247Sports just shared the AIER's 2018 college town rankings yesterday, and Blacksburg comes in at number 17 just ahead of Jacksonville, NC and just behind Rochester, MN.
Perhaps most unsettling to VT fans is that Hoo-ville lands at #11. There are a few other surprises as well, and it should be noted that there are criteria for being considered a college town (fewer than 250,000 residents) which is why you won't find certain schools represented in the rankings.
What say you, TKP? BBurg #17, Hoo-ville #11... let the fun begin!
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Any good media reference is a good thing.
I've had great experiences both in Blacksburg and Charlottesville, so I can't fault them there.
Anybody who says Charlottesville is a good town hasn't had to deal with 29 through there very much.
I was about to say, whoever rated this hasn't tried to drive through Charlottesville on a Saturday afternoon. Main Street can get bad in Blacksburg, but it's nothing like Charlottesville.
OR Pantops & Hydraulic Rd connecting 250 & 29.
I think they're rating it on living there, not driving through it on the way to Washington.
Both are very good college towns, but like their residents, polar opposites. The things that CVL are good at are things that BBG clearly isn't. And vice versa.
For instance, as noted below, traffic. It's terrible in CVL and nonexistent in BBG. Nobody in CVL would argue traffic.
Likewise, the one area the CVL excels is in food. There are 20 restaurants in CVL as good as anything in BBG.
Just very different towns. And there are people on both sides who would completely discredit the other because they are towns that have evolved to serve their very different residents.
There's a rationale for food: One of the biggest reasons why there are more restaurants in CVille because there is a much higher demand. I did a summer at UVa, their dining program is beyond terrible. Lots of students turn to the restaurants out of necessity.
The amazing dining program at Tech works against the overall demand for good restaurants in Blacksburg. As a student, why tf would I pay real money to go to a good restaurant when I can get a (probably) better meal for "free".
Yes, LOLUVa's food sucks, but the student population is a fraction of the Charlottesville/albemarle population. Whereas in Blacksburg the population more than doubled when school is in session. For cheaper food, you see a swing when the students are around but higher end establishments barely see a bump when summer ends. My sister owned a takeout place on the downtown mall for most of a decade and, unfortunately, her business halved between may and August.
But for most of what we consider "nice" restaurants, it comes down to demographics. Lots of people with disposable income live in Charlottesville and the surrounding region and that can support more restaurants. More restaurants means you'll have more higher quality ones (and a lot of crappy ones, too, but those are always opening and closing).
Per Wikipedia:
Blacksburg Population: 45,038
CVille Population: 46, 912
Am I missing something here? I get that Tech is a bigger school and the town gets disproportionally smaller in the summer but we're splitting hairs here at least during the school year...then again if you have family who has skin in the game, I'll defer to you.
Short answer, yes.
First, Blacksburg population is closer to 18K during the summer. I believe that 45K number is when students are in town, but I'll try to find a link to that. Restaurants die during the summer (see: Mike's) so students being gone is a big deal because rents don't typically let up just because your income does.
EDIT: found it,
So I was off. It's 20,000 without students. That's 55% of the population and who knows how much of the disposable income (who spends more on food out, a Federal Mogul employee living in airport acres or a college student living in The Edge?)
But besides that, the population outside the technical city limits of charlottesville is far greater than just cville itself. Those people go to restaurants in charlottesville.
county population of Montgomery: 97,653 (this includes all towns)
county population of Albemarle: 105,703 (does not include cville because as a city it is its own governmental entity)
city population of Charlottesville: 46,912
And throw this into the mix:
per capita income albemarle county is $37,510
per capita income charlottesville is $33,886
per capita income montgomery county is $17,077
so...54K more people in the immediate area (also, not counting bedroom communities in Greene, fluvanna, Nelson, etc where you still drive to cville for restaurants) AND about $25K-$30K higher annual income per person. Big big difference when it comes to service industries like restaurants.
Your parents or whoever was paying that outrageous dining meal fee wouldn't call it "free".
"Prepaid" would be a better term.
Apparently they didn't ask that bar manager who said only college kids allowed at the bar after 11.
Wait, Jacksonville, NC is a college town? Since when?
My thoughts as well. I looked it up and University of Mount Olive is over an hour away from Jacksonville. I've actually been to the Mount Olive pickle factory too and I can't fathom how that town would be top 20.
Let me rant a bit...
I'm sure I could find much more to bitch about if I visited every one of these towns.
Uhhh Athens is amazing, it should be much, much higher.
Agreed. It's quintessential
This is an odd list. I'll be honest, I like Charlottesville a lot, but I definitely raised an eyebrow at Columbia. That is an unremarkable town.
A few honorable mentions that didn't make the list: I like Baton Rouge. Maybe it's too big to be a college "town", but I would counter: Cajun food. I also think Fayetteville, AR is nice and a fun college town.
#20 Bellingham, WA (Western Washington U)
#19 LaCrosse, WI (U of Wisconsin at LaCrosse)
#18 Jacksonville, NC (Mount Olive)
#17 Blacksburg, VA (Virginia Tech)
#16 Rochester, MN (U of Minnesota at Rochester)
#15 State College, PA (Penn State)
#14 Athens, GA (U of Georgia)
#13 Fargo, ND (North Dakota State U)
#12 Lafayette, IN (Purdue U)
#11 Charlottesville, VA (U of Virginia)
#10 Bloomington, IL (Illinois State U)
#9 Columbia, MO (U of Missouri)
#8 Manhattan, KS (Kansas State U)
#7 College Station, TX (Texas A&M)
#6 Bloomington, IN (Indiana U at Bloomington)
#5 Iowa City, IA (U of Iowa)
#4 Ithaca, NY (Cornell U and Ithaca College)
#3 Flagstaff, AZ (Northern Arizona U)
#2 Champaign-Urbana, IL (U of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign)
#1 Boulder, CO (U of Colorado - Boulder)
There, no need to click.
lol lacrosse beat madison
I'm assuming Madison got chopped via their population rules.
Edit just looked it up. 252,000
Live look of Boulder
Boulder is a suburb of Denver at this point and should have been eliminated by the population limit.
Really? I was there in 1999, it seemed to take more than an hour thru farmland to get to Denver.
But Boulder was fantastic.
1999 was a LOOOONNNNNGGGG time ago in terms of what the Denver-Boulder-Fort Collins-Colorado Springs Metroplex looks like. On a busy Friday or Sunday afternoon you can be in bad traffic for close to 200 miles from Pueblo to the Wyoming border. They've got what you would think of as 'intercity' buses/public transportation from Denver to Boulder now. Lot's of 'poor' people who commute to work from Denver to Boulder and lots of rich people commute to work in Denver from Boulder.
Boulder absolutely should have been cut for population. It's not a college town. It doesn't feel like a college town. Most people in Boulder are NOT associated with the University. It's a sprawling gated mountain resort for filthy rich Californians.
Born and raised in Boulder. Perhaps you shouldn't speak about things you don't know much about.
Flagstaff is gorgeous and everyone should take a trip there, but it doesn't feel like a college town at all.
My dad was in Boulder for 4 years for undergrad. He has nothing but amazing things to say about it.
Yeah Boulder's awesome. If it wasn't so outrageously expensive I'd retire there.
1) Fucking Penn State beat us again.
2) Urbana-Champaign is ratchet.
3) I'm glad that Ann Arbor isn't on this list. Michigan fans go on and on about how its the perfect college town and its nice but it is not a college town. It is a city.
THANK YOU. That 'town' is three times the size/population of Annapolis. It's a fucking city.
Was about to say uh-oh the Big Dogs landed at #15
VT > PSU
but in all honesty
State College PA > Blacksburg VA
As someone who spent most of their childhood in Indiana, there is no reason that IU or Purdue to be on any list other than basketball teams who under perform. Also, the only reason I have heard of Mount Olive is because I pass by while on 795 South cutting the I 95 to I 40 corner. Let's just say this list has no credibility if that shithole is on here.
I'm moving on. UVA can still suck it though.
I lived in Jacksonville, NC and haven't heard of Mount Olive until this list. Seriously, how can they call East Coast Marine Corps Central a college town?
I've been reading The Key Play on the daily for 5 years and this is my first post. You sir are incorrect. Bloomington, IN has one of the most beautiful campuses, if not the most, I have ever seen. The culture of the city is everything you would expect out of a college town; especially if you are into music. West Lafayette is a hell hole though.
Haike, welcome to the conversation!
Unfortunately, we are going to have to disagree on this, based on this...
Bloomington Crime Rate
When looking at violent crimes, Bloomington, IN has 10% higher than violent crime rate than Indiana average, while remaining 15% higher than the national average. In property crime, Bloomington, IN is 23% higher than the average of Indiana and is 30% higher than the national average.
and other things I've witnessed around there. The IU campus is okay... I'll give you that.
West Lafayette is a shithole
I think the folks who made up this list need to go back to school....PERIOD. Ithaca, NY; Rochester, MN; and Jacksonville, NC? Give me a break.
I'm sorry I lived in West Lafayette for a little bit. This list lost all credibility and isn't worth the discussion with them being at 12.
Also just saw 2 schools from IL made the top 10. You couldn't pay me to visit anywhere in IL outside of Chicago.
I agree.
C'ville: They call it a city and suggest leaving the area while visiting for football game weekends. This list checks out.
Good catch. If you're there on game weekend, you what is there to do other than visit Monticello? Except on the Friday after Thanksgiving, where there is a game to watch.
Reading two seconds of the descriptions - its very clear whomever made that list, has never actually visited those places...
Jacksonville, NC? Maybe I missed the cool part... but Jacksonville, NC is like they tried to build another Myrtle Beach, except they started building and realized 1/10th into the project it was a terrible idea and just abandoned everything...
Yep. When I saw Jacksonville, NC, my first reaction was have they actually been there? I do contract work for the Marines and use to volunteer for a lot of the travel assignments before I had kids. General reactions to various destinations:
Hawaii - Hell yes.
San Diego - Traffic can be a PITA, but good weather, good Mexican food and the beach.
Okinawa - Sushi, Katzu Curry and frequent flier miles. I'm in.
Albany, GA - Good BBQ and southern cooking and I can drive instead of flying. Sure why not.
Jacksonville, NC - NOPE NOPE NOPE.
Jacksonville has changed significantly in the last few years with loads of new restaurants and hotels popping up. Wilmington, New Bern, and even Swansboro were decent options in my opinion but even Jacksonville is not a bad location anymore and frankly I'd take going there over Albany, GA without hesitation.
you mean the number 2 college town on the list doesn't have a lot of bars and places to eat? makes sense
I feel like the term "college town" evokes a very specific image and about half this list is either obviously small-medium sized cities or ass-awful locations like Jacksonville, NC. It feels like the author just listed the first 20 college locations he thought of at the top of his head and called it a ranking list. Not worthy of discussion or analysis in my opinion.
Lol, well thanks for chiming in anyways on something not worth your time. It is the offseason, after all.
No need to be passive aggressive about it. My point is it's a blatantly poorly thought out list even by listicle standards. Like if I called an article the "Top 20 Hamburger Joints in Virginia" and then listed random restaurants across the US.
It's customary to give some examples.
Gillies?
So, I've been to a handful of games in Charlottesville. This past season was the first time me and my wife have ever actually stayed in town the weekend of the game. I know we're supposed to say how awful it is...but damnit that is one beautiful campus and from what I could tell, a neat town.
Summary: I don't like the people, but I can appreciate the setting.
I grew up there and concur. If you could somehow have Charlottesville and not all the wahoos, it'd be a great place to live.
It has gotten to be a pretty high cost of living area in respect to other areas of Virginia though.
and that's why you see so much growth in Greene, Fluvanna, and Augusta. After college I lived just north of Ruckersville and that was a nice cheap place to be while still being able to jaunt down to cville for the amenities
Don't tell them, but it's secretly full of Hokies.
I often tell them it's full of Hokies because you need to have someone around who knows how to do something.
To me, the successful recipe is not that complicated: college+beer+football=great college town. So, most students (UVA obviously excluded because they lack football and think zima is beer) could make a very good biased argument for why their school's town is best.
Sorry, but anything over about 75,000 people is "city" to me. When I think college towns I think 50,000 or less.
You didn't grow up in a town, did you? A town is small. I think less than 5-7 thousand. I grew up in a town with a population of 500.
That certainly wouldn't leave room for a very large college.
Interesting that a quick google search shows Blacksburg, Harrisonburg, and Charlottesville as very similar populations coming in just under 50,000. I would have guessed Charlottesville much higher and Hburg more than Blacksburg.
Difference is that Blacksburg is only 18,000 in the summer with students gone.
Also, Charlottesville is a city. That means there are hard and fast geographic limits outside which the population does not get counted. A lot of people live outside cville city limits that contribute to how cville functions like a city larger than 50K
Richmond and Elliston.
I just took a look at this list, insane that Flagstaff is #3.
I mean its a pretty place and a neat drive from Phoenix to there. But as towns go, there isn't a whole lot to actually do unless you LOVE hiking. A few breweries that are solid, but I used to be there for work a lot and now go there for cabin rentals and stuff with family friends to get away from the heat, but I never got the impression of it being a "great" college town.