commonly used for industrial purposes, such as factories and ports. As times changed, we should have invested in changing the use of these lands into something meaningful for the day. If people aren't going to put up that money, then they're just as guilty in making that stretch a wasteland.

hkskyline said:

I don't think the blame should go straight to the forefathers. Back in their time, the waterfronts were commonly used for industrial purposes, such as factories and ports.

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No single group is to blame, but that argument is such a cop out. There are always reasons for everything, but the fact remains they were the stewards looking over this city and country. They had the responsibility of ensuring that they left the world for the next generation in better, or at least, the same condition as when they inherited it. They worked, they paid taxes, they voted. If they aren't responsible, who is?

Half the reason we're in this mess, is that no one is ever willing to take ownership in their part in the destruction.

hkskyline said:

As times changed, we should have invested in changing the use of these lands into something meaningful for the day. If people aren't going to put up that money, then they're just as guilty in making that stretch a wasteland.

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Exactly!!!! They were too selfish to put up the money and invest in the city that they would pass on to the next generation. At least, many people from this generation are coughing up the money. We're not all hot air. I'll be damned if some kid comes up to me in 40 years and points the finger. I want to be able to look them in the eye and say that I fought for it, I voted for it, and paid for it.

The older generations can come up with every excuse in the book, but the fact remains that they have caused a great deal of destruction and behaved in an unforgivably irresponsible manner in many many areas. It is the truth whether they are willing to take ownership in that, or not.

Holding a grudge isn't constructive, but they don't get to sit there and claim innocence. Who did it all then, Santa Claus?

The Chicago River to me is one of the most "canyonized" and urban rivers in the world. Is it the best? I dunno...sure is dirty though.

Chicago's Lakefront also to me is one of the best in the world, despite the dirtiness again. The parkspace, Lake Shore Drive, the skyscraper walls...something that must be experienced in person. I love Boston's Charles River as well.

Horace718 said:

A City that neglects full use of its waterfront I think is Detroit, even though I am from there, but what others?

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When is the last time you've been to Detroit? The city has a pretty impressive Riverfront now and it is only improving as time goes on:


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