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And yet, so many of us have had positive experiences with AISD high schools. I'm glad my kids went to them. Will be sorry when I'm no longer a part of it as a parent.
I don't think Austin's city schools are an issues anywhere near other cities, even those of the same size..that's why its surprising that so many newcomers with families, and long-term family locals, choose outlying areas, with far less diversity and dynamic. I blame it on the metro giving the planning for the metro as a whole to the developers here. Land is far cheaper and easier to build in the boonies..less paperwork and time, and more buck....central city development demands time and forethought, always in short supply in every city, including Austin.
Quite simply, if we want a dynamic, densely populated inner-core, we have to do it for ourselves, and wrest control from developers, which should be easy now, seeing as they are behind the 8-ball per profits, lending sources, and mere survival in many cases...If development will be markedly slower the next 5 years than the past 5, all the more reason to guide what is coming down the pike intelligently, with a focus toward the central area, and all the services, public and private, that entails...growth always will have a huge tendency to radiate, like a malignant cancer, and should be guided and forced back in....makes all the sense in the world. If we have very little funding for future growth and infrastructure in Austin for quite some time, lets get the most bang for our buck, and create a critical mass in the central city...
And yet, so many of us have had positive experiences with AISD high schools. I'm glad my kids went to them. Will be sorry when I'm no longer a part of it as a parent.
I know several people who seemed to have a very positive experience at both Austin high and LBJ. So I am not saying all of AISD is a problem.
But there are very few parents who will CHOOSE a high school rated adademically unacceptable unless they have no other choice.
The best predictor of a school's academic performance is the demographics of the community that feeds the schools. Until that changes dramatically - some of these schools will remain mediocre for decades.
Because of transportation efficiency? Fewer cars? Is it because of infrastructure at the expense of privacy, space, and freedom?
And less traffic, access to public transportation, better health (walking instead of driving everywhere).
Privacy? I'm not sure how much privacy you get with some of the tiny-lot subdivisions with 5 neighbors backing up to your tiny backyard.
Space? It gets filled with junk and clutter. And you have to clean it, pay to air condition/heat it, maintain it, etc. Sucks up your time and money.
Freedom? How about freedom from home maintenance like painting, mowing your yard, watering your yard, cleaning gutters, trimming trees, etc.
Think of your carefree days in college. You didn't have to worry about constant home maintenance, too much space, too much stuff, etc... and it was the best time of your life, right? Perhaps some people want to return to that simplicity.
Because of transportation efficiency? Fewer cars? Is it because of infrastructure at the expense of privacy, space, and freedom?
Privacy and freedom are "ideals"...urban planning is a pragmatic reality....and a pragmatic reality with a limited funding basis, I might add..to sum, the funding for buildout, commercial, residential, and gov't infrastructure will be severely pinched in the Austin metro, along with all metros in this country, for quite some time to come. It will be a challenge just to maintain what has been built for most metros, let alone worry about "building-out"....Privacy and freedom, brought down to whatever reality those ideals contain in urban planning, create and thrive on sprawl, in an ever spiraling web...the USA sunbelt, along with Austin, is the apotheosis of this phenom. Little to no foresight in mass transit, little planning and spending on urban amenities like parkland and even city-wide bike trails, a carte blanche hand-over to developers to spread their idea of housing/retail/big box thin and wide, with no creativity or concern for livability has created the monstrosity we have now, which, again reaches its nadir in the sunbelt(Las Vegas, Houston, Phoenix. et al)....
Now the funding sources that pumped up that growth have dissipated. Whatever has been built-out will have to suffice and be consolidated, along with some school districts and possibly municipal govt's/funding, along with public libraries.....we have to conserve, recycle, and creatively harness what we DO have now, and what we PLAN on building in the future....simply a forced tamping down and intelligent use of resources(essentially the polar opposite of what has taken place during the boom years). This will provide two benefits. The funding for future build-out will be maximized for the future(bang for buck), and will make Austin's metro, and the other metros that follow suit, more livable for those that are already there, and those that choose to move there....
The central and DT region will not only be the main growth engine in Austin's future from here on out, but will be its greatest showcase, showing off all the things it is most rightly proud of, from UT, to the music/club scene, eclectic eateries, funky retail/stores, and all the fun/great things that stem off that...to sum, Austin's creativity IS its greatest strength, and gives it the dynamism that has, and will attract, growth that will carry on the same......I can easily envision a critical mass of 75K-100K living in the central area in 5 years, if Austin can apply focus to the same, with requisite planning and PR....the funding will follow the plans and people, no doubt..just a matter of time..
The downtown growth has held up passably through the last couple of hard years. Don't know if it is going to explode or just grow slowly, but looks like it will continue to grow. We will not likely be a part of it, though.
If we moved downtown, I would have to travel (via bus or car) much further than I do where I am now, and so would my wife. So many jobs are not in the urban core. My commute is just under 6 miles and my wife's is 2.5 miles. I can currently walk to a several restaurants that I really like and to the grocery store, and bike to the library, the pool, and the park. The elementary school and jr. high are walking distance for us, biking/walking for most of the families (if they choose). I have nothing against downtown living, but it doesn't offer me anything but more expenses, currently - due to property taxes, mainly. It would be nice to be able to get to some of the downtown venues quicker (it really isn't that far from here), but those are the rarer trips than the ones mentioned above. We technically live in the city limits of Austin, but I go 'downtown' once every few months, maybe?
When we retire (oh, so far away ) we may decide to live somewhere more urban than the suburbs, but right now it expedites our retirement to save money and live here. OTOH, we may be so deeply rooted here we just don't move :P.
I know several people who seemed to have a very positive experience at both Austin high and LBJ. So I am not saying all of AISD is a problem.
But there are very few parents who will CHOOSE a high school rated adademically unacceptable unless they have no other choice.
The best predictor of a school's academic performance is the demographics of the community that feeds the schools. Until that changes dramatically - some of these schools will remain mediocre for decades.
Positive experience at McCallum High School here. There are life benefits to varied backgrounds. During the time my oldest was bussed to Sims Elementary in first and second grade (1980s), I believe people from opposite ends of the SES spectrum (who might have never gotten together otherwise) benefitted in different ways. Even if only for a short time, both "groups" learned from each other. It helped my child, and certainly didn't hurt her, because she's finishing up her dissertation. Personally, I wish we'd go the distance rather than stopping short of it, and wish it had continued. It wasn't given enough time.
Hi TR.....you know, it is really hard to define "Urban"..i think it is an elastic term that varies from place and time....Austin has to develop and define its OWN version of the same. We are not going to replicate Chicago's "loop", Brooklyn, or San Francisco's urban core.....I don't think we will ever reach the mass for a huge live theater district, or a high end shopping core ala Chicago's Michigan av. or LA's Wilshire blvd.....nor will we have a massive condo/apartment buildout like some of these same areas...however, a "urban" core that fits our cities zeitgiest will be built, in its own way and time.
And it will be FAR more livable than what we have now. We really are still in the starter stage here for the same, with much planning, and SOME build-out, but not yet the critical kick-in mass....I think that the healthy boomers here and in-migration from other states will very much desire urban core life in Austin...these are the folks who were here, or were in other places, in the late 60's/70's, when the whole conception and implementation of a funky bohemian core was set, though older cities like NYC, Chi, and SF have always had their Greenwich Village, Old Town, and North Beach...
Add all the young people and UT grads that would love to spend a decent chunk of their 20's in an area like that, and encourage the tech entrepreneurs to locate in the central city, via loftspace/warehousespace, whathaveyou, and you have yourself the critical mass to jumpstart the same....we know one thing..the era of the mega-mansion, SUV, and sprawl in general is over....now is the time to build UP, not out....all the elements are in place, waiting to ignite...
Here is a link to some really great DT projects, most, surprisingly, being worked on now, though a few are still being planned, and may not happen
And less traffic, access to public transportation, better health (walking instead of driving everywhere).
Privacy? I'm not sure how much privacy you get with some of the tiny-lot subdivisions with 5 neighbors backing up to your tiny backyard.
Space? It gets filled with junk and clutter. And you have to clean it, pay to air condition/heat it, maintain it, etc. Sucks up your time and money.
Freedom? How about freedom from home maintenance like painting, mowing your yard, watering your yard, cleaning gutters, trimming trees, etc.
Think of your carefree days in college. You didn't have to worry about constant home maintenance, too much space, too much stuff, etc... and it was the best time of your life, right? Perhaps some people want to return to that simplicity.
I don't live in a tiny-lot subdivision. But even if I lived on 1/5 of an acre I would not share walls with anyone. That is goodness to me.
Everyone fills the space they have with junk. They purge every few years - unless they are habitual collectors.
I like attending to my home, my yard, etc. I do much of my car maintenance. I like that I take of those things - instead of a landlord, a building manager, or a government employee.
I agree college was a carefree time. But there is no doubt that I enjoy life at 50 in Spicewood more than I enjoyed my life in a ratty apartment in college.
The best predictor of a school's academic performance is the demographics of the community that feeds the schools. Until that changes dramatically - some of these schools will remain mediocre for decades.
And the same demographic that wants good schools generally rejects older smaller homes in favor of newer suburban sized homes (1800-2500+ sqft) priced under $300K. These homes can no longer be produced in the "urban core" because land values are high and government restrictions and requirements are too costly and onerous for developers.
I think the demographic of closer in neighborhoods will remain:
1) Older people who never left. (but are dying off)
2) Younger people, the "cultural creative" motivate more by lifestyle sensibilities than creature comforts.
3) Returning boomers and emtpy nesters.
I'm in the latter category, having downsized and come closer back in. We left Travis Heights in 1996 after being there 5 years, before it was what it is now, and before it was called "SoCo'. It was just organically hip and cool in a rough-edged sort of way back in the early 1990s. Now it tries too hard to be cool and I find it a nice place to visit and hang out, but consider it now to be too "Austified" (Austin synonym of Disneyfication). I have no desire to live there at this stage of life.
But we are now close in West Austin, north of Barton Creek Mall, and, after being in deep South Austin and Oak Hill for 14 years, I had forgotten what it's like to be a 10 minutes away from so much. This close-in convenience is what I think will bring a lot of boomers like my wife and I back closer in over the next decade. We're a bit too old to be hanging too much with the tragically hip younger crowd, but we do want them around and don't ever want to be in a Sun City type lifestyle.
Steve
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) we may decide to live somewhere more urban than the suburbs, but right now it expedites our retirement to save money and live here. OTOH, we may be so deeply rooted here we just don't move :P.
