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It was just over a month ago that we posed the question: Is this Chicago's moment in the Sun? It led to the conclusion that we don't need anyone to tell us how great our city is, despite its drawbacks, because we love it just the same. And now we have proof. Paris-based environmental-services firm Veolia Environnement SA reports that Chicagoans love their city more than residents in 13 other major international cities (including New York City, Paris, and Tokyo) love theirs. The company surveyed around 600 people in all 14 cities to gather their rankings. Chicago's "very satisfied" response rate was first at 49 percent, followed by Sydney (44 percent), New York (41 percent), Berlin (38 percent), and L.A. and Paris (35 percent) rounding out the top five.
While we here at Chicagoist happily join in the lovefest (why else do we write about this great city of ours?), we remain a tad skeptical of this particular survey: 600 people seems to be a relatively small sample size for the cities involved in the survey. By including cities like Tokyo, which tops eight digits population-wise, something tells us the numbers may be a bit skewed. Even Paris, the smallest city we mentioned in terms of population, tops two million people. Still, this qualm won't keep us from adding this title to our trophy case.
Perhaps more noteworthy is a recent MasterCard study which "used various data and some polling to analyze 100 factors contributing to a city's stature," and placed the city fifth in terms of being a "global economic center" and 26th in livability. "Chicago is a far more global city than it thinks itself," according to Saskia Sassen, a professor of sociology at Columbia University. Woot! Bring on the Olympics!
Photo by efroten
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Must be all the pharmaceuticals in the drinking water.
Being born & raised here makes me a true loyalist. I truly believe we are one of the best kept secrets in terms of big cities. But I acknowledge there is room for serious improvement. Mainly the politicians who make off the wall laws worse than California, and the good-ol' boys club at the city/county/state level.
I love Chicago, but it has some big problems. So instead of bitching and moaning like they did on the Tribune's comments, we should try and make things better.
One of the big complaints in the survey was transportation. Since gas prices aren't going back down and we're not building any more highways (thank god), the best way to fix that is to finally build a world-class transit system. Right now Daley is pushing the airport express and the Circle Line as his main transit priorities, but there are many lower-cost/higher-benefit projects we could do:
1) The bus-only lanes are a great idea and should be expanded as quickly as possible if the trial run on Jeffrey, 79th, Halsted, and Chicago is successful.
2) The Gray Line: convert the Metra Electric Line on the South Side to a new CTA line. more info
3) Build a new El line on the Mid-City Transitway route (O'Hare to Midway to 87th on the Red Line). more info
4) Follow thru and finally extend the Red, Orange, and Yellow Lines.
Only after these projects are finished should we start talking about other great ideas like the Circle Line, a Western Ave subway, and extending the Ashland Green Line to Midway.
Those grumpy French are at it again. Berlin, though improving, is not nearly as attractive, walkable, or transit-friendly as Paris.
Yet the Berliners are more satisfied. Maybe city services are better. Just wondering!
@razetheladder:
Touch the Metra Electric and I'll cut you. It's my link to free laundry and a mom cooked meal.
Not to worry, happyfunball, the Gray Line conversion wouldn't disrupt your access to free laundry and food. The Metra Electric would be run the same as before, but more frequently and with CTA prices and transfers.
This would bring the El to a lot of very dense neighborhoods that have to rely on buses right now, it would integrate some of the most important destinations in the city (Soldier Field, McCormick Place, the Museum of Science and Industry) into the CTA rail network, and it would address the main transportation problems with proposed Olympic venues.
This is a no-brainer, and frankly it's bewildering why it didn't happen a long time ago. Yet it's still not on the radar at CTA, RTA, or City Hall, so contact your representatives.
"Chicago the tumb tack keeping the midwest from blowing away"