In 25 years, which city's skyline do you think your's will resemble?

[bluff2085]

Memphis now:

and Portland:

[bluff2085]

Wow ! No Skyline in the South can compare to Houston's ! As far as the U.S. goes, only NYC and Chicago rank ahead of them .

As of now, Baton Rouge doesn't have much of a Skyline. Being located 75 miles from New Orleans seemed to stunt the growth of the Capitol-City Skyline. But that will change, and it will not be 25 years from now. When driving in BR on a major hwy. over-pass (about 7 or 8 miles from the CBD) four high-rises are easily visible. In five years or less that number will almost double to at least 7 high-rises easily visible from miles away. Three high-rise towers are set to begin construction in 06'. 30-story RiverPlace, 20-story City Plaza II, and 19-story Laurel Tower. And a nice New 10+story Courthouse too.

I can't really compare it to another city just yet.

In 25 years I think Baton Rouge's skyline will be comparable to Columbia's or Orlando's today.

[Charleston native]

Charleston

Norfolk Currently

...I really like Charleston and actually lived there for a little over a year. They have a very dense, walkable, and historic downtown but honestly, Norfolk just feels bigger. I can definately see Charleston looking more like Norfolk in a few years, not even 25 years at that I'm talking more like 5-10. I can't agree that Charleston looks anything like Norfolk now however.

Those pic comparisons were fantastic. Thanks for posting them! I guess I'm just not communicating my opinion properly. What I'm saying is that Chas will look like present day Norfolk (like the picture you posted) within 10-15 years. In 40 years, however, if growth trends continue and Chas remains a hot location, I think Chas could end up having a skyline like Baltimore.

It is difficult to think about Charleston's skyline, because the city doesn't really have one now (unless you count the pictures of some old houses with the Ravenel Bridge in the background). The MUSC "skyline" is certainly noticeable, but there are only a few other tall buildings on the peninsula (Sergeant Jasper apartments, Francis Marion hotel, and Dockside condominiums come to mind). These are scattered around, and the tallest is 18 floors. I know that Charleston has a height restriction, so until that is eliminated I don't think we will see any sort of skyline for Charleston. And honestly, with Charleston's old and historical feel, perhaps a dominant skyline wouldn't be a good fit anyway.

It always seems like when someone mentions Chas having a taller skyline, many people immediately think of putting skyscrapers in the historic district. This is not at all what I'm thinking. However, what the MUSC complex provides is a footprint for building taller buildings. The skyline is already changing with the addition of MUSC's Phase One tower, and two more phases are being planned! Also, almost anything north of Calhoun Street is essentially not near the historic district. There are height restrictions, but these can be changed to better suit plans in the medical district. Also, the Neck area will probably become the "Uptown" skyline of Chas when it starts being developed. Chas can indeed mirror Norfolk in its present condition with these facts in mind.

[JWCJ]

I think Richmond would look like a little New York or Boston.

[vdogg]

I think Richmond would look like a little New York or Boston.

Perhaps in 125 years it'll look like New York. Boston is even a stretch. I can't really decide which city Richmond will look like because it's just so different.

[krazeeboi]

^Baltimore.

[JWCJ]

I said little, like mini New York, Boston alittle out, but maybe most likely.

[wrldcoupe4]

I'd say baltimore for Richmond...but who knows?

[CapeFearRiver10]

Remember this topic this was pretty funny.

[TheSuperPope]

In 25 years I think Baton Rouge's skyline will be comparable to Columbia's or Orlando's today.

Did you really just put Orlando and Columbia's skylines in the same category... I am usually a homer... put Orlando may be lacking height but geez its so dense and just booming like crazy. I think Columbia has somewhere around 30 towers currently (in the entire metro) while Orlando has somewhere around 200 or so.

I can see Columbia in 25 years looking very much like, as previously stated, the late 70's ATL. My only problem with that comparison is that I don't see us getting anything near the size of the Westing in that time and the ATL skyline at that time was pretty much dominated by the Westin building.

[sunshine]

Miami will be NYC and it is almost like NYC now.

[Justiceham]

Miami will be NYC and it is almost like NYC now.

That skyline looks a lot like Houston's and if you squint even harder, like Chicago. I have no doubt that the race will be between Miami and Atlanta (Which it currently is today, not saying other cities are not building fast, however, these two just tend to wow me with every new proposal). With all of the proposals in both cities, in 25 years a skyline resembling New York's is not out of the question for either.

[Justiceham]

Nashville - Current Atlanta

Murfreesboro - Current Nashville

[krazeeboi]

Nashville - Current Atlanta

Just DT Atlanta or the entire Atlanta skyline? The former I could see.

[Justiceham]

Just DT Atlanta or the entire Atlanta skyline? The former I could see.

I'd say Atlanta DT plus mid town only. Nashville's metro will more than likely add towers but probably nothing tall enough to affect the skyline.

[Alabadrock]

Nashville - Current Atlanta

Murfreesboro - Current Nashville

I can see Nashville looking like Atlanta, but, I don't see Murfreesboro looking like Nashville. I dunno, I think Murf. is just too suburban to come close to what Nash is now.

[austin356]

Mobile will look similar to Charlotte just after BOA was complete. RSA will still be the tallest, but some decent sized 3-4 hundred foot condo towers are likely, and will add density fast. Mobile really does not have to complete to many buildings to have a dense skyline because it has such small street blocks that buildings are inherently close together, thus giving the illusion of higher density than a large block grid similar to say Atl if both had the same number and size of buildings.

Houston will add 150 new buildings downtown in the next 25 years, mostly in the 3-5 hundred foot condo range. And overall will have the most affordable new construction skyrise units in the developed world.

That will really make it not really comparable to anyone, except maybe Chi town.

Atlanta will add 150 new buildings in the "intown 3". Most will be luxury office and luxury condos.

That will make the Midtown/Dtown combo similar to Chi-town pre-current boom.

Miami is flat out unpredictable because it has soo many variables. It could boom out of control to where it is comparable to any city in the world, or it could fall flat on its ass after this current build out.

Of course I like everyone else has really no damn clue what will happen, but I could provide reasons why I believe what I wrote some basic estimations as to what the future might look like (most of which is speculation based on policy/demographic/trend analysis)

Edited April 21, 2007 by austin356

[Eastwestrob]

This is my opinon of NC major cities will look like 25 years from now.

1. Asheville will look like a smaller Pheonix, AZ

2. Winston-Salem will soon look similiar to Oklahoma City, OK.

3. Greensboro will look like Omaha, NE.

4. Durham turns into Tulsa, OK.

5. Raleigh will look similiar to Birmingham, AL

6. Fayetteville will look like Jackson, MS.

7. Wilmington will soon look like Wilmington, DE.

8. High Point becomes mirror image of Lynchburg, VA.

9. Southern Pines could like Rockford, IL.

I came up with thes projections because I feel 25 years from now 15.5 to 16.5 million people will be living in NC.

I would have to disagree with your prediction for Raleigh.I see Raleigh being very similar today.I see Raleigh being inline with Tampa's skyline or greater in 25 years

[nowensone]

Raleigh could go many ways. The architecture of the six new tall buildings will determine a lot. The way I see it, the linear layout with four 30+ floor buildings separated by a couple blocks will make it look like the beotch stepchild of Atlanta and Asheville.

Hopefully someone will come along and build something >40 floors between RBC Centura and Wachovia's towers. That would look good.

I predict Durham will take on an Austin reminiscent look.

I'm thinking Charlotte will look like Dallas, with a concentrated core that isn't rivalled by anything else in the city. That isn't complete though, because the tallest building in Charlotte will likely still have a spire.

Winston-Salem... probably Tulsa. Probably more dense, but when I think about it in my head, all I really see is that 50-floor building.

Greensboro... Birmingham

Good calls, WS does have an eerie Tulsa like feel, with the suddenness with which you hit their downtowns, and the surrounding hills/mountains.

I feel Miami will look closer to Chicago (now).

Perhaps, or will go stagnant after it's current boom as someone else noted. The sea-level thing (same as with Boston) may become an issue in 25 years.

Houston will just be bigger.

It needs to fill in it's gaps downtown and as far as I know doesn't have much construction going on DT, the galleria is still exploding though.

Atlanta will have one complete skyline.

More like 35+ years, such a filling requires a great number of buildings to look authentic.

Charlotte will look more dense.

25 years may not be enough to give a true feeling of density but maybe. Older US cities with many low to mid rises are the only ones I think have that "dense" look, CLT has already demolished what few it had.

Nashville will look like Charlotte (now).

You've been hammered for this already so I won't do so again, other than to say Nashville has more urban density right now.

New Orleans will look a smaller Tampa.

Apples to Oranges, and N.O.'s core is already larger, denser and more urbanized.

Columbia will look similiar to late 1970's Atlanta.

Because of the variations of terrain/height differences, maybe.

Birmingham will look like Charlotte.

Birmingham already has greater density, and will never look like CLT, it is an older city and possessing of many brick low rises, CLT will never have these again.

Fayetteville will look Memphis without the pyramid.

I think Fayetteville looks like Greenville, SC with perhaps a few more buildings.

Greensboro will look like Birmingham.

Sounds about right, though GSO will not have the blight surrounding the core.

Wilmington will look like Bridgeport, CT.

No idea what Wilmington looks like in 25, it has a great old downtown which it might preserve and add a few glass towers to, or raze most of them and start over. But not Bridgeport, at persent day there are superficial similarities betwen them, but they will both have changed in 25 years.

Winston-Salem will look like Louisville.

I think Tulsa is a better fit.

Greenville will look like Austin.

Good call

Southport, NC will look like Palm Beach.

Southport? Where the hell is that?

Edited April 21, 2007 by nowensone

[TheDetroitCity99]

i think detroit will resemble chicago, just not as big

[krazeeboi]

Greensboro would have to quadruple the downtown density it has now in order to resemble present-day Birmingham in 25 years. I don't see that happening.

From what I've seen of Fayetteville, its downtown hardly resembles that of Greenville.

[Blazer85]

Wow, the New Orleans-Houston one looks most convincing.

In 25 years, Birmingham's skyline will probably look just like it does now.

They haven't added anything over 15 stories since the 1980s, and to my knowledge,

don't have any in the works.

Tuscaloosa doesn't have a skyline & because of its layout is unlikely to get one

(although we'll be adding some nice few-story, mixed-use deals that should improve downtown's

functionality and appearance significantly).

Of Alabama cities, Mobile's skyline might be the one to watch, if the current RSA tower leads

downtown Mobile into a "condo boom." The Eastern Shore suburbs are just starting to approve high-rises, too. 25 years is probably too soon for a "mini-Tampa Bay," though.

I don't know about all of that. Birmingham currently has several 10-15 story buildings proposed and/or under construction. Also, there's now also another 16-story building, an 18-story building, and a 19-story building that are all proposed. I know some of this has come about since you posted this, but I definitely think it will clearly be different 25 years from now. Birmingham may or may not ever have a ton of really huge skyscrapers, but I expect Birmingham to continue to build on the density we now have. One of the more dense cities of our size out there and the density continues to build with all these 10-20 story buildings going up downtown. I'm hopeful some day soon we'll get another 30+ story building. But as for which skyline Birmingham's will look like, I really have no idea... I don't really see any good examples out there.

[nowensone]

Greensboro would have to quadruple the downtown density it has now in order to resemble present-day Birmingham in 25 years. I don't see that happening.

From what I've seen of Fayetteville, its downtown hardly resembles that of Greenville.

Actually GSO has a wide area of old low-rise buildings that just going to Elm street or the Baseball stadium or surrounding areas doesn't get you close enough to see, partially due to the building shield wall along Elm, the terrain "dip" after this and train tracks and undeveloped lots, afterwhich it picks up again. I'll admit that I only recently "discovered" this myself after going on an interview for a company that had renovated and located in an old brick textile building down there. I've been all around DT and the surrounding areas of GSO, or so I thought, so was quite surprised, and this "new" area is getting redeveloped nicely. It still is not as big as B'ham of course, but the similarities are evident, I think GSO could get there in 25, but will of course have added glass to the mix by then.

I'll dig up the Fayetteville photos in another thread here, if they continue that design/development trend then it will look like Greenville in 25. Just so you understand, I didn't mean in number of tall buildings, but feel. Though in 25 Fayetteville could hit a real boom especially with a military going more high tech and making it national headquarters for such operations due to proximity to the Triangle, who knows. Kind of like a Huntsville, AL for NASA.

----------------------------

^^^As to Detroit looking like Chicago (but slightly smaller), I'm not seeing that, care to elaborate? Not terribly familiar with Detroit though a somewhat recent trip there still makes me say that they are very different feeling, Detroit kinda sorta feeling like a Philly, not a Chicago.

Edited April 22, 2007 by nowensone

[krazeeboi]

Where exactly is this area in Greensboro that you speak of? I was just in downtown Greensboro 2 weeks ago, so maybe I'll remember.

But even with all of the progress Greensboro is making, I still think it will take longer than 25 years to get from this:

To something like this:

I think a Greensboro-Raleigh comparison would be more fitting.

[kayman]

Good calls, WS does have an eerie Tulsa like feel, with the suddenness with which you hit their downtowns, and the surrounding hills/mountains.

Nowensone, don't count on Birmingham having blight surrounding its urban core for long. Recent developments are showing that every neighborhood within a 5 mile radius of the city's core is being redeveloped or revitalized. The main areas of blight nowadays pretty much is on the southwestern and extreme northern portions of the city.

In addition in the next 25 years, Birmingham will likely continue to develop its Midtown skyline with more developments in around UAB.