DCMetroRaleigh

According to radar, parts of Anson County have received nearly 10 inches over the last few days.

Also, they are in DC.

This project needs a webcam.

Six foreclosures? Wow.

I forgot to mention that Barnes and Noble is at Inner Harbor.

This is huge, major news! I was in Baltimore yesterday and just marveled at how the Inner Harbor has exploded in development since I was just there a couple of years of ago. The vibe you get there makes you want to move to inner Harbor Baltimore right away. The Harbor has attracted Howl at the Moon, Best Buy, Filene's Basement, Whole Foods, Starbuck's, Ruth's Chris Steakhouse, ESPN Zone, and Chipotle within the last couple of years. If it is anything just a fraction like Inner Harbor Baltimore, Winston will never be the same!

I love the maps too. We must have a stop at the airport, and hopefully, South Park. Not having a stop at South Park is akin to DC leaving Georgetown out of its Metro system, which is thought of as one of the worst planning mistakes in the region's history.

The roaring success of LYNX makes me think Charlotte should think big, really big. I think that with the upcoming new administration, the city should seek to build a multiline light rail system throughout the county. I think many are still looking at this with outdated eyes when so much has fundamentally changed to make light rail viable in much more territory.

It does look rather DC-ish, without the traffic circles with parks in the middle. Some DC-style traffic circles would be a nice addition to that area.

I love this project. I am stoked about the possiblity that it may be under construction by next month.

According to the Observer, developer Jim Donnelly of Pursuit Group has contracts on nine units priced from $1.75 million to $5.5 million and probably needs one or two more sales to break ground, which he hopes will occur by July. http://www.charlotte.com/122/story/652785.html

that's good news

I too think the Vue will give Charlotte skyline's a much needed elongation. However, from the above depictions, it seems like Hearst will obscure it from many angles.

This is a general question. In 1970. Atlanta had 1,761,575 people in its metropolitan area. Atlanta's heavy rail subway system began operations on November 9, 1971. In July 2007, Charlotte had an estimated 1,651,568 people in its metropolitan area, similar to the population of 1971 Atlanta's metropolitan population. Yet, almost no one today thinks Charlotte can support heavy rail or a subway system. I know part of the difference is more stringent federal standards for funding public transportation, but I think that the growth trajectory of Charlotte today is similar to Atlanta's decades-long ascendancy, which means heavy rail should not be ruled out. Also, with a new administration coming in in a few months, is there a chance that Charlotte would qualify for a more extensive multi-line light rail or heavy rail system than the very modest one now proposed? To me, it seems like we are planning Charlotte's rail system based on the frozen demographic snapshot of today, instead of realizing that two decades from now, Charlotte-Mecklenburg will be a much larger and denser metropolitan area, likely with nearly 3 million people.

Indeed, the important thing is that Charlotte has a rapid upward trajectory. It is a city to be envied by other cities. The excitement you find in Charlotte has its own value and cannot be found in cities much larger than Charlotte.

Yeah, but how many major media organizations are in Mt. Holly, compared to Boston, L.A., or NYC? Major media set the narrative. Everything is relative, so it is only reasonable that mass perceptions of what constitutes a big city would be based on a comparison with the biggest cities, NYC, Chicago, L.A., Dallas, Houston, Philly, etc.

I would definitely think of Charlotte as a medium size city, not a big city. Most people judge a city's size not just by the city limits, but by its Metropolitan region. Cities that anchor metros in the top 15-20 often are called big cities, but beyond that, usually not. Charlotte is currently ranked 35th, which means there are 34 larger metro areas. I think people reserve big city designation to areas that approach at least 3 million or more people. Of course, for your average person, it's more about feeling and perception than Census stats. But even by that measure, Charlotte lacks the bustling hip vibe that you find in just about every place commonly called a "big city." Charlotte is still a very conservative place, even for a city its size. Charlotte has come a long way, but it still doesn't have a big city feel that you will find in the top ranked cities.

It is so obvious that the media read this forum and get story ideas from us.

Wow, the federal government has reversed itself and is now set to fund the extension of Metro out to Tyson's Corner and Dulles Airport. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/conte...ml?hpid=topnews

I am probably missing something here, but I don't see why people are so excited. I can see why people are hopeful, but without an official confirmation, it seems very premature to be ecstatic at this juncture, in this economy.

Here are populations and growth rates for Triangle counties from 2000 to 2007, according to the US Census. The first number is the July 2007 estimated population, the second number is the 2000-2007 growth rate. Durham: 256,500, 14.9 percent (2.5 percent in one year) Orange: 124,313, 7.6 percent (1.8 percent in one year) Chatham: 61,455, 24.6 percent (2.7 percent in one year) Johnston: 157,437, 29.2 percent (4.3 percent in one year) Wake: 832,970, 32.7 percent (4.9 percent in one year) Triangle total: 1.4 million, 34 percent (4 percent in one year)

Amen suburban George. This is not 1965. Wise people should know better. The area needs to concentrate on fostering vibrant exising center cities, not creating suburban competition for it.

You forgot that GSO is driveable for Maryland.

Perhaps the most beautiful shot of uptown Charlotte I have ever seen. Outstanding.

Anyone able to take snow pics tonight?