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Old 02-10-2015, 11:36 PM
 
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My husband's work is relocating us to Austin in June. We currently live in the Capital Hill area of Denver. I am wondering if anyone has lived in both Denver and Austin - IN THE CITY - and can provide a comparison? For example "the city" of Denver has downtown, uptown, cap hill, Cheesman park, etc. So I assume "the city" of Austin has a similar breakdown (but different names). Can anyone provide a comparison ie. the cap hill area of Denver is like the "fill in the blank" area of Austin, etc. Also if anyone could point out "not so great areas/high crime" area?

We plan on renting at first with a max rent of $2300 - non-negotiable is 2 bed, central air, garage parking, washer dryer, and accepts pets. We want to be in the city but not right downtown if that makes sense - just like the cap hill area of Denver. Would also like to be close to a park or lake - somewhere close I can take my dog for walks (we usually do about 2 miles each walk). Also be close to a large grocery store and health food store.

We will be taking a trip before we move but we have such a short time to plan the move that any info would be really helpful. It's hard to even search for apartments because I am searching downtown even though I want to be a little outside of downtown.

I did see the posts comparing Denver to Austin but those were more general about the city, weather, the people, etc. I'm really hoping someone can give me good descriptions and comparisons of the actual neighborhoods.

Thanks!

Last edited by adamsona28; 02-10-2015 at 11:47 PM.. Reason: Forgot to mention being near a park or lake.
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Old 02-11-2015, 01:36 AM
 
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Soco should fill your needs. I've lived in both cities and have to say they are very similar yet very different when it comes to neighborhoods. Nothing quite like capital hill in austin. But your price range will get you into almost any 'hood other than a highrise downtown.
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Old 02-11-2015, 06:33 AM
 
Location: Austin, TX
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I'd second Soco but also have a look at Mueller. It's 'the' 'downtown but not downtown' area, sort of like if you took suburbia, smooshed it up real good, and dropped it around East 38th street. Very different feel from SoCo but your rental budget should be just fine for a 2 bed most anywhere.
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Old 02-11-2015, 06:59 AM
 
Location: Greater NYC
3,176 posts, read 6,191,022 times
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I lived in Denver area for 13 years. I have lived in various areas and towns across the Denver Metro, including, Cheesman Park and Uptown proper.

Denver is a much larger city that Austin. The Denver downtown area (big buildings, major commerce etc.) is SUBSTANTIALLY larger than its Austin counterpart. You could walk from edge to edge of downtown Austin -- the portion with larger buildings -- in 15 minutes. Within that area, for whatever reason, they've named the pockets (streets really but they call them districts), but they comprise a much smaller physical area than you are used to.

You could compare Denver to Seattle or Chicago and it's urban neighborhoods but trying to compare it to Austin areas will only frustrate you because Austin doesn't have the depth and breath of urban neighborhoods you are accustomed to. Many say it is just a large college town that's exploded with people and commerce but the infrastructure and areas are having a tough time keeping up.

At any rate, there is no counterpart for Capitol Hill.

(I assume your husband's work is located in downtown proper? If it is not, and is in another part of Austin that requires highway travel, it would be a brutal mistake to live downtown and have to commute, say to NW Austin, as Austin traffic, on the whole, is much worse than Denver's.)

SoCo is a good suggestion. Travis Heights and Boudin could be good bets as well.

Maybe Hyde Park is a bit like Wash Park but that's a stretch... UT college student-heavy.

Tarrytown, Clarksville, Enfield, Bryker Woods, and Rosedale are considered central Austin but they do not really match up to Capitol Hill as some are much farther removed from downtown than I think you want. I do love Clarksville though and it is close in.

There are areas I could try and compare to The Highlands etc. (another stretch) but they're not adjacent to downtown.

Also realize that most of Denver, as in within city limits, could be considered urban or semi-urban. In Austin, it's the opposite; most of the people on this board have an Austin address but live in areas that are considered "in the suburbs" -- in other words, NOT semi-urban or urban. This took a little bit for me to get used to.

Plenty of great neighborhoods here (above) but they don't really correspond to places you're used to in downtown Denver because Austin's city space is considerably smaller.

This may be helpful:
http://move-to-austin.com/austin-tx-...-descriptions/
https://www.mapsofaustin.com/austin-neighborhoods

Since your husband's company is relocating you, there shouldn't be an issue with them flying you down sooner so you can arrange for an apartment in a reasonable amount of time and you can then use that weekend to have an apartment locator or realtor take you around so you can familiarize yourself with the different areas.... most relocations take that route timeframe-wise. Good luck.

Last edited by Idlewile; 02-11-2015 at 07:14 AM..
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Old 02-11-2015, 07:19 AM
 
Location: Sacramento Mtns of NM
4,280 posts, read 9,115,248 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by borgerboy View Post
Soco should fill your needs.
SoCo = South Congress and neighborhoods to either side of Congress, for those who don't know.
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Old 02-11-2015, 07:44 AM
 
684 posts, read 807,621 times
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Hope you are ready for a huge shock, Denver to Austin ? Its VERY different, you wont find the amazing outdoors that CO offers in TX just a heads up, it wont be able to touch that scale.

Austin is a growing city, and as mentioned before its not on a big scale comparable to other real major cities.
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Old 02-11-2015, 11:23 PM
 
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Thanks for the replies. I don't see soco on the map of "downtown" so it's actually pretty far south? I also don't see hyde park - is that south as well? Is Clarksville a safe area? It seems the closest to downtown.
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Old 02-12-2015, 01:57 AM
 
Location: home
1,235 posts, read 1,523,978 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by adamsona28 View Post
Thanks for the replies. I don't see soco on the map of "downtown" so it's actually pretty far south? I also don't see hyde park - is that south as well? Is Clarksville a safe area? It seems the closest to downtown.
South Congress is just south of the lake, and DT Austin is growing towards the lake (lake = 200ft wide river, actually), but various South Austin neighborhood associations are fighting to keep it north. There is a push from developers to start lining the south shore, Barton Springs road and Riverside drive with hi-rises, and without these associations, downtown would straddle the river, like it does in Chicago. The spillover for the south shore demand is manifesting itself where it can, most notably along South Lamar and East Riverside.

http://www.statesman.com/news/busine...de-grow/nXT6Y/

Last edited by sojourner77; 02-12-2015 at 02:19 AM..
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Old 02-12-2015, 08:14 AM
 
2,602 posts, read 2,965,515 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by sojourner77 View Post
(lake = 200ft wide river, actually)
650 ft at the congress bridge.

Widening out to more than a quarter mile just in front of the dam.
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Old 02-12-2015, 10:01 AM
 
9 posts, read 8,880 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by adamsona28 View Post
Thanks for the replies. I don't see soco on the map of "downtown" so it's actually pretty far south? I also don't see hyde park - is that south as well? Is Clarksville a safe area? It seems the closest to downtown.
Clarksville is immediately north and west of downtown, roughly bordered by West 6th St, Lamar Blvd, West Enfield/15th St, and MoPac. It is considered "old", historic Austin and it's very safe (besides property crime) but also has very expensive rents and home prices nowadays because of its proximity to downtown; not a lot of available properties. Hyde Park is larger -- it starts roughly around 38th St up to 51st St, bordered by Guadalupe St and I-35. It is very safe, too, with the property crime exception, populated by college students, professors, families, and young professionals. It has more affordable prices and more properties to choose from than Clarksville. SoCo offers slightly more "walkability" to bars, restaurants, shops, etc. but Clarksville and Hyde Park have plenty of that, too, it just depends on where you are located.
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