Local business owner wants to "Keep Raleigh Boring"
RALEIGH (WTVD) -- It seems like there's always something happening in Downtown Raleigh. The city is consistently topping lists for quality of life, city growth, technological innovations, and more.
So why is a t-shirt that reads "Keep Raleigh Boring" the hottest item in town right now?
John Pugh sells North Carolina themed t-shirts at his store "House of Swank." He says he finds a lot of inspiration around Raleigh.
"It's not voted one of the top ten cities all over the country, all over the place, for all of the lists, for all of the time for no reason," explained Pugh.
Recently, Raleigh ranked the number one place for tech startups outside of Silicon Valley.
The Charlotte Observer reported that statistic...and gave a reason why Raleigh was chosen.
"The sad truth is that Raleigh outpaced the inventive surge elsewhere because there is simply nothing else to do," reads the Charlotte Observer article.
The article is titled "Boredom takes flight in Raleigh." At ABC11, we did not find anyone who agreed with that when we went around town.
"Raleigh's got more energy than Charlotte," said Raleigh resident Hide Terada. "Charlotte? Please."
"We moved from the D.C. area. We have found this area so vibrant, so full of life, great culture," said city resident Rebecca Beck.
The article mentions Raleigh's outstanding research university, a scenic statehouse, and a top-notch penitentiary, but still no nightlife.
"I think there's a lot of vibrancy here," said local Matthew Konar. "A lot of arts, food scenes poppin' here...I tend to disagree, Raleigh has a ton of stuff going on."
That's what Pugh thinks, so last night on his sketch pad, he drew the "Keep Raleigh Boring" shirt. He posted it to Instagram and it exploded.
The article takes some more specific digs on the city, which can be read here.
If people say Raleigh is boring...fine. Let's keep it boring.
