[peterstjohn]

Because it's awesome! Microbreweries, a wonderful community, excellent food, and you can cross off the #35 place you must visit in 2011 according to the New York Times!

(I recommend Scratch for breakfast, Toast for lunch, and Dos Perros for dinner…)

(currently waiting for my visa to come through so I can join my wife there, so forgive me for waxing lyrical about the place :))

[knieveltech]

Durham, a wonderful community?! You ever get more than a block away from the American Tobacco Historic District?

I live there. Excepting a mile and a half wide strip that follows I-40 and a couple pockets near Chapel Hill, Durham is filthy, overrun with crime, totally lacking in services and someone important on the city planning commission thinks a Spirograph set makes a handy addition to one's drafting tools.

[mncaudill]

Between American Tobacco (where I lived for 2 years before moving to SF) and the Warehouse District, you've got most of downtown covered. Then factor in the restaurants and bars up and down Main and Ninth streets and that's a safe and clean downtown. Durham's a great town and it's events like this that keeps raising its profile.

[knieveltech]

Safe and clean compared to what? Newark?

[jessmartin]

knieveltech, I'm moving to Durham from North Raleigh next month. Raleigh is definitely "safe and clean". If you are looking for safe and clean in the Triangle, there is always Cary. It has received many accolades for its family-friendliness.

Safe and clean is not really what I'm looking for in a city though. I'm more interested in the culture: food, music, art, interesting people and companies. Also, my wife and I were looking for a cool neighborhood to live in and found ourselves overwhelmed with great options: Trinity Heights, Trinity Park, Duke Park, Watts-Hillandale, Old West Durham, Forest Hills, Burch Ave, West End. Can I walk a mile in any direction and not encounter any sketchy streets? Nope. Durham is a little more integrated and not quite as homogenous as other communities. And I consider that a plus. :-)

I'm really looking forward to living in Durham. There's a lot of exciting new stuff happening here: http://www.startupstampede.com, http://www.launchboxdigital.com, http://www.durhamcookery.com.

If you're into live jazz, there's an awesome set every Thursday night at Whiskey starting at 10:30. Really talented musicians from NC Central's Jazz program show up and jam.

Durham is definitely not without its flaws. There are areas that are unsafe. There are also areas that are suburban wasteland, such as near Southpoint. But the downtown is increasingly alive, filled with people, walkable, and gritty. I'm looking forward to the grit and being around to see Durham continue to change!

[mncaudill]

I'll just leave this here. http://dukechronicle.com/article/morrison-column-distorts-du...

I'd even say it's cleaner than almost all of San Francisco and SF's worst parts (eg, the Mission, Bayview, Hunter's Points) are more violent than Durham's worst parts.

Every urban environment of any size is going to have its problems but there is a definite reality distortion field surrounding how violent and dirty people think Durham is.

[knieveltech]

The most interesting part of that article (other than the rather obvious conflict of interest coming from Duke faculty) would be the first comment.

[streblo]

Did you live in Durham 15 years ago? It's gotten way better. It's not without its flaws, but it isn't nearly as downtrodden as it used to be.

[knieveltech]

No, I live there currently, and if this represents massive improvement what was here 15 years ago, a refugee camp? :P

[peterstjohn]

My first visit was in January 2003 (I was studying at UNC-Chapel Hill at the time), and it looked like a neutron bomb had hit the centre of the city. If you'd told me then that seven years later, I'd be getting married in the open air of the city centre, I would have laughed in your face. It has improved hugely, and yes, there's still a-ways to go, but I'm looking forward to being there for more than a month at a time! (not a paid shill on behalf of the Durham Tourist Board, I assure you! :))

[robterrell]

According to Google Street view, Dos Perros is in the same build as Relevance, the guys who run the conference.

[technomancy]

I think they catered the speakers' dinner last time. It was tasty.

[mncaudill]

And Tyler's or Bull McCabe's for the after-dinner drinks. Or maybe Alivia's. Or the Federal. Man, that place has beer COVERED.