Nation’s top Downtown living experience

[SFBruin]

Dallas does have a pretty decently-sized transit system emanating from downtown, and is probably relatively clean, so there's that.

[Prahaboheme]

Originally Posted by photoLith

This just in, Celebration, Florida named nations number one for best urban living, replacing Dallas.

In fairness to Celebration, it may actually be a better pedestrian experience than Dallas.

[bilbao58]

I never realized how much Austin looks like Chicago and Chicago looks like Austin!

[Steely Dan]

^ I knew Austin's skyline was going through a massive growth spurt, but holy crap, It's gotten HUGE!

[goat314]

Originally Posted by bilbao58

I never realized how much Austin looks like Chicago and Chicago looks like Austin!

I was in Austin last week. It's a very nice, vibrant little downtown, but it is very small despite the crapload of high rise buildings being built. I would definitely not put it in the top 10 downtowns in the U.S. though. I personally like Texas more than the average urbanist, but this article seems like a Texas funded fluff piece.

[bilbao58]

Originally Posted by Steely Dan

^ I knew Austin's skyline was going through a massive growth spurt, but holy crap, It's gotten HUGE!

IKR?! Now they even have beaches on Town Lake!

[dave8721]

Cost of living is the main metric. Wouldn't the cheapest cities be the worst? I.e. least desirable?

[DFW]

Just some important factors is that, located in the northeast corner of downtown Dallas, the Dallas Arts District is the largest contiguous urban arts district in the nation, spanning 118 acres. This iconic neighborhood has more buildings designed by Pritzker award-winning architects than any location in the world.
Klyde Warren Park is a 5.2-acre public park in Downtown Dallas. The park spans over the Woodall Rodgers Freeway.
Another unique area is the under ground pedestrian tunnel network or Dallas Pedway that covers more than 36 downtown Dallas city blocks. The tunnel system connects to residential buildings, hotels, restaurants, shops, office buildings, parks, churches and theaters. This is where most pedestrians are found underground to escape the summer heat above.

[mhays]

An arts-focused district would be nice if it was mixed with high residential density, lots of hotels, good retail, etc., ideally finer-grained buildings. But the Dallas version is overly tilted to big full-block arts institutions with a scattering of other big things. I give it credit for the lid park and some new housing nevertheless. Just not enough to for a real flex.

Tunnel systems can be useful, and I fall prey to them like most people. But splitting pedestrians into two groups has all sorts of bad outcomes. For one, a restaurant will often have to choose the lunch crowd vs. the dinner crowd. And both systems are diminished in terms of life and interest.

[TempleGuy1000]

Originally Posted by DFW

Just some important factors is that, located in the northeast corner of downtown Dallas, the Dallas Arts District is the largest contiguous urban arts district in the nation, spanning 118 acres. This iconic neighborhood has more buildings designed by Pritzker award-winning architects than any location in the world.
Klyde Warren Park is a 5.2-acre public park in Downtown Dallas. The park spans over the Woodall Rodgers Freeway.
Another unique area is the under ground pedestrian tunnel network or Dallas Pedway that covers more than 36 downtown Dallas city blocks. The tunnel system connects to residential buildings, hotels, restaurants, shops, office buildings, parks, churches and theaters. This is where most pedestrians are found underground to escape the summer heat above.

Can you drop a google maps link to where I would exactly find this?

[Crawford]

The arts district isn't impressive from an urban perspective. It's a bunch of concert halls and condos and parks, oriented around cars. It's the area around the Morton Meyerson Symphony Center.

[bilbao58]

Originally Posted by DFW

Another unique area is the under ground pedestrian tunnel network or Dallas Pedway that covers more than 36 downtown Dallas city blocks. The tunnel system connects to residential buildings, hotels, restaurants, shops, office buildings, parks, churches and theaters. This is where most pedestrians are found underground to escape the summer heat above.

Unique?

“The Houston tunnel system is a network of subterranean, climate-controlled, pedestrian walkways that links 95 full city blocks 20 feet (6 m) below Houston's downtown streets. It is approximately six miles (9.7 km) long. There are similar systems in Chicago, Dallas, Oklahoma City, Montreal, and Toronto. Architectural historian Stephen Fox has stated that the idea for the tunnel system came when the Bank of the Southwest Building was "linked by tunnel to the 1010 Garage and the Mellie Esperson Building" in 1961.”

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Houston_tunnel_system

No. 1 rule for Houstonians: Never pass up a pissing contest with Dallas.

[austlar1]

Originally Posted by DFW

Just some important factors is that, located in the northeast corner of downtown Dallas, the Dallas Arts District is the largest contiguous urban arts district in the nation, spanning 118 acres. This iconic neighborhood has more buildings designed by Pritzker award-winning architects than any location in the world.
Klyde Warren Park is a 5.2-acre public park in Downtown Dallas. The park spans over the Woodall Rodgers Freeway.
Another unique area is the under ground pedestrian tunnel network or Dallas Pedway that covers more than 36 downtown Dallas city blocks. The tunnel system connects to residential buildings, hotels, restaurants, shops, office buildings, parks, churches and theaters. This is where most pedestrians are found underground to escape the summer heat above.

You really should visit other cities before posting this kind of mindless booster drivel. Downtown Dallas has come a long way in the past 20 years, but it is not in any way a contender for the city with the "Best Downtown Living". You just invite ridicule posting stuff like this. I am not a Dallas hater, unlike so many on this forum, and I sincerely hope Dallas continues to evolve in good way. I grew up in the region (FW), and I've always had a soft spot for Big D. I had a lot of nice experiences in downtown Dallas over the years. I especially enjoyed attending concerts with the Dallas Symphony when Jaap Van Sweden was conductor. The Dallas Museum is always worth a visit. The "Arts District" has pulled together nicely over time, but it has not yet woven itself into a truly vibrant urban setting. Let's revisit downtown Dallas in another 20 years. It might be more of a piece by that time.

[Double L]

Note to self: don’t listen to studies by StorageCafe.