HR Paperstacks wrote:RockHarbor wrote:I know Lincoln & Des Moines would probably love to surpass Omaha, and it just makes me nervous.
While DSM is growing at a pretty good rate right now, they'll never pass us. They are only growing like 1000 more people per year, so it would take hundreds (or thousands) of years for that to ever happen. Now that could always change, but based on both of our current rates, there's really no "threat".
I have never been to DSM other than passing through on the Megabus, but it does seem like a fairly cool city.
I've never paid too much attention to Lincoln so I can't speak much for it though. Although I really should pay more attention to what is going on there. They have some pretty neat things going on that I've seen on here.
"Never say never" as they say, 'cuz that is when it seems to happen. Seriously, I'm very careful to ever say "never."
But, yes, looking at the per capita growth rate, and looking closely at the current mathematics, it is impossible that Des Moines or Lincoln will surpass Omaha any moment in our lifetime, with Omaha growing just a slightly slower rate (per capita). Now, if those growth rates shift, though, then the mathematics change, and the possibilities...
Lincoln: Growing up in Omaha, I never paid that much attention to it either. I almost didn't count it among Omaha, Des Moines, and Wichita. It was simply the smaller, flatter, quieter city of Nebraska nearby that had the Capitol Building, the University, and dinosaur museum. But, I have relatives in Lincoln, and I moved down there for some schooling. I liked it there plenty, and was almost sad leaving it. I don't feel I would go back, though, simply because it isn't big enough for me, and the job market seems more difficult, imo. But, this is what I liked about Lincoln:
1) It is constantly energetic, like college/university towns are. In Omaha, it feels slightly more like "your college years are over, you've got your degree, you've got your good job at a company, and you're starting a family" more (to me). However, Omaha has plenty of energy.
2) It is basically more a "mini Omaha" more than I expected. A nice, clean, vibrant downtown core, nice midtown areas, and sprawling, new suburban areas. Because it is not as big as Omaha, the transition of the decades it was built (from old to new) is quicker as you drive through the town, thus not as mundane-looking. Omaha has larger swaths of town from each decade.
3) It feels
slightly like a "sunnier, brighter place" than Omaha, because it is a bit smaller & less stressful to live in. All the big city problems are less...cost of living, Crime, pollution, traffic, ect. (However, since Lincoln doesn't have a freeway system, many complain it is difficult & timely to get around, compared to Omaha, and I agree to an extent.)
4) The inner city really has some leafy, cozy, happy neighborhoods. The streets are too narrow sometimes, though, but it adds to the coziness, imo.
5) The setting is overall flatter, so the town lays nicer (imo). As much as I like Omaha's rolling hills & being able to look far out on crests, Lincoln has a slightly gentler terrain like Des Moines, and it makes the town lay nicer, imo. (In Omaha, notice how much they flatten-down the hills before building more now?)
6) It is closer to Colorado, so they sometimes borrow more themes from Colorado than Omaha does (in landscaping & design). I like western themes, but I wouldn't want too much of that here still.
7) It's nestled within Nebraska, not on the very edge of it, so it doesn't have the psychological division present in Omaha that naturally comes with the Nebraska-Iowa border. It feels 100% authentic "Nebraska", it's 100% true "Cornhusker Country." (I met somebody from Kentucky that was in love with the NE Cornhuskers their whole life growing up, so they moved to Lincoln, just to be part of it all.)
It's funny how these two big cities of NE are so close to each other, but they are still such separate worlds. I met plenty of adult, established people there that hardly went to, or knew, Omaha, and were nervous with the traffic and roads here, and didn't even know how to get to Westroads -- and had never heard of Oak View. It just baffled me. Maybe because I'm more an "explorer" and I'm always curious what's around the next bend.