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I will point out that timing is everything when it comes to driving around Austin. I left my house in far West Oak Hill this morning at 8:40, dropped off my pup at Hill Country Galleria for a grooming, took 71 to SW Pkwy to Mopac to W. Cannon to Brodie to the H2O car wash, and arrived at 9:15. Incredibly swift run. Wish it was always this easy!
The article covers the state, not Austin specifically. Austin is one subset of the larger picture.
I pay more for energy in Austin, than I did in Oregon. I pay more for water as well.
So I am not guessing that the data center, that my employer built, that is across the street from my house, is not getting a lower rate than they did in Oregon unless it is through some sort of subsidy.
I pay more in property taxes here, than I did in Oregon. So why would property taxes be lower for companies, unless it was through some sort of subsidy?
So it is hard for me to believe that Austin (or Texas) has lower energy rates or lower property tax rates than all of the states in the northern part of the country.
My employer built their data center in Austin, for the tax break. The tax break included a requirement to relocate employees here. I know this for a fact.
While not all companies come here for tax breaks, multiple companies have done so. Finding an example where they did not, does not make the fact that many do false.
Even if energy was cheaper in Texas (which it is not), it is not environmentally a good idea to choose a location that requires more energy.
However, if putting solar panels on the data center, produced all of the needed energy to cool the data center, I might feel differently.
But I don't see any solar panels on the data center.
Cost of energy (state average, cents/kWhr):
Commercial:
Texas 7.64
Oregon 8.92 (+16.8%)
California 13.73 (+79.7)
Industrial:
Texas 5.48
Oregon 5.90 (+7.7%)
California 10.38 (+89.4)
Residential:
Texas 12.18
Oregon 10.65 (-12.6%)
California 12.46 (+2.3%)
So, for commercial and industrial users, Texas is cheaper. For residential, Oregon is cheaper. Very likely, Oregon subsidizes residential rates somewhat by charging the industrial users more. Yes, the big users in the Austin Energy area do pay a lower rate per kWhr than residential, but it actually makes sense - they generally have stable, base load usage that is easy to provide, as opposed to peak usage and dropoff. Also, some (many) years ago, AE proposed to the raise the industrial rates, but the big users said 'sure, go ahead, we will build our own plant and not buy from you anymore'.
As a comparison, I threw in CA, which seems very likely to be subsidizing residential use via industrial and commercial rates.
I am technically "part of the problem" - I am a northeast transplant. I moved down here 5 years ago, but in the past 2 years alone, I have seen traffic EXPLODE. It has gotten worse and worse, and is one of the major factors that we are taking into account for wanting to urgently leave Austin entirely.
I am from Long Island, where the major highway, the Long Island Expressway, is a daily nightmare for all commuters. It is widely known as one of the worst, most congested highways on the Eastern seaboard. And yet...I actually MISS that traffic. Why? Because you can GET OFF THE HIGHWAY. They never planned for growth or expansion in Austin, so we have an absolute mess of traffic everywhere we go, with no way to escape it. Getting off I-35 will simply lead to a congested access road that has no other way to...there's no "back roads" or short cuts. Miss an exit, add 20 minutes to your drive. My commute, which was once mildly frustrating, is now absolutely unbearable.
I have also seen a marked increase in rage and aggression on the road, as pointed out numerous times in this article. I have people cut in front of me and hard brake, or rip around me if I'm not going fast enough (FYI - 80mph is NOT fast enough for I-35), or go to great lengths to prevent me from merging into a lane. This is behavior I was accustomed to in the northeast, and something I had grown used to not dealing with. Now, I have had over 10 road rage incidents against me this year, and numerous others in the past 2 years alone. I am told by native Austinites that it seems to stem more from the California driving mentality, but who can be sure? I experienced this a lot in New York too.
On top of all this, my main road, RM 1431, has now become an absolute nightmare. The "geniuses" who plan the roads in Texas opted to make the two lane highway heading toward I-35 a single lane...reserving the right lane for the right turn onto I-35 only. That leaves ONE lane feeding FOUR others - 2 straight, one straight/left turn, and one left. This has made the morning commute worse than ever.
Overall, it has contributed largely to our decision to possibly leave Central Texas. We got a great nest egg here, got started, have house collateral, and can probably make it if we return home now that we have the property. Traffic is contributing to roughly 40% of our decision to leave - the largest reasoning out of all our current reasons for considering the move.
The traffic is really starting to eat away at my love of Austin. Yesterday I had a relapse, eastbound Ben White at 1:20PM. The South to IH35 overpass was backed up as usual, all the way down onto Ben White. It took until almost 2PM for me to get to Slaughter/IH35 for a 2PM appt. It wasn't "road rage" anger, just exasperated feelings of "good grief!", and my daughter who was tagging along had to say "relax Daddy".
[...]
For those of you with a rote commuting schedule, what have you noticed on your well work tail the past 12-24 months? I assume you have to leave earlier or otherwise adjust your schedule.
Steve, I don't know where you started your trip, but if it was from your 'new' house (which is right near ours), we always travel across Slaughter directly and never head up to 290 if we are going to I-35 south of the intersection of 290/I-35.
My commute from SW Austin to 360/Mopac (south) area is largely unchanged over the past couple of years - it is easy in the summer (12 minutes this morning, door to parking spot, 7:30ish departure time) and a bit of a nuisance during the school year (~20-30 minutes, 7:40ish departure time). I can't recall exactly, but a bit over 7 miles, with 2 miles on Escarpment Blvd and only about 1/4 mile on MoPac
Idlewide, wow you made the move, congrats! How are the allergies?
We had the same experience visiting Chicago, my spouse had lived there almost 30 years ago and took public transportation everywhere, this time we had two seniors with us and 7 total, so we drove everywhere and just paid to park (same or less than the El x7 would have cost) and we were stunned. Even driving at 5 pm, even going from south to north the full length of the city, the traffic moved.
In Austin, as was said upthread, demand is overwhelming design. In contrast, in Chicago if anything, the city felt built out to support a bigger population than they have! We never had an issue parking and never had to wait for table in a restaurant and many were half empty!
Such a contrast!
Thanks! Can't believe we've been here for two months already! Allergies are a thing of the past; I can hardly believe it. You recall how much I (and my family) suffered from it all (mold, oak, cedar) and even with constant meds in Austin our QOL was seriously impacted year round. Since being here, I've taken a Zyrtec four times total -- fuzzy, pollen things floating around for a few days -- and the pill knocked it out completely. That's it. Same with the kids. The difference it truly astounding. Makes me a bit sad that we stuck it out for as long as we did. But you forget what your 'normal' once was.
We are experiencing the same thing living here you mention about Chicago. We pay for parking too but we use Park Whiz and pre-pay (so quick) and end up paying what we would have in Austin a lot of the times. Just like you, never have to wait at a restaurant and the options are, of course endless and top notch.
So much to see here, all so close and the culture and scenery are unparalleled.... I just assumed we'd pay the toll with miserable traffic but, honest to God, it's been mostly a breeze. And the weather has been beautiful. And we went to the beach on the weekend, only 1 hr 17 min away -- so pretty -- and the next day we went to the famed American Museum of Natural History in NYC and were there in 32 minutes!
ENJOY!! so glad it is working out for you. Mold is very high in Austin right now and we are getting African dust on top of it and probably some high ozone days soon too! Not fun. I manage with daily Zyrtec but others in the family really struggle.
Steve, I don't know where you started your trip, but if it was from your 'new' house (which is right near ours), we always travel across Slaughter directly and never head up to 290 if we are going to I-35 south of the intersection of 290/I-35.
My commute from SW Austin to 360/Mopac (south) area is largely unchanged over the past couple of years - it is easy in the summer (12 minutes this morning, door to parking spot, 7:30ish departure time) and a bit of a nuisance during the school year (~20-30 minutes, 7:40ish departure time). I can't recall exactly, but a bit over 7 miles, with 2 miles on Escarpment Blvd and only about 1/4 mile on MoPac
Actually, I was coming from downtown South on Mopac. If leaving from VaWO I would have gone east on Slaughter.
I forgot to mention I was rear ended last week under Mopac at Rollingwood, leaving Zilker Park. I sat and watched inn my rearview as some idiot in an older SUV skidded right into me. Just a tap, luckily, as my entire family was with me. As I gathered his info I asked why he was driving so fast. "Just in a hurry I guess". I guess.
Austin has become a rat race. I'm really sad about that.
I read threads like this with the hope that maybe people actually are fed up with traffic and will leave (or at least growth will slow down), but it never happens. I guess it's just empty complaining. Has there ever been a city in the US that has seen a decline because traffic got too bad?
Interestingly, the Round Rock/Pflugerville population has exploded but we can still zip around in minutes. Excepting the occasional road closure, we have little to no issues getting around. The farthest we go into Austin outside of work days is North around Lakeline. It seems like Austin period has traffic problems regardless of day. As for rush hours, thankfully I take public transportation. It's just "okay" but it's better than dealing with traffic any day.
Idlewild - I take it you moved to Northern Jersey? Funny that I moved FROM NYC and you moved TO NYC (area). Glad it's working out for you. Personally, all the traffic and allergies don't make me want to live there ever again.
The article covers the state, not Austin specifically. Austin is one subset of the larger picture.
It is impossible to quantify how many of those companies would have come here anyway. I don't like corporate welfare, but even setting aside the state Enterprise fund, Texas is simply an easy place to do business. You are an employee, so you just see what hits the news media -- you don't see the regulatory burden in places like New York or California.
Even setting aside the regulatory burden as well, would you rather pay a state income tax between 2 and 11 percent, or none at all? For some businesses, the advantages of being in a place like NYC or LA outweigh that cost (or they don't have a choice) - but between even Austin's cost of living and NYC, it's a no brainer.
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I pay more for energy in Austin, than I did in Oregon. I pay more for water as well.
Oregon has some of the cheapest electricity in the nation. Texas is not far behind it, though:
So I am not guessing that the data center, that my employer built, that is across the street from my house, is not getting a lower rate than they did in Oregon unless it is through some sort of subsidy.
They are getting out of paying a 6.6-7.6% tax on their corporate income. Having said that, Oregon is a pretty business-friendly state, so I do wonder what would cause them to move here - Texas is ahead of it on the 2015 Business Tax climate rankings but only by two places.
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I pay more in property taxes here, than I did in Oregon. So why would property taxes be lower for companies, unless it was through some sort of subsidy?
That is much worse in Austin than elsewhere in central Texas, but you're right that, when the state does give out incentives to companies, it's typically in the form of property tax breaks - though usually for a fixed period of time.
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So it is hard for me to believe that Austin (or Texas) has lower energy rates or lower property tax rates than all of the states in the northern part of the country.
There is very little in common from one state to the next in 'the northern part of the country' - New York is completely different than Oregon. It was an easy move for my company to come here; from Oregon, the incentive would be less.
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My employer built their data center in Austin, for the tax break. The tax break included a requirement to relocate employees here. I know this for a fact.
As you pointed out, one example does not make a case. Look at the NY Times' list - it's a few pages of large companies. What about small to medium size companies that make up the majority of the workforce in the country? Why are they coming here?
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Even if energy was cheaper in Texas (which it is not), it is not environmentally a good idea to choose a location that requires more energy.
I am assuming your job at a data center is not location scouting for data centers, because the outside temperature, while not unimportant, is pretty far down the list.
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