Comparison and Contrast Anchorage,Alaska and Key West Florida - Case Study Example

Anchorage, Alaska and Key West, Florida are worlds apart geographically and culturally. On the surface, the case could be made that it would be difficult to find any two places more different within the confines of the United States. One conjures up images of the great white north, the tundra and the last vast frontier left to explore or exploit. The other brings to mind balmy breezes, sandy beaches and margarita fueled frivolity of all sorts. But are they really all that different? Aside from the obvious differences in climate and clothing, is it possible that two seemingly different places are actually more similar than either would care to imagine? Perhaps. Key West, Florida and Anchorage, Alaska may be thousands of miles apart geographically and culturally, but in some ways, they are practically next door neighbors. The first striking difference between these two cities is obviously geography and climate. Key West is the westernmost island of the archipelago known as The Florida Keys. Close proximity to the Tropic of Capricorn and the warm currents of the Caribbean Sea give Key West a balmy average temperature of 82oF. Add to this an annual rainfall of nearly 40 inches per year and you have a pleasant climate capable of supporting a host of interesting vegetation while providing many hours of sunny weather to enjoy the waters surrounding the island. Of course, any city that has taken on the title of “Southernmost City in America” had better have plenty of warm weather and sunshine to back up their claim. Anchorage, while not the northernmost city in America is a great deal different than Key West. One has no need to look beyond the raw numbers to see that two more different cities could not be found in America in regards to geography and climate. Anchorage boasts and average annual temperature of 35oF with an average annual precipitation of just 16 inches (most of it of the frozen variety)(Hoare, 2008). Though summer days can reach into the mid 70’s, summer and winter weather is unpredictable in Anchorage. 40oF swings in temperature have been known to occur within the space of several hours. Anchorage enjoys long summer days due to its high latitude, but the subarctic climate surrounding the city dissuades most people from spending those summer days swimming in the frigid coastal waters nearby. An additional geographic feature that makes Anchorage much different that Key West is the nearby presence of active volcanoes. Occasional ash accumulation from these volcanoes poses a slight threat to the health and safety of Anchorage’s residents. Although rare, occurrences of ash accumulation have happened during the past decade. The geography and climate of these two cities causes them to be unique in specific as well as more general ways. True, Key West is warm while Anchorage is cold. But in more general terms, it could be said that Key West enjoys a remarkably predictable day to day weather pattern while the weather in Anchorage is more of a gamble. Could this contribute to differences in local culture, traditions in cuisine? What about politics and traditions? While I’m not suggesting that geography is destiny for a culture, as the 18th century British were when they attributed the fiery Latin temperament to too much sun and spicy food, I do think that geographic and climatic differences as great as the ones present in Anchorage and Key West are bound to be reflected in the respective nature of each city. But before more differences between these two cities are explored, I feel it is perhaps important to point to a few ways that geography provides for some surprising similarities. The first would be both cities close association with shipping and the sea. Key West and Anchorage both have busy deep water ports. Port activity is a major contributor to the economies of both cities. Key West’s port traffic differs from Anchorage in that much of the traffic in port is private pleasure craft and military vessels (Municipality of Anchorage, 2009). Anchorage boasts much more traffic linked to industrial activities such as trafficking and refining petroleum products and crude oil, fishing and intermodal transfer to rail and truck delivery systems. The one similarity found in both ports is a close association with major corporate cruise lines such as Carnival and Norwegian Cruises. The importance of corporate cruise companies to Key West especially is highlighted by the recent announcement that Carnival has announced an additional 15 stops in Key West for the coming cruise season (City of Key West, 2009). This is important because much of the information about the port in Key West speaks of revitalization while expansion and upgrades are more commonly associated with the port in Anchorage. Another part of the economy affected by geography in Key West and Anchorage is the cost of living. Both have costs of living well above the national average. Anchorage is about 14% more expensive than average (Sperlings Best Places, 2009). This fact is attributed to the need to ship so many basic consumer supplies from the contiguous 48 states to the south. Housing and transportation costs are also well above average. Key West is nearly 68% more expensive than the rest of the United States (Sperlings Best Places, 2009). Much of this cost is caused by extremely high housing costs. Two factors contribute to this. First is the amount of land available for residential construction. Much of the Keys archipelago is land that has been set aside due to conservation measures or is geologically unsuitable for development. Add to this a high demand for housing because of the extremely pleasant climate and you will find rents and mortgage payments reaching astronomical heights. The cost of living is above average in both Key West and Anchorage, but the drivers of this heightened cost are different. Along with increased cost of living for citizens, the local governments need to deal with increased costs as well. A telling difference between the political cultures of these two cities is shown of their respective official municipal web-sites. Anchorage, although ten times bigger in population than Key West at nearly 250,000 inhabitants has a very small town, civic centered response to this problem. Prominently featured on their websites landing page is a link citizens can follow it they have suggestions on how to save the municipal government money so taxes can be kept low. On the other hand, Key West’s website is dedicated towards highlighting the amenities visitors can enjoy when they come to visit. No doubt, money spent locally by tourists is money coming into the municipality from outside the local economy. Taxes on tourist venues such as hotels, restaurants and the port all help the government of Key West balance its budget and provide services for citizens. These two basic approaches to local government seem to capture the essence of these two places. Anchorage is still the frontier, even though it is a city of 250,000 people. A sense of togetherness and self-sufficiency seems to run through the place. Key West, on the other hand feels like a place that desperately want you to come and enjoy the weather, spend your money and then swiftly return to where you came from. Geography is the greatest factor in determining the differences between Key West, Florida and Anchorage, Alaska. Beyond differences in climate, geography affects the types of industries that are important to the local economies in these places, as well as the different approaches each place takes to provide basic services to citizens. Located in the far northern and southern reaches of the United States, Key West and Anchorage have many differences but few similarities. Bibliography City of Key West. (2009). Port Operations. Retrieved October 8, 2009, from http://www.keywestcity.com/department/?fDD=13-0 Hoare, R. (2008). World Climate Data. Retrieved October 7, 2009, from http://www.worldclimate.com/ Municipality of Anchorage. (2009). Port of Anchorage. Retrieved October 5, 2009, from http://www.muni.org/departments/port/pages/default.aspx Sperlings Best Places. (2009). Anchorage. Retrieved October 9, 2009, from http://www.bestplaces.net/city/Anchorage-Alaska.aspx Sperlings Best Places. (2009). Key West. Retrieved October 9, 2009, from http://www.bestplaces.net/city/Key_West-Florida.aspx# Read More