I'm from Chicago and currently in Austin. My wife and I would be happy to move back, if anyone has 110K for me. Fork that over with no on-call rotation and I'll join your devops team.
I'm actually surprised to hear Atlanta and Chicago have enough of a software industry going on to be noticed - from around here you'd think the software industry consisted of Silicon Valley first and Seattle second with New York ignoring Seattle and pretending to be a big deal because they can't imagine being anything other than the center of the universe, while basically failing due to their terminally uncool preoccupation with big money.
Austin shows up on our cultural radar as a lesser tech center sometimes; I spent several years working remote for a company based there. Influence seems to have ebbed somewhat as the web has become ascendant.
It's a pretty good place and I think its influence is growing. I like to see 'middle of the map' locales like Austin and Chicago doing well.
We liked it so much in the NW that we were actually going to move to Portland or Seattle a few years back, but learning the facts about the Cascadia Fault has permanently spooked us. Other than that and maybe the weather it's fantastic (my wife prefers that dreary weather so it would work). While the midwest vibe is something that is intrinsic to who I am and I love the midwest, the PNW is my favorite part of the country. An absolute no brainer without that fault line. Civilized, clean, well-educated populace, strong economy.
Edit: Email me. taylor.dorsett@jobspringpartners.com or dorsetttaylor@gmail.com
Linkedin page for proof that I'm real: https://www.linkedin.com/in/taylordorsett
As to the climate: I spent 20 years in Silly Valley, have lived in the Seattle area for 12 now, and I don't miss the Bay Area at all.