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Best skyline in the Carolinas

krazeeboi

By krazeeboi
in USA South

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krazeeboi Gigalopolis

krazeeboi

Posted
Posted

Assuming that Charlotte has the Carolinas' best skyline, which city's skyline would rank 2nd best?

I tried to do a poll, but it didn't work on this new-fangled system. ;)

Anyways, the choices are:

Asheville

Charleston

Columbia

Durham

Greensboro

Greenville

Myrtle Beach

Raleigh

Winston-Salem

Other

Perhaps a moderator could configure this thread to include a poll with these choices?

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Noneck_08 Whistle-Stop

Noneck_08

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Gotta go with Winston on this one. We rode uptown last sunday and even though it was dead, the density and height was great. It reminded me of my first time going down Tryon except it was 4th Street. As for the other choices, they would go in this order: Columbia, Myrtle Beach, Greenville, Greensboro, Asheville, Raleigh then Durham.

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intcvlcphlga Hamlet

intcvlcphlga

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I think Winston-Salem wins in terms of both quantity and quality. By "quantity", I mean heights, density and number of buildings. In terms of "quality", I'm speaking in terms of architecture, use, etc. Personally, I find the R.J. Reynolds Building to be the best skyscraper in terms of architecture in the Carolinas (I know Charlotte people are going to say BofA). Additionally, W-S skyline has high-rises from the 1920s, 1960s, 70s, 80s, 90s and 00s, so it has examples of different thinking on the problem of designing the tall building. A few of them are more successful solutions than the others (eg. the Integon (GMAC), Wachovia Bu, but taken as a whole, the skyline is a good composition. Other structures that are probably overlooked but are instrumental to the shaping and balance of the skyline are the smokestacks, steeples, etc. The history of Winston-Salem can be read on the downtown skyline because the different uses/forces that drove the city socially, economically, etc are represented whether it is the manufacturing of the 1890s-1960s represented by the RJR, Brown Rogers Dixon, Indera, etc. complex or the commerce of the Wachovia and BB&T buildings.

Other cities with "quality" skylines are Asheville, Wilmington and Charleston. Each of these cities owe a lot to the natural beauty of their setting. Wilmington and Charleston look beautiful as the towns rise up the land and reflect in their rivers. Asheville has this inescapable beauty in how it is nestled w/in the mountains. The City Hall, churches and Courthouse are all beautiful works of Italianate, Art Deco, Moderne, Federalist, etc architecture.

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twincity Burg

twincity

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2. Winston-Salem...nice height and variety. some proposed low-mid rises should beef up the density.

from planefunaviation.com

w-s_skyline2.jpg

3. Raleigh...although they could take the #2 spot in a few years

4. Columbia...nice length

5. Greenville...underrated

6. Greensboro...decent... all of the building are too similar in size.

7. Asheville...very historic

8. High Point...couple towers in the teens, really nice density

9. Durham...barely has a skyline

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peaceloveunderstanding Town

peaceloveunderstanding

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I had never really seen Columbia's skyline though I had driven through Columbia many a time. The freeway structure does not really lend itself to impressive scenes. That picture showing the length is what changed my mind on this one.

I have to reorganize my list after seeing these shots as:

2. WS - Good Architecture

3. Columbia - Density

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krazeeboi Gigalopolis

krazeeboi

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I had never really seen Columbia's skyline though I had driven through Columbia many a time. The freeway structure does not really lend itself to impressive scenes.

Which is, I think, a good thing; the interstates don't tear through downtown, creating gaps in the city's urban fabric. I-20, I-26, and I-77 already act as a beltway around the city, thus eliminating the need for a traditional beltway. Talk about saving time and resources. :thumbsup:

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krazeeboi Gigalopolis

krazeeboi

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How about we have some representation for the nation's most popular family tourist destination without direct interstate access, Myrtle Beach:

342_104.jpg

myrtle.jpg

myrtle2.jpg

It might be linear and full of condos, but still quite impressive!

Wow i haven't seen that development for the river area yet. What date did you get that out of the State newspaper?

Not sure what the date is; someone else posted that link (I think emerging.me) in the "Canal Front/City Dock" thread in the Columbia subforum.

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NcSc74 Burg

NcSc74

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I like Greensboro as a city, but the skyline leaves much to be desired. Raleigh's skyline just looks...I dunno...unbalanced? Also, many of the buildings look wide and stout, except for the two tallest.

I agree 100% on that. Why they spaced those two towers out like that is beyond me. They could have had a twin towers thing going on. I guess that leaves some space for infill.

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