Louisiana City Skylines

[richyb83]

Great match-up Nate ! Tough contest between Dallas and Seattle. They do have some similarities. Both cities have iconic observation towers too. The Space Needle and Reunion Tower. They may have to battle it out in Overtime.

Seattle may get the edge with the waterfront and Mt.Rainer in the background. When ranking these two cities in the past, Dallas would always be ahead. What did Seattle do to change my mind ?

The first city that came to mind when finding an opponet for Minneapolis was Denver. But the other cities mentioned are worthy competitors.

[BRPJ]

WOW! I love seattle skyline! i keep forgetting about them

Dallas skyline is awesome, probably the 2nd best in the south behind houston.

But seattle is amazing.

My favs now are

Houston

LA

Seattle

[dimebag1980]

WOW! I love seattle skyline! i keep forgetting about them

Dallas skyline is awesome, probably the 2nd best in the south behind houston.

But seattle is amazing.

My favs now are

Houston

LA

Seattle

What, no Chicago!?

I don't know what I have against Seattle's skyline, but for some reason I just find myself not liking it. I really don't know why... it's dense and tall... maybe it's just the Space Needle I don't like.

[NCB]

I really like Seattle's skyline. Density and height do it for me, and Seattle has penty of both. I don't mind the Space Needle, but I think pictures of the skyline without it look better. Though the SN does make for fantastic views and pictures of the skyline and area.

Dallas' skyline is great too, but it does lack the density Seattle has, and one more tall high-rise would do wonders for it.

Anyway, Seattle over Dallas for me.

[NCB]

Here's another skyline battle! This one just popped into my head, and we now have to world famous Mississippi River cities squaring off against each other; New Orleans and Saint Louis. Both cities have nice skylines, New Orleans has a bit of an advantage with taller buildings and a bit more density, but Saint Louis has nice high-rise architecture, density, and of course, the Gateway Arch, which I love.

Saint Louis(These all show basically the same view of the skyline, I couldn't find any others worth posting)

Tallest building: Metropolitan Square; 593 feet

New Orleans(I know these are all pictures you've seen before, sorry)

Tallest Building: One Shell Square; 697 feet

[dimebag1980]

Damn you, Nate. This one really is hard for me. But having been to both cities, and having actually been up in the arch to see over the entire city, I think I've got to go with St. Louis. I'd say 60% St. Louis and 40% New Orleans. Not a huge majority, but this was a tough one for me.

[NCB]

Damn you, Nate. This one really is hard for me. But having been to both cities, and having actually been up in the arch to see over the entire city, I think I've got to go with St. Louis. I'd say 60% St. Louis and 40% New Orleans. Not a huge majority, but this was a tough one for me.

I prefer New Orleans, and I'm really trying not to be a homer. If you took away One Shell Square from New Orleans, the skyline would look very similar in height to Saint Louis, so that doesn't push New Orleans up for me. And the low and mid-rise density's of both cities are very good, much better than many cities in the South, and some in the Midwest. What pushes NOLA over STL for me is the overall size of the skyline. Saint Louis' has great density all through the skyline, but New Orleans' skyline stretches out further in both directions, and that does it for me. It's hard to see in the pictures, but in person, at least for me, New Orleans' skyline looks more impressive because of the overall size and length. Again, they are extremely close for me, probably 55% to 45%, but it's New Orleans for me.

[dimebag1980]

It sucks, too, because I love both cities.

I will say, however, if skylines were taken out of the equation and we were talking about nightlife, culture, and tourist attractions, New Orleans would take it for me, no doubt.

By the way, on my commute in this morning, there was a couple standing on the shoulder of I-49 in rush hour traffic, holding a sign reading "New Orleans." Looked more like locals than tourists, so I hope they're able to make it home. Their car was in bad shape, so I'm assuming they were probably heading home from God-knows-where they may have evacuated to.

[richyb83]

These two cities are like cousins, since they share the Mississippi River.

Kinda like Memphis too, when I was there it had a little N.O. feel to it.

New Orleans gets the nod over St.Louis. But there is only one Gateway Arch.

[NCB]

These two cities are like cousins, since they share the Mississippi River.

Kinda like Memphis too, when I was there it had a little N.O. feel to it.

Yea, I've always looked at major cities on the Mississippi River as being related to each other, if that's the best way to say it. New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Memphis, Saint Louis, and on and on up to Minneapolis all share something major in common because of the Mississippi, no matter how different the cities and their people, cultures, history's, etc. are. And New Orleans, Memphis, and Saint Louis definately are closely related to each other in many other ways as well.

[NCB]

By the way guys, if you have a skyline battle you'd like to post, please do! It doesn't matter if it's Manhattan, NYC; or Manhattan, Kansas, I'm pretty sure everyone on here likes talking about skylines!

[bluff2085]

Damn you, Nate. This one really is hard for me. But having been to both cities, and having actually been up in the arch to see over the entire city, I think I've got to go with St. Louis. I'd say 60% St. Louis and 40% New Orleans. Not a huge majority, but this was a tough one for me.

I agree, this one is really tough. I've been to both cities many times. New Orleans has a slight,slight edge over St. Louis' DT skyline, but then again STL has the Arch, an American icon. It is hard to pick one over the other, but I would have to give the edge to New Orleans even though St. Louis has one of nation's larger suburban skylines. You just can't beat the feel of downtown New Orleans.

[bluff2085]

And New Orleans, Memphis, and Saint Louis definately are closely related to each other in many other ways as well.

NCB, its kinda funny to talk about cities like this as if they are related, but nonetheless I agree with you! Coming from Memphis and having been to STL and NOLA a bunch, I would argue that both St. Louis and New Orleans have that undeniable "big brother" aspect to them, that in some ways would make a Memphian feel at home. I guess it's sorta like how people refer to Nashville as a "little Atlanta"--though NO, StL, and Memphis are closer in spirit than those two. All three are older cities with major historical connections to one another in music and the Mississippi River. New Orleans will always be my favorite though.

[NCB]

NCB, its kinda funny to talk about cities like this as if they are related, but nonetheless I agree with you! Coming from Memphis and having been to STL and NOLA a bunch, I would argue that both St. Louis and New Orleans have that undeniable "big brother" aspect to them, that in some ways would make a Memphian feel at home. I guess it's sorta like how people refer to Nashville as a "little Atlanta"--though NO, StL, and Memphis are closer in spirit than those two. All three are older cities with major historical connections to one another in music and the Mississippi River. New Orleans will always be my favorite though.

I completely agree with you on that. The best word to use I guess really is related. Because coming from a New Orleanian, the first time I went up to Memphis, it felt very familiar to me. New Orleans and Memphis are both very similar and different from each other in many ways, kind of like cousins. From Beale Street to Bourbon Street and Jazz to Blues, both cities have great history's, nightlives, food, music, and on and on.

And you know what, after I typed that, I realized just how many of Memphis' well known things are similar to New Orleans'. Memphis has Beale Street, New Orleans has Bourbon Street. Memphis is the center of Blues music, New Orleans is the birthplace of Jazz music. Memphis is known worldwide for its' Barbeque, New Orleans is known worldwide for its' Creole Cuisine and Seafood. And then both New Orleans are/were predominately black cities, both had problems with crime, and their metro areas's are nearly the same in population. But the first two of those items have changed dramatically for New Orleans since Katrina, which for the most part, has been a good thing for the city. Though IMO, New Orleans is like you said, a "big brother" to Memphis. Both cities have great everything, but New Orleans is a bit ahead,IMO.

[NCB]

Hey Bluff, speaking of Memphis, could you give me some info on something I found on the Memphis page of Wikipedia? Here is the exert:

Mud Island Mississippi River Park and Museum is located on Mud Island in downtown Memphis, and includes an actual-sized Titanic replica, and facts on the Mississippi River. The Park is noted for its River Walk, a 2112:1 scale (30 inches=1 mile) model showing 1000 miles of the Lower Mississippi River, from Cairo, Illinois to New Orleans, Louisiana. The Walk stretches about 0.5 miles, allowing visitors to walk in the water and see models of cities and bridges along the way.

I was hoping you could give some info on the walk and model of the Lower Mississippi, it seems very interesting.

[TSmith]

I really enjoyed my time in Memphis earlier this month. The people there remind me so much of New Orleanians. Very laid back and easy to be around.

[bluff2085]

Hey Bluff, speaking of Memphis, could you give me some info on something I found on the Memphis page of Wikipedia? Here is the exert:

I was hoping you could give some info on the walk and model of the Lower Mississippi, it seems very interesting.

No problem, NCB. That quote you found on Wikipedia probably came directly from the Mud Island website, which should give you just about all you need to know about the River Walk. Heres the website: Mud Island River Park , and here are a couple of pics:

Note: that bridge in the background is not a Mississippi River bridge, but the 0.5 mile monorail that goes over the marina to connect downtown to Mud Island, and directly above the monorail is a pedestrian bridge for those who are willing to walk half a mile to Mud Island.

[richyb83]

Nate, if you are ever in Memphis, you gotta check-out the Miss.River model at Mud Island. When you get to the end and see the big oval-shaped pool thats Lake Ponchartrain. They did every exact curve and river depths. You would like it. For every bridge that crosses the river, a metal bar is used you can tight rope across. They even show some of the street grids as you pass thru the cities.

[dimebag1980]

Speaking of Louisiana city skylines, one of the lesser-known skylines of this great state is Monroe. I've been over at their newspaper's website lately, debating with the locals on the issue of voting to get a casino in that city (I'm in favor of it, incase anyone's wondering.) Anyway, while visiting their website tonight I came across a great photo of their skyline with a barge sitting in the river in the foreground. Since their newspaper protects its images, much like the Shreveport Times does, I can't post the image so I'm posting a link to the dynamic page it's on:

http://www.thenewsstar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/m...ile=1002&ysby=1

[NCB]

Nate, if you are ever in Memphis, you gotta check-out the Miss.River model at Mud Island. When you get to the end and see the big oval-shaped pool thats Lake Ponchartrain. They did every exact curve and river depths. You would like it. For every bridge that crosses the river, a metal bar is used you can tight rope across. They even show some of the street grids as you pass thru the cities.

I will definately do that. It sounds really cool, and I love everything about the Mississippi, including the bridges crossing it and the cities lining it, so I know I'll love Mud Island.

Speaking of Louisiana city skylines, one of the lesser-known skylines of this great state is Monroe.

Great picture, Brian! Monroe's skyline really is pretty nice, and the older low-rise building in downtown are really cool too. I love the old gritty look of the skyline driving through the city on I-20.

[breaux]

I realize in a battle with just about anyone Lafayette's skyline would lose, but here's an interesting view from the early 70's that I came across:

[dimebag1980]

I realize in a battle with just about anyone Lafayette's skyline would lose, but here's an interesting view from the early 70's that I came across:

Regardless, the quaintness of Lafayette's skyline is attractive. It's got a certain charm about it. And who's to say how long it will stay that quaint? As the city grows, more and more ambitious projects will most likely come on board.

Cool photo, thanks for sharing it.

[richyb83]

Thanks for posting that pick Breaux. My uncle used to work in that large white building in the center of that pic. When I was a little kid I used to think it was cool he worked in Lafayette's tallest building.

[dimebag1980]

Thanks for posting that pick Breaux. My uncle used to work in that large white building in the center of that pic. When I was a little kid I used to think it was cool he worked in Lafayette's tallest building.

Hey, that's cool... you have a connection to this photo!

I wonder what that building is. Is it a bank, or just a general office tower?

[richyb83]

Thanks Brian. I think it was a general office bldg. but I am not too sure ? He worked for a local-TV station there. Sometimes he would do the weather. This was before the advent of computers, he actually had magnetic numerals he would have to stick on the map. He had a talk show too.