Quote:
Originally Posted by dtnphx
I couldn't agree more exit2lef. Phoenix is what it is. It's more urban than it's ever been, and maybe urban is a different notion when it's in a desert! Besides, most of those other cities were full-fledged cities over a hundred years ago, so I say pfft!
Talton had his moments years ago when he lived here, but in general his musing about Phoenix sound more like a child who had mommy/daddy issues. Time for him to process them and move on.
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I hate reading these articles as they seem to just bash Phoenix more than anything. Why is there never any mention of Houston when it comes to city size vs population? Houston is bigger in sq. mileage, just as sprawled and about the same density as Phoenix. Let's not mention hurricanes and the fact most of Houston is built on top of a swamp. But I never here an argument that Houston is not a real city or should have never have been built on a swamp.
The thing with Phoenix that NEVER seems to be taken into account with it's population vs land percentage is that Phoenix has a very large amount of land that is dedicated to some really large preserves. Probably more than any other city in the country. If you take away the 65 or so sq. miles of undeveloped preserve land, AND add to that all the undeveloped land...which is much greater chunk than Philadelphia....Phoenix all of a sudden becomes a denser city...about 4300-4500 per square mile give or take. Not anywhere near Phili's 11,500 per square mile...but higher than some other "real" cities. Cincinnati, Columbus, Indianapolis, Atlanta, Nashville and many other "urban" cities don't break 4,000 per square mile. Heck, Nashville doesn't even break 2,000. Pittsburgh barely breaks the 5,000 mark. Phoenix is denser than most people admit.
I would also like to point out that the article mentions that the Phoenix metro is "not even in the top 10". Well, we are still #12. I tend to think when the 2020 census comes out, we will be #11...maybe even #10. Maricopa County is of course the fastest growing county in the nation. So I'm sure the suburbs have added a pretty good chunk of population too. Also, Phoenix is not Philadelphia's only worry. San Antonio is hot on their heals and they will probably take the number 6 spot in a few more years.
Sorry...rant over. I just hate these articles. AZ Central never seems to have much pride in Phoenix.
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