DC population now exceeds Baltimore's?

[bmore_ken]

How about Madam's Organ?
http://www.madamsorgan.com

That place has the best fried chicken I've ever tasted

[RTB]

It's the jobs. DC has the federal government and all those people who live off of the federal government - lobbyists, lawyers, accountants, defense contractors and the huge federal workforce itself. Plus, thousands of people come to work unpaid internships in hopes of making contacts that will lead to jobs. And DC has more undergraduate colleges that produce young people who tend to stick around. And the fact that DC weathered the recession better than almost anywhere else means they didn't lose as much wealth. And DC has (I believe) more college grads than any other major city. All that adds up to a highly educated, increasingly entrepreneurial workforce. Baltimore has many strengths as well, but it lacks that huge federal engine to drive its economy through good times and bad.

[Eastside Terp]

It's the jobs. DC has the federal government and all those people who live off of the federal government - lobbyists, lawyers, accountants, defense contractors and the huge federal workforce itself. Plus, thousands of people come to work unpaid internships in hopes of making contacts that will lead to jobs. And DC has more undergraduate colleges that produce young people who tend to stick around. And the fact that DC weathered the recession better than almost anywhere else means they didn't lose as much wealth. And DC has (I believe) more college grads than any other major city. All that adds up to a highly educated, increasingly entrepreneurial workforce. Baltimore has many strengths as well, but it lacks that huge federal engine to drive its economy through good times and bad.

those things always existed and the city was black and poor .......

the folks you talk about in your post lived in the 'burbs ........

now they are moving into the city .......

it's cyclical and the circle has been completed a few times ......

[kandace]

Why did you feel it was worth mentioning the race of the people enjoying themselves there? Who cares?

The race of the revelers was relevant because it is proof of how much the H Street Corridor has changed. A decade ago White policemen would have been reluctant to stroll along H Street at 11 pm on a Friday night.

[CleanAce]

those things always existed and the city was black and poor .......

the folks you talk about in your post lived in the 'burbs ........

now they are moving into the city .......

it's cyclical and the circle has been completed a few times ......

But 20 years ago the majority of Federal jobs in DC were relatively low paying clerical or 'unskilled' type jobs. In just the past 10 years the Feds have adding high paying 'professional' jobs at even greater rate than those clerical jobs have been disappearing. Add to that the many professional jobs in the legal/contracting/lobbyist firms that have started up in the past 10 years to get a piece of the increased federal dollars and it's easy to see that DC has become a lot more wealthy recently. That wealth has driven the gentrification of DC this time around.

George Bush II and Barack Obama have both steadily increased spending in DC.
Last figures I can find end in 2008, but here's Federal Compensation and Value of Federal Contracts in the Washington Metro Area:
2008 $163 Billion
2001 $78 Billion

80+ billion dollar increase in local spending will float a lot of expensive boats.

[Baltimatt]

Sun editorial

Meanwhile, Baltimore's downtown is among the city's fastest-growing and most vibrant residential neighborhoods, thanks in part to tax credits that encourage developers to convert unused commercial office space into new housing units. Officials are hoping the tempo of redevelopment will pick up when construction begins on the long-delayed Lexington Square "Superblock" project and when the city's new arts district around the Bromo-Seltzer tower starts humming. Though it's hard to draw exact comparisons, one of the secrets of Washington's resurgence was that such clusters of change were happening all across town at the same time, creating a sense among prospective newcomers of a city on the move.

Every city is different, of course, and as the nation's capital Washington will always have some advantages Baltimore can't match. But we can play to our strengths. The harbor will only increase in importance as a draw for people with the means to live there. The downtown circulator buses have made it easier to get around. And unlike Washington, the city has wonderful old ethnic neighborhoods still waiting to be rediscovered. With crime down and the schools getting better, Baltimore is poised to start growing again. Under wise leadership, there's no reason the city should resign itself to a future of perpetual decline.

[buzzthefuzz]

Ken---

Yes, but what's behind it? What makes Washington so much more attractive for gentrifiers, enough that the city can attract a net of 13,000 new residents in one year's time?

Matt:

If you look at the increase in the size of government you can equate that with population growth.

[rudy_d]

Matt:

If you look at the increase in the size of government you can equate that with population growth.

The size of the federal gov't is lower now than it was during the Reagan and Bush Sr. years, at least based on number of federal employees.

http://www.opm.gov/feddata/Historica...tSince1962.asp

[jessup270]

People will come back to Baltimore, but only if they feel safe.

If you really know anything about Baltimore, you can see that houses are selling in safe areas such as Hampden, Federal Hill, Locust Point, Canton and so forth.

Wilkens Avenue in SW Baltimore for example, is a long street (about 30 blocks). That area has been on a decline for decades, due to crime.

Most of the houses on Wilkens Avenue were built as quality homes.

People won't relocate there because they feel unsafe.

Hard to believe but there are 40,000 vacant houses in the City.

[boink]

People will come back to Baltimore, but only if they feel safe.

If you really know anything about Baltimore, you can see that houses are selling in safe areas such as Hampden, Federal Hill, Locust Point, Canton and so forth.

Wilkens Avenue in SW Baltimore for example, is a long street (about 30 blocks). That area has been on a decline for decades, due to crime.

Most of the houses on Wilkens Avenue were built as quality homes.

People won't relocate there because they feel unsafe.

Hard to believe but there are 40,000 vacant houses in the City.

I know that area well.

When I lived in Baltimore City and worked at a consulting firm at Wilkens and Maiden Choice Lane, I'd ride my bicycle out Lombard, down Monroe, and then Wilkens out to Maiden Choice.

The ride home in the evening was always much more interesting.

Here's a community profile.

The section of Wilkens you're talking about is in the Carrollton Ridge, Millhill areas

http://bniajfi.org/vs_csa_profile_fi.../southwest.pdf

http://bniajfi.org/vs/vital_signs?csa=51

http://bniajfi.org

[boink]

The other thing Washington has going for it is a MUCH lower property tax rate.

http://otr.cfo.dc.gov/otr/cwp/view,a,1330,q,594394.asp

http://www.dat.state.md.us/sdatweb/taxrate.html

[Pickle20]

I don't know why people feel the need to compare the nationals capitol to a relatively small east coast city like Baltimore.

Yeah, Baltimore once had a bigger population but the differences between the cities are vast. They are more different than they are similar.

DC has done a good job rebuilding, but it has come at the expense of the surrounding counties, especially PG County. Imagine if Baltimore pushed a majority of their low-income population on Baltimore Co. I mean, it has already happened in some regard. Now imagine that on the scale of DC?

Baltimore is seeing gains in populations that matter -- ie, young college educated professionals and the population surrounding the waterfront is growing. We just need to move that growth further inland.

[Baltimatt]

Pickle--

Baltimore has traditionally had more people than Washington until recently. Why are you calling Baltimore a "small east coast city"?

[ajc54terp]

I don't know why people feel the need to compare the nationals capitol to a relatively small east coast city like Baltimore.

Yeah, Baltimore once had a bigger population but the differences between the cities are vast. They are more different than they are similar.

DC has done a good job rebuilding, but it has come at the expense of the surrounding counties, especially PG County. Imagine if Baltimore pushed a majority of their low-income population on Baltimore Co. I mean, it has already happened in some regard. Now imagine that on the scale of DC?

Baltimore is seeing gains in populations that matter -- ie, young college educated professionals and the population surrounding the waterfront is growing. We just need to move that growth further inland.

I agree with this, grew up in PG, wouldn't live there now, like the one poster said it's a cycle, white people move out of the city to the burbs, they rebuild the city, minorities move out to the burbs, the white people move back into the city. It's all about location and living in lower crime neighborhoods. PG for some time now has had more murders per year than the district.

[Pickle20]

Pickle--

Baltimore has traditionally had more people than Washington until recently. Why are you calling Baltimore a "small east coast city"?

Because the DC, Philly, New York, and Boston city and metro population are all bigger and all those cities are more attractive based on government, corporate and education based jobs.

Baltimore is a smaller brother to all those cities. It's not small, per se, but it's definitely lagging bend them all in pretty much every category imaginable.

A lot of that is due to its own flaws and shortcomings, some of it is due to geography, demographics and history.

[The Eternal White Belt]

I agree with this, grew up in PG, wouldn't live there now, like the one poster said it's a cycle, white people move out of the city to the burbs, they rebuild the city, minorities move out to the burbs, the white people move back into the city. It's all about location and living in lower crime neighborhoods. PG for some time now has had more murders per year than the district.

I also grew up in PG, although I think it's better/nicer there now than it was when I lived there. I could be wrong though...

[yuca]

Because the DC, Philly, New York, and Boston city and metro population are all bigger and all those cities are more attractive based on government, corporate and education based jobs.

Baltimore is a smaller brother to all those cities. It's not small, per se, but it's definitely lagging bend them all in pretty much every category imaginable.

A lot of that is due to its own flaws and shortcomings, some of it is due to geography, demographics and history.

FWIW, Baltimore used to be the 3rd largest city in the nation.

Baltimore's leadership screwed up on many levels, IMHO.