Triangle in the national media

[Justin6882]

It is baffling to me that people come and think Downtown Durham is more exciting than Raleigh. You go almost anywhere in Raleigh on any given night and it is far busier than Durham. I just don't get it? What is Durham doing differently than Raleigh to make the perception that their downtown has more going on? On one hand, we have Greg Hatem saying there's too much going on, then on the other, we have people just going to Durham because they think Raleigh is dead? 

 

And I worked in Durham for 8 years and went downtown at night. I know of what I speak.

Edited March 19, 2015 by Justin6882

[RALNATIVE]

It is baffling to me that people come and think Downtown Durham is more exciting than Raleigh. You go almost anywhere in Raleigh on any given night and it is far busier than Durham. I just don't get it? What is Durham doing differently than Raleigh to make the perception that their downtown has more going on? On one hand, we have Greg Hatem saying there's too much going on, then on the other, we have people just going to Durham because they think Raleigh is dead? 

 

And I worked in Durham for 8 years and went downtown at night. I know of what I speak.

 

I totally get what you're saying and agree with you. I've heard numerous people also say things like Durham, Greensboro, etc. have better nightlife than Raleigh, but the fact is that it's just wishful thinking. Those people clearly have not visited downtown recently and are probably relying on decades old perceptions of Raleigh, or have been listening to inaccurate garbage from irrational people (which tends to happen a lot in NC). 

 

I was in several downtown districts last weekend and was blow away with the amount of activity and the crowds. It's mostly 20's and 30's out having a good time and keeping things vibrant.

[Spatula]

Durham I can sort of see where this opinion comes from. It has a larger stock of historic buildings and a grittier feel to it (of course, an outsider wouldn't know that most of them are still empty). It has the Durham Bulls stadium. It votes more strongly democratic in national elections. Its downtown revitalization has been as dramatic a turnaround as Raleigh's. It won some accolades for being a foodie haven (though the restaurants on the list were mostly suburban). To someone who hasn't visited, I can see how they could get the idea that it was more vibrant in some way.

 

It *is* funkier. Though that doesn't make it more vibrant. Its downtown is half as large and full of holes in activity. The racial and economic politics are also a bit dysfunctional. It's a city of extreme haves and have-nots. Duke golf courses next to trailer parks. And unfortunately its neighborhoods are terribly segregated.

 

Greensboro is simply baffling. I don't see what people are seeing there, if they consider that downtown more vibrant.

 

I'm almost tempted to link to the threads where people had these arguments, but I don't want to start a huge internet flame war. Suffice to say, I suspect some of you also read this other forum about cities, which shall remain anonymous.

Edited March 20, 2015 by Spatula

[Jones_]

If any of this is in reference to my comment, I definitely didn't say Durham had *more* to do. If you like Irish pubs and Italian restaurants Raleigh has plenty of stuff to do. Durham just has a different and better flavor in my opinion as ya'll are saying. I think it has the potential to keep pushing and really become a great city without relying on its "triangle" ties. I do personally need a lot of sensory input and would be bored living in Durham as it's to-do list is too short for me. Raleigh suits me better right now with its many festivals and a nice spread of breweries, bottle shops and evolving neighborhoods (NoPe, West Hargett etc.) but the "something for everyone" layers Raleigh, while ensuring a constant 'vibrancy' do dull our 'edge' if you will...

Edited March 20, 2015 by Jones_

[RALNATIVE]

If any of this is in reference to my comment, I definitely didn't say Durham had *more* to do. If you like Irish pubs and Italian restaurants Raleigh has plenty of stuff to do. Durham just has a different and better flavor in my opinion as ya'll are saying. I think it has the potential to keep pushing and really become a great city without relying on its "triangle" ties. I do personally need a lot of sensory input and would be bored living in Durham as it's to-do list is too short for me. Raleigh suits me better right now with its many festivals and a nice spread of breweries, bottle shops and evolving neighborhoods (NoPe, West Hargett etc.) but the "something for everyone" layers Raleigh, while ensuring a constant 'vibrancy' do dull our 'edge' if you will...

 

NoPe? Are you kidding me???

 

I like the concept of north of Peace St but that acronym has got to go...

[Jones_]

Using it ironically. Besides, acronyms just are….they are not invented….

[RALNATIVE]

It is baffling to me that people come and think Downtown Durham is more exciting than Raleigh. You go almost anywhere in Raleigh on any given night and it is far busier than Durham. I just don't get it? What is Durham doing differently than Raleigh to make the perception that their downtown has more going on? On one hand, we have Greg Hatem saying there's too much going on, then on the other, we have people just going to Durham because they think Raleigh is dead? 

 

And I worked in Durham for 8 years and went downtown at night. I know of what I speak.

 

All subjective observations aside, there is a reason why the 20's and 30's crowd is moving to Raleigh in droves. The city has become hip and the word has gotten out. It has become a cool place to launch a career for a lot of up and coming music artist and creative types, as well as a happening place for craft brews. The tech industry, as we well know, is also starting to boom.

[BHennington]

Durham has spurts of intense activity surrounding the Durham Bulls games and DPAC events. Other than that, it is usually pretty quiet. Raleigh seems to have a steady "crowd" that frequents the city on most days and nights. I personally would rather have the latter, but would enjoy some development activity in Raleigh that gives short spurts of massive crowds (Other than motorcycle weekend, convention center events, etc.). An addition of a decent downtown stadium would do wonders for Raleigh and now is the time to start planning. With rising land values throughout the core we cannot stand to wait much longer if we want this to become a reality. A mixed use sporting complex that primarily caters to soccer (NASL/MLS) with other uses would be nice connected to some sort of water feature (large pond/lake, or river walk). I have recently talked to a Railhawks employee who said, "We would jump at the chance to relocate to Raleigh".

 

One can dream.. but the talk and backing from citizens needs to start.

Edited April 1, 2015 by BHennington

[Jones_]

Edge of downtown, yes. IN downtown, no way...not if you want to maintain the constant steady crowd you mentioned and have space for livability things like grocery stores and other shopping. I think Denver has done this best, with Mile High Stadium, Coors Field and the Pepsi Center all on the *edge* of downtown. 

Edit...just had a great idea....demolish the Archdale Building and stick a soccer stadium on its site. Not really in downtown proper, Peace St is a lost cause along this stretch and good Capital Blvd access. 

Edited April 1, 2015 by Jones_

[Spatula]

I'm not pushing hard for a stadium downtown anymore since there isn't a great site anymore, without demolishing someone's neighborhood. There was one and only one spot across from the dogfood plant on Wilmington st which was large enough, and it got eaten up by a development recently. And... that's that.

[Green_man]

600 New Bern Ave would work for a mid-size soccer stadium - although it would seem out of place with the immediate neighborhood mainly single family homes.

 

If you relocate Lincoln Theater and move the Pope House and combine that block with the one to the south with the McDonalds then you could fit the same minor league baseball stadium as the Charlotte Knights.  - not gonna happen though with backlash the city would get.

At one point the RailHawks were looking to combine the two blocks east of Moore Sq for a stadium, but the Lincoln project put an end to that.

 

I while back I was advocating for a stadium around W Johnson & Harrington, but future West Apartments & Capital/Peace interchange redo would prevent that.

 

Finally, 416 Dorothea Dr would work well for a soccer stadium if Raleigh would step up and provide replacement affordable housing (maybe three 6 story buildings along 200 block of S Bloodworth?)

[RALNATIVE]

Raleigh has been ranked as the #1 city for jobs in 2015:

 

http://www.fastcompany.com/3046400/how-to-be-a-success-at-everything/the-top-25-us-cities-for-jobs-this-year?utm_source=facebook

[RALNATIVE]

The Raleigh Beer Garden was featured recently in a Forbes article. Didn't realize that they offer more brews on tap than any place in the world...

 

 

http://www.forbes.com/sites/larryolmsted/2015/07/22/move-over-munich-world-record-beer-garden-opens-in-usa/

http://abc11.com/food/abc11-gets-sneak-peak-of-raleighs-new-beer-garden-/859412/

 

Edited July 23, 2015 by RALNATIVE

[RALNATIVE]

Raleigh has been voted as one of the top 10 cities for it's culinary scene:

http://www.10best.com/awards/travel/best-local-food-scene/raleigh-n-c/

 

[RALNATIVE]

A nice article about Raleigh appeared recently in the Tampa Bay Times:

http://www.tampabay.com/news/business/economicdevelopment/where-should-tampa-bays-downtowns-find-inspiration-check-out-raleigh-nc/2239512

[RALNATIVE]

Raleigh has been ranked the best big city in the Southeast:

http://time.com/money/4490477/the-best-big-cities/

[RALNATIVE]

Love these videos of Raleigh and the Triangle:

 

 

 

 

 

Edited September 25, 2016 by RALNATIVE

[Jones_]

Second vid at 1:12....Raleigh Drinking Team! Somebody trying to slip in a funny. But seriously, I know one the guys that owns the company that makes that shirt and they are among the all stars around here. 

[RALNATIVE]

Raleigh’s Brewery Bhavana named one of 10 coolest restaurants in the world by Forbes. Only 1 other US restaurant (in Los Angeles) made the list.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/annabel/2017/12/03/the-10-coolest-places-to-eat-in-2018/#21faf8467e88

 

[DanRNC]

On ‎12‎/‎6‎/‎2017 at 11:51 PM, RALNATIVE said:

Raleigh’s Brewery Bhavana named one of 10 coolest restaurants in the world by Forbes. Only 1 other US restaurant (in Los Angeles) made the list.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/annabel/2017/12/03/the-10-coolest-places-to-eat-in-2018/#21faf8467e88

 

And I just saw this. #12-pretty amazing.

https://www.zagat.com/b/30-most-exciting-food-cities-in-america-2017

[Jones_]

I’m developing a new beef. It seems like places have to be on the expensive side to get the hype to make these lists. I’ve been to every city on that list.....all are worthy of their rank and plenty of good food is to be found, but there is an annoying homogenization present underlying all of this that I can’t quite articulate. 

[RALNATIVE]

8 hours ago, Jones_ said:

I’m developing a new beef. It seems like places have to be on the expensive side to get the hype to make these lists. I’ve been to every city on that list.....all are worthy of their rank and plenty of good food is to be found, but there is an annoying homogenization present underlying all of this that I can’t quite articulate. 

I've also been to all of these cities, with exception to Portland, ME, and each does have its share of interesting and delicious food. To me, the common denominator seems to be the fact that each of these places seem to push the bar in terms of creativity in their offerings.

Personally, I'm more interested in ranking cities/restaurants based on the quality of their food and unique variations in popular items, rather than the subjective criteria used in most of these rankings.

[Jones_]

On 12/25/2017 at 8:34 PM, RALNATIVE said:

I've also been to all of these cities, with exception to Portland, ME, and each does have its share of interesting and delicious food. To me, the common denominator seems to be the fact that each of these places seem to push the bar in terms of creativity in their offerings.

Personally, I'm more interested in ranking cities/restaurants based on the quality of their food and unique variations in popular items, rather than the subjective criteria used in most of these rankings.

I think the unique is being overlooked too often on these lists in favor of a best version of a homogenized product. I realize this particular list just listed out the "hot" things in an area. And who calls the shots on what is hot...well it feels like an insiders game. Like Forbes just calls the Indy, and Indy just recommends their friends places or something. Again, I am having hard time putting my finger on it. 

Back to unique though.....lately what I am finding fascinating are regional uniquities. Why are pepperoni rolls only found in West Virginia? Hot Browns in Kentucky? Why does Lexington Kentucky have such a strong doughnut culture that absolutely nobody knows about outside of Kentucky? I have to go to Canada to get poutine despite it being made of the most american ingredients I can imagine. Vinegar vs Ketchup. Beef vs Pork. Maine really only understands hot dogs to be red (just an FYI for your future visit to Portland ME). Apparently in NY, if biscuits aren't flakey they are not good (thanks for defending us on that Thom Tillis). I am intrigued. 

The other night I set out to eat an expensive dinner in the north Person St area. I scanned menus at Crawford & Son, Standard Foods and Stanbury. All felt identical to me in every way. High emphasis on the local aspect, high emphasis on presentation, small portion sizes and about 3 times as much as I really want to spend on a meal out (I shop local a lot and it's not that much more expensive). I ended up going to the Station and eating off their 'special' menu for $9.50 or so. I don't even care for their food that much but I was sick of the recurring options and I threw in the towel. 

But it's not just me thankfully. And to emphasize, I do like all of the restaurants I bypassed above. I just think it's some sort of gentrification of food places going on here and it's killing off the variety. 

[rolly]

According to the Forbes Travel Guide, the Triangle has the only 5-Star restaurant and the only 5-Star hotel in the state.

Don't tell Charlotte!

Here's a snippet, showing a sort of just NC destinations. 
It's fun to change the sorting to look at other areas. 

 

[Jones_]

Funny. The location alone (for Umstead) eliminates it from 5 star status in my head. Just another example of how the people with the money get to make the decisions.