Posted on Thu, Jul 19, 2012 : 10:02 a.m.
Ann Arbor: A resident extols the joys of small-city life
By Cindy Heflin
Ann Arbor, the darling of list-makers far and wide, gets a heaping helping of love—from a local resident who has lived in several big cities—in The Atlantic Cities.
A visit to Zingerman's Deli is among the delights of small-city life in Ann Arbor
“Although we grumble about construction and football season traffic, the ease of getting around Ann Arbor is one of the things that we big city refugees find so attractive.”
Comments
mr_annarbor
Fri, Jul 20, 2012 : 3:49 p.m.
Zingerman's Deli is among the delights of small-city life in Ann Arbor?? What small town has anything even resembling Zingerman's? As JimB says, the author should try living in a town with 15,000 people or less.
jns131
Fri, Jul 20, 2012 : 6:11 p.m.
Zingermnas is only good if you can afford it. Their sandwiches is nothing to write home about and if you an afford it? I'd take my money somewhere else. Zingermans is very over rated IMO. I have talked to a few who could not agree with me more. Better sandwiches elsewhere then there.
ChrisW
Thu, Jul 19, 2012 : 6:17 p.m.
We have at least two good Chinese restaurants IMHO. Middle Kingdom still rocks.
AA cynic
Thu, Jul 19, 2012 : 5:06 p.m.
I am happy to be living here. But good lord this city is full of itself. Would someone please bring back the blog "annarborisoverrated.com"?
jcj
Thu, Jul 19, 2012 : 3:43 p.m.
"the joys of living in a town where restaurant and theater proprietors treat her like a celebrity" I must be eating at the low end of the totem pole.
Billy Bob Schwartz
Thu, Jul 19, 2012 : 4:11 p.m.
...or eat only fast food.
Robo
Thu, Jul 19, 2012 : 4:08 p.m.
Or you are a bad tipper...
JimB
Thu, Jul 19, 2012 : 3:42 p.m.
Ann Arbor really isn't what you would think of "small town America" to be. Try living in a town of 15,000 people or less, maybe in a rual setting, and you will see the difference. The number of people and the land mass have less to do with the stereotype than what may be the mindset of the people. Although we recognize Ann Arbor as a unique city, some people forget that most of America is made up of small towns with people that may very rarely leave those towns but only to go get supplies for the week over at the next city which may be a little bigger.
jns131
Fri, Jul 20, 2012 : 6:07 p.m.
Mermaid? Try driving in. This place is huge when you actually see how expanse the road system is and how Ann Arbor is making up mini cities of their own. Downtown Ann Arbor, Jackson Road area and then the M 14 corridor. Interesting. I will take my small Ypislanti town any day of the week.
mermaid72
Fri, Jul 20, 2012 : 12:31 p.m.
Ann Arbor is way too big for some of us to actually live in....... maybe just as you note, to visit & pick up supplies that are not readily available in rural areas. I start getting claustrophobic if I spend too much time in town!
JimB
Fri, Jul 20, 2012 : 2:44 a.m.
I'll rephrase, there are more small towns than large cities.
Peter Baker
Fri, Jul 20, 2012 : 12:11 a.m.
According to the 2010 census, over 70% of America's population is in cities of 200,000 or more. Most of America is not made up of small towns.
Perry White
Thu, Jul 19, 2012 : 3:39 p.m.
Sadly, one thing that Ann Arbor no longer has, that every city should have, is a real ink on paper daily newspaper, with a large enough staff of reporters and editors to cover news in depth and with followup. I believe that greater Ann Arbor is the largest metropolitan area in the nation without one. Ah, for the days of "The Snooze."
Paula Gardner
Thu, Jul 19, 2012 : 3:59 p.m.
Ironically, perhaps, the author of this aggregated piece makes a similar point in a recent Forbes article: http://www.forbes.com/sites/michelinemaynard/2012/05/24/what-new-orleans-can-expect-when-its-newspaper-goes-away/
RudeJude
Thu, Jul 19, 2012 : 2:42 p.m.
An Atlantic city, huh? That's a first.
Peter Baker
Thu, Jul 19, 2012 : 3:15 p.m.
The magazine is called The Atlantic, "Cities" is the column.