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These cities are both growing cities, state capitals, college towns, etc. So which do you think is better, what are the pro's and cons of each city, public transportation, amenities, weather, entertainment, school/colleges, architecture, more progressive etc...?
Which would be a better starter city for someone who hasn't ever relocated?
I cannot opine with regard to the public trans (I drive and/or walk to work) or schools (I have no children to send to school), but Raleigh is clearly a winner in terms of weather and colleges.
Raleigh is within the research triangle of Duke, Wake Forest, and UNC-Chapel Hill. These are three colleges which ALL rank higher than Ohio State according to US News. This is a no-brainer.
As for weather, I've lived in the South and I've lived in Ohio. If you value sunny days and warmer weather, you're better off in Raleigh (all other things being equal). If you would rather see more clouds and have longer winters, go with Columbus.
Finally, while it was not in your criteria, I find the people of the South to be friendlier. That is big for me. I've been called a "f---ing fa--ot" twice just walking down the street in Columbus in a year and a half, and I find folks' manners to be lacking. Such things never happened in southern cities, though this is not to say there aren't jerks there, too. They're just harder to find.
Pros for Columbus
-Lower cost of living.
-Larger city with more amenities/entertainment options.
-Young population.
-Progressive culture.
-Fast-growing diversity.
-4 Seasons (this is a positive to me, I can't stand never-ending summers). Fall and spring are beautiful and I like winter.
-Better economy with lower unemployment rates (6% vs 7.2%) and higher job growth (+17,500 vs. +6,000 year over year).
-Steady population growth.
-Higher population density.
Lived in both for a year and a half. Here is my breakdown.
Raleigh metro advantages:
*Top five public school in the country (UNC), plus a top 20 overall school (Duke). NC State is not a bad value either.
*Five months of poolside shorts and flip flops weather vs. three in Columbus, plus much more moderate Dec-Feb in Raleigh.
*Slightly better overall natural topography in Raleigh. More hills and more green vs. Columbus
*Raleigh is about 2 hours away from great beaches and mountains. Columbus is 2 hours away from... Cleveland and Cincinnati.
*Find the people in general are more pleasant to be around. I don't think this is necessarily a southern thing, as 3/4 of the people that live around Raleigh now are transplants
*Much better economy if you are into engineering/tech
Split:
*Cost of living
*Similiar dating/single scenes
*Both have comparable hip/trendy areas. Raleigh metro has Chapel Hill and Glenwood South. Columbus has Grandview, Short North, and up through the High Street corridor
Columbus metro advantages:
*More diverse economy
*More progressive and centralized urban core
*Better public transit
*Not as congested
*Slightly better shopping
Weather - you get all four seasons, but the winters are obviously much milder, spring starts earlier and fall lasts longer.
Higher Education - while Ohio State is certainly mammoth and has some very good programs, and smaller schools like Denison, Capital and Otterbein are sprinkled through the Columbus metro, it's hard to compete with UNC, Duke and NC State.
Airport - the Raleigh-Durham airport has a wider choice of both continental and overseas flights.
High Tech Economy - Raleigh ranks high nationally.
Split:
Sports - both Columbus and Raleigh have NHL hockey teams, AAA baseball teams (Clippers and Bulls) and rabid college sports fans. Columbus may have a bit of an advantage due to also having an MLS soccer team as well as the Memorial PGA golf tournament.
Cost of living - I don't think there's a big difference in housing prices between the two.
Columbus advantages:
Urban Core - the city neighborhoods in Columbus are denser and have the look and feel of a city, whereas it is very suburban in look and feel just a stone's throw from downtown Raleigh.
Public Transit - not even close. Columbus' bus system is much larger than Raleigh's.
Growth - the growth in Columbus is easier to keep up with in terms of infrastructure. Obviously Columbus was a much larger metro area earlier than Raleigh so it's had a head start in terms of freeways, commercial development, etc.
Lived in both for a year and a half. Here is my breakdown.
Raleigh metro advantages:
*Top five public school in the country (UNC), plus a top 20 overall school (Duke). NC State is not a bad value either.
*Five months of poolside shorts and flip flops weather vs. three in Columbus, plus much more moderate Dec-Feb in Raleigh.
*Slightly better overall natural topography in Raleigh. More hills and more green vs. Columbus
*Raleigh is about 2 hours away from great beaches and mountains. Columbus is 2 hours away from... Cleveland and Cincinnati.
*Find the people in general are more pleasant to be around. I don't think this is necessarily a southern thing, as 3/4 of the people that live around Raleigh now are transplants
*Much better economy if you are into engineering/tech
Split:
*Cost of living
*Similiar dating/single scenes
*Both have comparable hip/trendy areas. Raleigh metro has Chapel Hill and Glenwood South. Columbus has Grandview, Short North, and up through the High Street corridor
Columbus metro advantages:
*More diverse economy
*More progressive and centralized urban core
*Better public transit
*Not as congested
*Slightly better shopping
Education is taking a huge hit in NC right now. The state budget:
1. Eliminates 9,306 education positions, including 5,184 teachers, 3,850 teaching assistants and 272 support positions.
2. No pay increases for educators. NC was 46th in teacher pay in 2012. This new budget will likely put it dead last.
3. $50 million is going to school vouchers.
4. Eliminates career status for all teachers.
5. Teachers will receive no additional pay for additional degrees, which means that continuing education is no longer valued.
6. Grades schools A-F based 80% on standardized test scores and 20% on growth. Zero other variables considered.
7. Eliminates the Teaching Fellows Program, which was considered a national model for teacher recruitment.
8. Targeted funding for textbooks cut $77.4 million, classroom supply by $45.7 million, English proficiency (directly targeted at immigrants) by $6 million.
9. No cost of living wage adjustments.
I'm not sure if this is just for public schools or if higher education is also being targeted. Either way, terrible news for education in the state.
When it comes to people being friendly, you get what you put out, period. People are no less friendly in one place over another. It's not some weird cultural thing to be more rude in Columbus than Raleigh. Treat people with respect and friendliness and you will get that back. I've found that true all over the US and in other nations. I do think Midwesterners are more blunt than Southerners are, but that's not being rude, imo.
It is by far more progressive. It has one of the largest LGBT populations between the coasts (if not the largest) thus it has districts which are liberal, hip urban zones like the Short North.
It is more dense: It's central city is 60 sq miles of urban core (pre WWII). Thus it has dense neighborhoods (the most in Ohio some well over 20,000 per sq mile.)
Also transportation in Columbus is a much more complete bus system. The highway and infrastructure fits the metro and leaves room for growth.
In terms of economy (as noted) Columbus lower unemployment rates (6% vs 7.2%) and higher job growth (+17,500 vs. +6,000 year over year).
Entertainment: One area no one has touched on is that being a larger metro, progressive, it attracts more national tours, is one of the main cities in the NE/midwest for alternative rock bands, and brings in slightly more national musical theater tours etc. This is a great benefit if you are one into this type of entertainment.
Fashion: In terms of shopping Columbus has the advantage. Designers like Michael Khors and others open some of their only midwest or Ohio retail stores in Columbus (mostly at the Easton Town Center area owned by retail giant Lex Wexner)
I think raleigh is a nice, growing city. And for the south, it is a place I can actually put up with. However, this is not a fair comparison by any means.
Last edited by streetcreed; 07-26-2013 at 09:26 AM..
Location: livin' the good life on America's favorite island
2,221 posts, read 4,393,622 times
Reputation: 1391
Quote:
Originally Posted by streetcreed
Columbus is a larger metro.
It is by far more progressive. It has one of the largest LGBT populations between the coasts (if not the largest) thus it has districts which are liberal, hip urban zones like the Short North. too some this is a negative
It is more dense: It's central city is 60 sq miles of urban core (pre WWII). Thus it has dense neighborhoods (the most in Ohio some well over 20,000 per sq mile.) to some this is a negative
Also transportation in Columbus is a much more complete bus system. The highway and infrastructure fits the metro and leaves room for growth.
In terms of economy (as noted) Columbus lower unemployment rates (6% vs 7.2%) and higher job growth (+17,500 vs. +6,000 year over year).
Entertainment: One area no one has touched on is that being a larger metro, progressive, it attracts more national tours, is one of the main cities in the NE/midwest for alternative rock bands, and brings in slightly more national musical theater tours etc. This is a great benefit if you are one into this type of entertainment.
Fashion: In terms of shopping Columbus has the advantage. Designers like Michael Khors and others open some of their only midwest or Ohio retail stores in Columbus (mostly at the Easton Town Center area owned by retail giant Lex Wexner)
I think raleigh is a nice, growing city. And for the south, it is a place I can actually put up with. However, this is not a fair comparison by any means.
not sure what you mean 'not a fair comparison', looks like some posters has listed a number of advantages that Raleigh has over COL.
I lived in Columbus (Dublin) and consider it a fine town. I also lived in Cleveland, which I actually preferred. I think that COL and Raleigh are one of the great cities in US. My son will be attending UNC so look forward to visiting the city more often for football, bball games
It is by far more progressive. It has one of the largest LGBT populations between the coasts (if not the largest) thus it has districts which are liberal, hip urban zones like the Short North.
It is more dense: It's central city is 60 sq miles of urban core (pre WWII). Thus it has dense neighborhoods (the most in Ohio some well over 20,000 per sq mile.)
Also transportation in Columbus is a much more complete bus system. The highway and infrastructure fits the metro and leaves room for growth.
In terms of economy (as noted) Columbus lower unemployment rates (6% vs 7.2%) and higher job growth (+17,500 vs. +6,000 year over year).
Entertainment: One area no one has touched on is that being a larger metro, progressive, it attracts more national tours, is one of the main cities in the NE/midwest for alternative rock bands, and brings in slightly more national musical theater tours etc. This is a great benefit if you are one into this type of entertainment.
Fashion: In terms of shopping Columbus has the advantage. Designers like Michael Khors and others open some of their only midwest or Ohio retail stores in Columbus (mostly at the Easton Town Center area owned by retail giant Lex Wexner)
I think raleigh is a nice, growing city. And for the south, it is a place I can actually put up with. However, this is not a fair comparison by any means.
How is this not a fair comparison? From the research i've done it would seem the two areas are similar in many ways. In fact, one of the main reasons I created this thread is because i'm having trouble drawing stark differences between the two.
Location: livin' the good life on America's favorite island
2,221 posts, read 4,393,622 times
Reputation: 1391
Quote:
Originally Posted by jbcmh81
Education is taking a huge hit in NC right now. The state budget:
1. Eliminates 9,306 education positions, including 5,184 teachers, 3,850 teaching assistants and 272 support positions.
2. No pay increases for educators. NC was 46th in teacher pay in 2012. This new budget will likely put it dead last.
3. $50 million is going to school vouchers.
4. Eliminates career status for all teachers.
5. Teachers will receive no additional pay for additional degrees, which means that continuing education is no longer valued.
6. Grades schools A-F based 80% on standardized test scores and 20% on growth. Zero other variables considered.
7. Eliminates the Teaching Fellows Program, which was considered a national model for teacher recruitment.
8. Targeted funding for textbooks cut $77.4 million, classroom supply by $45.7 million, English proficiency (directly targeted at immigrants) by $6 million.
9. No cost of living wage adjustments.
I'm not sure if this is just for public schools or if higher education is also being targeted. Either way, terrible news for education in the state.
When it comes to people being friendly, you get what you put out, period. People are no less friendly in one place over another. It's not some weird cultural thing to be more rude in Columbus than Raleigh. Treat people with respect and friendliness and you will get that back. I've found that true all over the US and in other nations. I do think Midwesterners are more blunt than Southerners are, but that's not being rude, imo.
There are many great K-12 in NC, fortunately my kids have and are going to one of the top school system in State and comparable to schools they went to in Dublin and Chagrin Falls in Ohio. I am confident that our new government is doing the right things to move NC forward. I believe the higher education systems in NC are one of the best systems in the US. Very good schools, costs are much more in control than what you see in Ohio. UNC is rated #1 as the best value public university in the US. 10 Best Public College Values, 2013-Kiplinger
There are many changes happening in NC government that I believe are positive. NC (Raleigh) government turned Republican controlled this year for the first time in over 100 years (GOP veto-proof majorities).There are major changes happening in NC government, most of it to clean up the mess that the past Dems have created, man Gov. Bev Perdue, Easley were the worst in the country, I don't know how Easley avoided prison time but I digress.. Yes the libs are in uproar as they all want their handouts but my taxes are higher in NC then when I lived in OH. This is beginning to change. As M Thatcher once said 'problem with socialism is that eventually you run out of other people's money (reference Detroit, Pittsburgh, WI, IN to name a few).
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