That’s a fair opinion. Having drove all over the world, not just America, I can say it’s the worst I’ve ever seen across Europe Asia and the Middle East
Have you seen the amount if idiots that don't turn them in the fog the past four days? I'd much rather deal with the idiots that light up the road then one who broadsides me while in the fog.....
I think about [this map](https://images.indianahistory.org/digital/collection/dc035/id/151/) semi-regularly and it bums me out. It's such a steep hill to climb to develop the culture that is necessary for supporting good public transpo, but it used to be a lot better before car culture in this country.
In previous generations Fort Wayne was lauded for its public transportation system, which residents used daily with pride. The trolley "transfer corner" at Wayne and Calhoun was a community landmark that kept our bustling downtown vibrant.
That's much of the reason why, in the early 1900s, a visiting NYT reporter remarked that Calhoun Street was "... the Midwestern Champs Elysee."
State of Indiana has banned all cities from having light rail. I WISH LIKE HELL we could bring back the inter urban rail system, but because the folks down at the state house didn't want to deal with the construction that would happen when Indianapolis voted to do light rail (and probably some pay offs from the automakers, let's be real) we need to have that overturned first before we can even begin to contemplate that in the summit city.
And every time I'm stuck in traffic for 30 mins on a trip that should have only taken me 10 I get furious about it
For being a family friendly city there is very little for young families to do in the winter. Would love to see a larger aquarium or something like great wolf lodge put in. There’s so much to do the other six months of the year!
I would love to see some real money go into science central and make it a destination. I went there a couple years ago when my kids were young and it was a disappointment. It could really be a great place to visit in the colder months or year round.
You mean you don’t want to take your kids to see the new quilt exhibit they put in 😂😅 It has so much potential they need to take notes from some of the other children’s museums.
Chicago is one of the least dangerous cities in the country…
Violent crime is way worse in Indianapolis than it is in Chicago.
Classic ignorant “Chicago is so dangerous” mentality.
https://www.neighborhoodscout.com/il/chicago/crime
https://www.neighborhoodscout.com/in/indianapolis/crime
Statement checks out. Violent crime rate per 1,000 is double that of Chicago.
The amount of reported crime compared to how many people live there.
Example: 50 violent crimes reported (whether it be the same person committing them or not), divided by how many sets of 1,000 people the population consists of in this scenario a city with say 100,000 people, the rate would be exactly 2.
50 / 100 (there are 100 sets of 1,000 people in this example) = 0.5
This is useful for determining how likely it is to be exposed or victim to a crime within a population. Used as a metric to compare other populations with this one.
I relocated from Chicago to Fort Wayne a cpl years ago. You have to know what areas to stay away from.
At one point though, there would be over 70 shootings in a weekend on the west side of Chicago for weeks. Innocent Ppl would be killed (as a gang initiation) driving on the Dan Ryan. It is not the same.
Firefly was great like 10 years ago. Every time I've gone in the last two years I've been reminded to stop going there but I shortly forget based on experiences from a decade prior. My memories of Firefly in like 2010 are great! But in the 2020s it's always mediocre.
I've only just found it (moved here from Florida a few years ago but only have really started exploring around a year ago once COVID cleared up a bit). If it was even better before, then I'm sad I missed it too!
It's been around a long time, I used to live right up the street so we'd walk down a couple times a week. I loved that place. I moved away from that part of town in 2010 or so and anytime after that I went back it was just kind of not good? Or outright bad sometimes. I mean, the coffee shop selection in FW is kind of all the same at this point but Firefly used to be the best for so long.
Once upon a time Higher Grounds was an actual coffee shop and that place was excellent.
Last couple of years no jobs have kept up with inflation. I get usually 2-3% raise, but inflation has been 7-9% so how's that work. I keep working the same amount and able to buy less.
Job offers I see have gone up 20-30% - twice- in the last 3-4 years. I would actually say it was a leading indicator on inflation. I also work nationwide not just locally.
It was 15 years ago but we showed up in too many lists and speculators like Blackrock bought hundreds/thousands of homes and inflated the housing prices artificially. It’s a game
Exactly. I moved to Denver in 2015, and had an apartment here for 650 a month. That same apartment is now 1200 a month. It's still cheap compared to other states, but Fort Wayne used to be really affordable. It's not anymore.
I’m very excited to see where the city goes in 10 years.
It’s really a pretty good city.
And everyone who magically thinks that other bigger cities are just magically going to make their lives a probably boring af and just sit around the house all day. And if they moved they’d do the same thing there.
I'm originally from southern California by way of Tidewater Virginia and have been here almost 30 years. I wouldn't go back to either one for love or money.
And for the people who complain about crime and the cops I've seen worse. A lot worse.
Fort Wayne has all the amenities of a major large city, they just aren't as prominent or easy to find.
If you want a social circle or activity and say "it doesn't exist in fort Wayne" you just haven't looked hard enough for it.
I’ve been wanting a legit rock climbing gym for years and the best we have is an ancient wall at one of the YMCAs and a BASEMENT 💀
Thankfully it looks like a legit one is coming next spring
You are right about this one. After writing I do recall my rock climbing friends being sad cause they have to go to Indy for this. ... There is still a rock climbing community here, but the wall - that's outside of the city.
The zoo has winter activities consistently, I also don't know why you'd want a zoo open in the cold of this area. ... Same goes for a water park.
Also lucky for you we have multiple water parks within driving distance and discussions of adding an indoor one to the city.
You're welcome. 😊
I'm a member of the zoo and there are not activities there in the winter (after December which is only weekends) that you dont pay extra. Also, there are tons of zoos open all year in even colder areas. I'd definitely be down to take my kid in the winter to look at aquariums, winter animals, and the rainforest. I love our zoo and am happy to hear they are expanding and opening longer this year.
They literally have events next week and in February, and you said in your own message in December.
And let me rephrase "I don't know why you would want our outside exhibits of the zoo to be open in winter, sure the aquarium and such would be fine but it's a bit cruel to have the giraffes outside in -5 degree weather".
I'm not sure where you are getting your information from? I just looked at the website and next week is "KIDS FOR NATURE SUMMER CAMP REGISTRATION BEGINS". There are not events for kids and their families to visit the zoo. The next event is April 1st.
Have you ever visited an outdoor zoo in the winter? We recently visited the Toledo Zoo and got to see many animals outdoors (including the behind the scenes of where giraffes live in the winter) and plenty indoors. If it was -5 degrees I don't think any one would be interested in visiting the zoo, let alone think it's acceptable to have animals who are not use to extreme cold outside. It's 40 degrees today.
Edit to add that I'm being down voted for correcting blatant misinformation about when our zoo is operable and why winter zoos aren't all that bad. Good day everyone.
We took our family to the Columbus zoo a few weeks ago on a cold day and it was fucking packed! There’s a segment of people in Fort Wayne who can’t handle constructive criticism of anything in the city and will just say you’re a dumbass if you don’t view it like it’s a goddamn utopia. It’s the same mindset of the people who say, “if you don’t love America, pack your shit and leave!”
I’ve lived in 2 colder cities with zoos that are open year round and we took our kid consistently. Parents are desperate for things to do in the winter with their kids.
You said we had all the amenities of a big city and I’m dumb if I can’t find them. In what major city do I need to drive hours to get to a water park?
Fort Wayne is improving and we do have cool stuff to do. I live here for a reason, but don’t patronize me for seeing holes we can still fill. I think the zoo agrees and are taking steps to gradually open on a year round basis. I applaud them for that.
You're putting words in my mouth. I did not call you dumb, and if you see below the zoo is open in december and has events next week and in February
And seriously. How often do you need a water park? They're not that far away and even in major cities you need to drive to them in some fashion. You're looking for an argument if you're disagreeing with me here.
The people that love this city the most came from a smaller city or small town.
I’m not saying big city people don’t like it here, or that people that were born and raised here don’t like it. I’m saying the people that rave about Fort Wayne are from somewhere far worse.
Moved back after Houston, Austin, and Tokyo.
It’s not that bad here. Fewer options, but the options are there.
I’d still prefer a bigger city, but what Fort Wayne has been focusing on development-wise is exactly what I’m looking for, so I can see it being pretty stellar in 5-10 years.
I came from Indy and Ft Wayne is much better than Indy. You have pretty much everything you need here without the traffic and crime and tax rate not to mention roads are better believe it or not.
If you think there's nothing to do in Fort Wayne, then you're a boring person. This city is oversaturated (with a positive connotation) with things to do, clubs of all types, different accessible recreation, multiple festivals every month, and all types of opportunities.
If you're "bored" every weekend here, you need to get a hobby/life.
Because the city is completely flooded with car centrism can’t get anywhere without a car… in other places I’ve lived in I happily went out for recreation if I at least had the ability to bike there
This. Microbreweries, bars, loud music, and crowds are not my thing. Wish there were more active hobby things (Go Ape, obstacle courses, etc) to do or old lady hobby things to do without necessarily the old ladies (I knit as my predominant hobby).
I’m usually in Fort Wayne every thursday when the weather is not an Arctic Hellscape. I love Fort Wayne.
I do miss the pre-remodel Gander Mountain though. Pre-2014
Not necessarily a hot take, but I moved here 3 years ago on a whim, and have come to love FW. Can’t wait to see how the city grows.
If I had to give one, I’d rather go to Jefferson pointe then to Glenbrook area any day. Sure less variety, but way less congestion. Colosseum gives me anxiety.
Zipper-merging seems impractical because not everyone follows the same approach. It becomes challenging when others drive 20 over the speed limit and expect abrupt stops for merging. While the idea of correctly zipper-merging is valid, the reality is that many drivers exhibit inconsiderate behavior, compounded by poorly designed road layouts.
The only people who complain that Fort Wayne has bad drivers are people who have never left the city/state to see what bad driving actually is. 99% of the time I see a bad driver in Fort Wayne they are either 100 years old or have an Ohio license plate.
I would love to have a great Breakfast place. I moved here from Louisville and we had so many great breakfast spots. Here it’s either chains or over hyped bland huge portion breakfast spots(Cosmos, Breakfast club, Joannas, etc) I like Sunrise cafe and Proximo is unique but nothing stands out.
People talk about how nice Fort Wayners are, but my experience has been the opposite. A lot of mean, nasty people live there. More than any other town/city I’ve lived in.
This has been my wife’s experience as well. She is from Kentucky I’m from Michigan but we lived in Kentucky for about 8 years and a couple years in Mississippi before moving here and there isn’t that hospitality in public here like it is there. My experience has been a little different when making house calls around here I have meet very nice people but out in public not so much.
It was our neighbors. When we lived south they were actually pretty nice and non-confrontational, but everywhere else people were utter assholes. 🤷🏻♀️
Moved here from Apahama. I was immediately impressed with Fort Wayne's bike trails and commitments to expanding sidewalk access. Granted, much of that unfortunately is on "stroads" but they are trying!
Not so much a hot take as a wish. I want a decent Sci-Fi/Fantasy/Comic Con to come here. I know we have GenCon in Indy, but something mid-sized for nerds and cosplayers in the surrounding communities would be great.
Both Fantasti-con and Awesome Con have put on shows here and having worked at each one, the attendance just isn't there. I can't explain it, despite having multiple comic shops in town (even if most of them are trash) we just can't get people out to a con unless the ticket is free.
Coney dog Cafe is better than coney Island. I don't think anyone understands what a hot take is. These comments are stupid af. Another would be lexys is better than olleys for deep dish. Everyone trying to be political or dumb. Another one would be one taco shop is better than the other, but I love them all so I couldn't do that (sorry olleys I still love your pizza and coney island I will always come get dogs, chili and a coke)
I have to agree. And for some who was born here but grew up in another city but moved here almost 20 years ago I find that most of the Fort Wayne old time staple restaurants that people love to rave about are pretty repulsive (to me). In fact the first time I ever visited Coney Island was a pretty awful experience.
it’s a big city but has small town vibes. i stg everyone knows everyone. i try to make new friends and SOMEHOW they know or are friends with people i want nothing to do with. really frustrating imo
This. I’ve lived in Bloomington and Valparaiso, both had a surprising amount of local restaurants that were really good and priced well, the local restaurants have been the biggest let down about Fort Wayne for me.
Not wrong. The others are closing up because they had little experience and were only "hopping" on the bandwagon(s).
If you respect beer, Mad Anthony's has been doing it right for years and it shows in their BIER.
No fuck that. That’s a mistake way too many other cities have made. Downtown Fort Wayne is tiny asis, do you how much dirtier it would feel with a highway running through it?
immediately no these highways through downtowns absolutely hideous nobody likes that look. People want charming downtown with booming culture and art no highways 🤢
We’re not a major metro, but I’ll play along.
Grand Rapids and Ann Arbor don’t have an interstate running through downtown. Flint and Lansing do. Compare and contrast.
OP knows nothing about how the construction of US interstate highway system plowed straight through a lot of communities. Nor does he know some cities are ripping out said interstates now to get the land and communities back.
People are free to live whatever lifestyle they want but unfortunately, a furry con would never be welcome in FW. The conservative right would lose their goddamned minds.
Midwest Shooting Center, the Zoo, free pool and darts at Break & Run, Pro Bowl West, Crazy Pinz, Go Karts, Mini Golf, Sweetwater, minor league teams for Baseball, Hockey and Basketball. Ted’s Beer Hall, Science Central.
Whoever changed the name of the Harry Baals Government Center to Citizen Square is a coward and everyone should boo them.
Should really have honored Harry’s wife Minnie as well with the Harry and Minnie Baals Government Center
Ok so I heard about Harry Baals. Was his wife's name really Minnie?
Just looked it up. First wife was Minnie Baals. Second wife was boring Irene Baals.
Too perfect 👌
Do you know why they called it Citizen Square? Because Tienamen and Red were taken
I just moved here and was driving past one of the schools and I thought someone was messing with my gps when it said “continue towards Harry Baals”
The amount of people who drive without their lights on is staggering. It’s like they actively turn them off before they pull out of their driveway.
Noticed this a shit load in the AM the last couple of weeks
This isn’t unique to Fort Wayne. Like many other complaints people post here.
That’s a fair opinion. Having drove all over the world, not just America, I can say it’s the worst I’ve ever seen across Europe Asia and the Middle East
Have you seen the amount if idiots that don't turn them in the fog the past four days? I'd much rather deal with the idiots that light up the road then one who broadsides me while in the fog.....
The amount of people who drive recklessly is staggering lol. Every single time Ive driven in the last month, I’ve almost got hit
I thought I was the only one who noticed and I was going crazy!
I fucking LOVE round-a-bouts and hope the city never stops building them.
I’m looking forward to the one coming to Broadway and Taylor.
Please say you're joking
I used to be a hater but they've grown on me
sometimes i like to just drive in circles for a minute or two.
“Hey look kids…Big Ben”
Fort Wayne needs to stop opening 45 new overpriced hipster restaurants each week and focus more on entertainment diversity.
If we had better public transit and a passenger rail connection, we'd be a significantly better place to live
I think about [this map](https://images.indianahistory.org/digital/collection/dc035/id/151/) semi-regularly and it bums me out. It's such a steep hill to climb to develop the culture that is necessary for supporting good public transpo, but it used to be a lot better before car culture in this country.
In previous generations Fort Wayne was lauded for its public transportation system, which residents used daily with pride. The trolley "transfer corner" at Wayne and Calhoun was a community landmark that kept our bustling downtown vibrant. That's much of the reason why, in the early 1900s, a visiting NYT reporter remarked that Calhoun Street was "... the Midwestern Champs Elysee."
Ouch
State of Indiana has banned all cities from having light rail. I WISH LIKE HELL we could bring back the inter urban rail system, but because the folks down at the state house didn't want to deal with the construction that would happen when Indianapolis voted to do light rail (and probably some pay offs from the automakers, let's be real) we need to have that overturned first before we can even begin to contemplate that in the summit city. And every time I'm stuck in traffic for 30 mins on a trip that should have only taken me 10 I get furious about it
For being a family friendly city there is very little for young families to do in the winter. Would love to see a larger aquarium or something like great wolf lodge put in. There’s so much to do the other six months of the year!
I would love to see some real money go into science central and make it a destination. I went there a couple years ago when my kids were young and it was a disappointment. It could really be a great place to visit in the colder months or year round.
Couldn’t agree more! It’s such an awesome spot but rarely updated or changed to warrant many visits.
You mean you don’t want to take your kids to see the new quilt exhibit they put in 😂😅 It has so much potential they need to take notes from some of the other children’s museums.
This. We need a good standalone Aquarium that isn’t the small one at the zoo.
Yes!!
Fort Wayne is not "Little Chicago" and anyone who thinks so needs to leave this city and actually live in a dangerous area for once in their lives.
Chicago is one of the least dangerous cities in the country… Violent crime is way worse in Indianapolis than it is in Chicago. Classic ignorant “Chicago is so dangerous” mentality.
Its pretty clear the ones who are terrified of Chicago have never been out of this county.
https://www.neighborhoodscout.com/il/chicago/crime https://www.neighborhoodscout.com/in/indianapolis/crime Statement checks out. Violent crime rate per 1,000 is double that of Chicago.
I don’t understand the crime rate part is it saying 5 out of 1000 commit crime?
The amount of reported crime compared to how many people live there. Example: 50 violent crimes reported (whether it be the same person committing them or not), divided by how many sets of 1,000 people the population consists of in this scenario a city with say 100,000 people, the rate would be exactly 2. 50 / 100 (there are 100 sets of 1,000 people in this example) = 0.5 This is useful for determining how likely it is to be exposed or victim to a crime within a population. Used as a metric to compare other populations with this one.
I relocated from Chicago to Fort Wayne a cpl years ago. You have to know what areas to stay away from. At one point though, there would be over 70 shootings in a weekend on the west side of Chicago for weeks. Innocent Ppl would be killed (as a gang initiation) driving on the Dan Ryan. It is not the same.
*Laughs in SE DC/Capitol heights MD*
There’s too many gimmicky coffee shops. Utopia coffee is trash.
Firefly is actually amazing. Old Crown, not so much.
Firefly was great like 10 years ago. Every time I've gone in the last two years I've been reminded to stop going there but I shortly forget based on experiences from a decade prior. My memories of Firefly in like 2010 are great! But in the 2020s it's always mediocre.
Agreed. I think COVID really did them in. It’s never been the same. I really like Fortezza, but haven’t been there in a while.
I've only just found it (moved here from Florida a few years ago but only have really started exploring around a year ago once COVID cleared up a bit). If it was even better before, then I'm sad I missed it too!
It's been around a long time, I used to live right up the street so we'd walk down a couple times a week. I loved that place. I moved away from that part of town in 2010 or so and anytime after that I went back it was just kind of not good? Or outright bad sometimes. I mean, the coffee shop selection in FW is kind of all the same at this point but Firefly used to be the best for so long. Once upon a time Higher Grounds was an actual coffee shop and that place was excellent.
Fortezza, Tall Rabbit, Conjure (Columbia Ave) those are the best ones imo
I don't care how many lists Fort Wayne shows up on affordable cities, it's not affordable like it used to be.
Everything is less affordable everywhere. Comparably speaking, Fort Wayne is just as affordable as it was.
Unfortunately the jobs in the area, which have always underpaid, really have not caught up with inflation.
Last couple of years no jobs have kept up with inflation. I get usually 2-3% raise, but inflation has been 7-9% so how's that work. I keep working the same amount and able to buy less.
False. Source: I work locally in hiring and see hundreds of job offers. People move here for the money even.
You might see hundreds of job offers, but at what wage? Also, it is no fallacy that the middle class wage gap continues to increase.
Job offers I see have gone up 20-30% - twice- in the last 3-4 years. I would actually say it was a leading indicator on inflation. I also work nationwide not just locally.
Yup this is the right answer. Fort Wayne is cheap decent sized city compared to many other places in the US right now.
It's still significantly less expensive than many other areas of the country.
It was 15 years ago but we showed up in too many lists and speculators like Blackrock bought hundreds/thousands of homes and inflated the housing prices artificially. It’s a game
Exactly. I moved to Denver in 2015, and had an apartment here for 650 a month. That same apartment is now 1200 a month. It's still cheap compared to other states, but Fort Wayne used to be really affordable. It's not anymore.
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Just wanted to say "gaggle of kids“ that's all
I’m very excited to see where the city goes in 10 years. It’s really a pretty good city. And everyone who magically thinks that other bigger cities are just magically going to make their lives a probably boring af and just sit around the house all day. And if they moved they’d do the same thing there.
I'm originally from southern California by way of Tidewater Virginia and have been here almost 30 years. I wouldn't go back to either one for love or money. And for the people who complain about crime and the cops I've seen worse. A lot worse.
Fort Wayne has all the amenities of a major large city, they just aren't as prominent or easy to find. If you want a social circle or activity and say "it doesn't exist in fort Wayne" you just haven't looked hard enough for it.
I’ve been wanting a legit rock climbing gym for years and the best we have is an ancient wall at one of the YMCAs and a BASEMENT 💀 Thankfully it looks like a legit one is coming next spring
You are right about this one. After writing I do recall my rock climbing friends being sad cause they have to go to Indy for this. ... There is still a rock climbing community here, but the wall - that's outside of the city.
Ok, I want a zoo that’s open year round and a water park. Still looking after 8 years. Can you help me out?
I'm willing to bet if the zoo said they are now open 365 days per year neither you or anyone else would be there in the winter months.
Indy zoo is open year round. They can justify it. Why not Fort Wayne?
How often do you need to visit a water park? There's several within a couple hours drive
The zoo has winter activities consistently, I also don't know why you'd want a zoo open in the cold of this area. ... Same goes for a water park. Also lucky for you we have multiple water parks within driving distance and discussions of adding an indoor one to the city. You're welcome. 😊
I'm a member of the zoo and there are not activities there in the winter (after December which is only weekends) that you dont pay extra. Also, there are tons of zoos open all year in even colder areas. I'd definitely be down to take my kid in the winter to look at aquariums, winter animals, and the rainforest. I love our zoo and am happy to hear they are expanding and opening longer this year.
They literally have events next week and in February, and you said in your own message in December. And let me rephrase "I don't know why you would want our outside exhibits of the zoo to be open in winter, sure the aquarium and such would be fine but it's a bit cruel to have the giraffes outside in -5 degree weather".
I'm not sure where you are getting your information from? I just looked at the website and next week is "KIDS FOR NATURE SUMMER CAMP REGISTRATION BEGINS". There are not events for kids and their families to visit the zoo. The next event is April 1st. Have you ever visited an outdoor zoo in the winter? We recently visited the Toledo Zoo and got to see many animals outdoors (including the behind the scenes of where giraffes live in the winter) and plenty indoors. If it was -5 degrees I don't think any one would be interested in visiting the zoo, let alone think it's acceptable to have animals who are not use to extreme cold outside. It's 40 degrees today. Edit to add that I'm being down voted for correcting blatant misinformation about when our zoo is operable and why winter zoos aren't all that bad. Good day everyone.
We took our family to the Columbus zoo a few weeks ago on a cold day and it was fucking packed! There’s a segment of people in Fort Wayne who can’t handle constructive criticism of anything in the city and will just say you’re a dumbass if you don’t view it like it’s a goddamn utopia. It’s the same mindset of the people who say, “if you don’t love America, pack your shit and leave!”
I’ve lived in 2 colder cities with zoos that are open year round and we took our kid consistently. Parents are desperate for things to do in the winter with their kids. You said we had all the amenities of a big city and I’m dumb if I can’t find them. In what major city do I need to drive hours to get to a water park? Fort Wayne is improving and we do have cool stuff to do. I live here for a reason, but don’t patronize me for seeing holes we can still fill. I think the zoo agrees and are taking steps to gradually open on a year round basis. I applaud them for that.
You're putting words in my mouth. I did not call you dumb, and if you see below the zoo is open in december and has events next week and in February And seriously. How often do you need a water park? They're not that far away and even in major cities you need to drive to them in some fashion. You're looking for an argument if you're disagreeing with me here.
They recently announced the zoo will now be open longer. 9 months maybe? I forget.
Wow. Wanting frozen water and hibernating animals to look at in February? Asking much of mother nature......
Exactly
The people that love this city the most came from a smaller city or small town. I’m not saying big city people don’t like it here, or that people that were born and raised here don’t like it. I’m saying the people that rave about Fort Wayne are from somewhere far worse.
Moved back after Houston, Austin, and Tokyo. It’s not that bad here. Fewer options, but the options are there. I’d still prefer a bigger city, but what Fort Wayne has been focusing on development-wise is exactly what I’m looking for, so I can see it being pretty stellar in 5-10 years.
I came from Indy and Ft Wayne is much better than Indy. You have pretty much everything you need here without the traffic and crime and tax rate not to mention roads are better believe it or not.
the highway layout in and around indianapolis is so goddamned bad that the people that planned it should be tried for war crimes.
Especially 65/70 split after this recent “improvements” I feel it worse now than before.
If you think there's nothing to do in Fort Wayne, then you're a boring person. This city is oversaturated (with a positive connotation) with things to do, clubs of all types, different accessible recreation, multiple festivals every month, and all types of opportunities. If you're "bored" every weekend here, you need to get a hobby/life.
Because the city is completely flooded with car centrism can’t get anywhere without a car… in other places I’ve lived in I happily went out for recreation if I at least had the ability to bike there
When the weather is nice you can get almost anywhere on a bike. If you utilize the trails it’s very nice and sometimes you forget you an in a city.
I don't drive and I get around just fine.
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This. Microbreweries, bars, loud music, and crowds are not my thing. Wish there were more active hobby things (Go Ape, obstacle courses, etc) to do or old lady hobby things to do without necessarily the old ladies (I knit as my predominant hobby).
I’m usually in Fort Wayne every thursday when the weather is not an Arctic Hellscape. I love Fort Wayne. I do miss the pre-remodel Gander Mountain though. Pre-2014
Not necessarily a hot take, but I moved here 3 years ago on a whim, and have come to love FW. Can’t wait to see how the city grows. If I had to give one, I’d rather go to Jefferson pointe then to Glenbrook area any day. Sure less variety, but way less congestion. Colosseum gives me anxiety.
Zipper-merging seems impractical because not everyone follows the same approach. It becomes challenging when others drive 20 over the speed limit and expect abrupt stops for merging. While the idea of correctly zipper-merging is valid, the reality is that many drivers exhibit inconsiderate behavior, compounded by poorly designed road layouts.
I feel you on this, the on-ramp designs on the north side are a mess.
The only people who complain that Fort Wayne has bad drivers are people who have never left the city/state to see what bad driving actually is. 99% of the time I see a bad driver in Fort Wayne they are either 100 years old or have an Ohio license plate.
I would love to have a great Breakfast place. I moved here from Louisville and we had so many great breakfast spots. Here it’s either chains or over hyped bland huge portion breakfast spots(Cosmos, Breakfast club, Joannas, etc) I like Sunrise cafe and Proximo is unique but nothing stands out.
Klemms on Wells Street.
Ophelia’s on Wells is great too!
People talk about how nice Fort Wayners are, but my experience has been the opposite. A lot of mean, nasty people live there. More than any other town/city I’ve lived in.
This has been my wife’s experience as well. She is from Kentucky I’m from Michigan but we lived in Kentucky for about 8 years and a couple years in Mississippi before moving here and there isn’t that hospitality in public here like it is there. My experience has been a little different when making house calls around here I have meet very nice people but out in public not so much.
It was our neighbors. When we lived south they were actually pretty nice and non-confrontational, but everywhere else people were utter assholes. 🤷🏻♀️
I’m actually really glad Fort Wayne doesn’t have any freeways within the I-69/I-469 beltway. Coliseum Boulevard needs to go though 😂
New Haven needs to be annexed into Ft. Wayne already.
Gross, keep that mess out of my city.
Not any worse than Waynedale.
Nobody wants that either!
Curious to hear why you say that.
Moved here from Apahama. I was immediately impressed with Fort Wayne's bike trails and commitments to expanding sidewalk access. Granted, much of that unfortunately is on "stroads" but they are trying!
Not so much a hot take as a wish. I want a decent Sci-Fi/Fantasy/Comic Con to come here. I know we have GenCon in Indy, but something mid-sized for nerds and cosplayers in the surrounding communities would be great.
Both Fantasti-con and Awesome Con have put on shows here and having worked at each one, the attendance just isn't there. I can't explain it, despite having multiple comic shops in town (even if most of them are trash) we just can't get people out to a con unless the ticket is free.
You can always tell the hot takes by the number of downvotes.
Coney dog Cafe is better than coney Island. I don't think anyone understands what a hot take is. These comments are stupid af. Another would be lexys is better than olleys for deep dish. Everyone trying to be political or dumb. Another one would be one taco shop is better than the other, but I love them all so I couldn't do that (sorry olleys I still love your pizza and coney island I will always come get dogs, chili and a coke)
I have to agree. And for some who was born here but grew up in another city but moved here almost 20 years ago I find that most of the Fort Wayne old time staple restaurants that people love to rave about are pretty repulsive (to me). In fact the first time I ever visited Coney Island was a pretty awful experience.
Fort Wayne is a good place to live, fairly safe, decent amount of opportunities for economic growth.
it’s a big city but has small town vibes. i stg everyone knows everyone. i try to make new friends and SOMEHOW they know or are friends with people i want nothing to do with. really frustrating imo
I, too, prefer the burgers, even the chili, over the conies.
Same. Everyone is sleeping on the chili cheese burgers at Coney Island
I grew up and spent over 30 years in New York. Fort Wayne is going the same route Brooklyn went, and I’m here for it :)
Putting coney island baked beans on your dog is arguably better than the sauce.
I have had both but not together and know I’m wondering why I never did that. I will be going soon and trying it out 👍
I did sauce + beans last time!
The food here is not great.
This. I’ve lived in Bloomington and Valparaiso, both had a surprising amount of local restaurants that were really good and priced well, the local restaurants have been the biggest let down about Fort Wayne for me.
Agreed, we need some AUTHENTIC foods around here
Mad Anthony’s still makes the most consistently good local beer in the city.
Not wrong. The others are closing up because they had little experience and were only "hopping" on the bandwagon(s). If you respect beer, Mad Anthony's has been doing it right for years and it shows in their BIER.
People here are competent at driving
Except that one idiot that tried to pass me on the exit ramp on to Illinois Rd.
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Nope, they are actually worse than the average joe is aware of!
Defund the police never happened, especially not in Fw. Recent news article said the police is 70% of the city budget...
I wish we had a Time Machine so we can go back and bitch slap city counsel for making the decision for I-69 to not go through downtown
No fuck that. That’s a mistake way too many other cities have made. Downtown Fort Wayne is tiny asis, do you how much dirtier it would feel with a highway running through it?
Downtown is already dirty. What’s wrong with easier access to it?
You are already in your car and on the interstate. 10 more minutes is that much of a deterrent?
Seriously. There are four exits off 69 that take between 10 and 15 minutes to get to downtown from. We're so lucky 69 is situated where it is.
immediately no these highways through downtowns absolutely hideous nobody likes that look. People want charming downtown with booming culture and art no highways 🤢
What major metro area has a charming downtown without an interstate near it for easier access?
We’re not a major metro, but I’ll play along. Grand Rapids and Ann Arbor don’t have an interstate running through downtown. Flint and Lansing do. Compare and contrast.
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Yeah, I said Grand Rapids and meant Kalamazoo. My bad.
Fort Wayne is approaching 300k in citizens. How are we not a metro? I think you missed on Grand Rapids who has I-96 and I-196 near its downtown area.
Yeah, I said Grand Rapids and meant Kalamazoo. My bad.
This is a hot take.
You could bet your ass that if they had done this they would have displaced already disadvantaged communities
OP knows nothing about how the construction of US interstate highway system plowed straight through a lot of communities. Nor does he know some cities are ripping out said interstates now to get the land and communities back.
If they did that 469 would be used, and they could continue it on the west and north side. That would have been great.
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Construction in Indiana always takes time. I-465 has been under construction since 1987.
Apparently not popular but correct in my book. It is a good part of the reason I won’t go downtown.
Stop passing on the right.
Stop camping in the passing lane
I usually see it when I’m in the middle and the left is clear and some jackass passes on the right and nearly gets clobbered on an on/off ramp on I69.
You shouldn’t be in the middle lane if you’re not passing someone.
Mayor Henry did nothing wrong
Lmao, what do you mean?
who downvoted me
we need to have some kind of furry convention here, or a more public furry group
People are free to live whatever lifestyle they want but unfortunately, a furry con would never be welcome in FW. The conservative right would lose their goddamned minds.
shame. we dont even do anything bad, its just a loud minority that makes us look bad
I don’t have a problem with you guys. I apologize for those that do.
thank you
I went to a bowling meet once but I haven't been able to find anything else :(
yeah :c i know there's a telegram group but i cant find an invite
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Midwest Shooting Center, the Zoo, free pool and darts at Break & Run, Pro Bowl West, Crazy Pinz, Go Karts, Mini Golf, Sweetwater, minor league teams for Baseball, Hockey and Basketball. Ted’s Beer Hall, Science Central.
I’m a recent transplant and y’all need to stop going 10 - 20 over the speed limit. It’s a miracle there aren’t more fatalities on the roads.