Setting up a free *.city.state.us locality domain (2025)
Old-style `city.state.us` locality domains are drawing renewed interest because many can still be registered for free, offering short, geographically meaningful addresses under the U.S. country-code TLD. Commenters recount the history of these domains, how delegation was scattered across small ISPs and consultants, and how today’s process can be opaque or bureaucratic (often requiring notarized approval from local governments). They also highlight practical downsides—from broken assumptions in commercial systems and lack of WHOIS privacy to questions about long‑term reliability—alongside nostalgia for a time when the DNS hierarchy reflected real-world geography more closely.
Enthusiasm and nostalgia
- Many commenters are delighted to learn *.city.state.us domains exist and are often free, expecting a spike in new registrations.
- Several recall managing or using *.k12.state.us and locality domains in the 1990s–2000s, plus old local ISPs and dialup access; these domains evoke strong nostalgia.
- Some still actively use locality domains and like their logical, hierarchical structure.
Practical issues and compatibility
- Users report real-world friction with unusual TLDs or deep subdomains: some large companies’ forms reject them or silently break (e.g., .rodeo, .health, subdomain email issues).
- Locality domains are perceived as confusing and hard to say aloud, contributing to schools and governments abandoning them for shorter .com/.org/.gov names.
Registration, delegation, and stability
- Many locality zones are delegated to small ISPs or consultancies; some of these operators are now defunct or semi-abandoned, making changes or renewals hard.
- Where delegation has reverted to localitymanagement.us / GoDaddy, people report requirements for notarized letters on city/county letterhead, which are often impractical.
- The localitymanagement.us site appears overloaded, buggy, and now sometimes blocks new signups; this raises doubts about long-term reliability.
- If a delegated registrar disappears, existing domains can be at risk, and new registrations may be effectively impossible.
Privacy, WHOIS, and .us quirks
- Multiple commenters contradict the article’s claim that WHOIS won’t leak addresses: for direct .us domains, registrant data is typically public and privacy services are disallowed.
- There is debate over “just put fake data in WHOIS”: some say it’s common and consequence-free; others warn it’s technically fraud and can trigger takedowns.
Geography, naming, and branding
- Thread explores messy edge cases: duplicate city names in one state, independent cities vs counties, school districts crossing municipal boundaries, and NYC’s borough/county structure.
- Some argue locality-style domains are conceptually clean but poor “brands”; others push back that public entities spending on branding is questionable, while opponents say clear naming improves civic engagement.
Alternatives and related systems
- Mention of deprecated .name, city TLDs (.nyc, .boston, .miami, etc.), free *.eu.org, and experimental geographic/telephone-mapping systems (.geo, ENUM/e164.arpa).
- A new private project (codify.city) aims to create city-centric subdomains plus AI-based civic interfaces, as a modern alternative to traditional civic web vendors.