Austin vs. San Antonio? (Houston, Dallas: section 8, crime rates, high school)
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I'm a Texas-transplant- having grown up in Chicago- so I don't have much of a dog in this fight. Yes, I live in San Antonio now, but find a lot of what's being said here about the city to be absolutely true. It's not that SA is some small cow-town without any chance of making it big, but a combination of public attitude and boring urban sprawl are what (to me) are the downfalls of the Alamo City. It's almost as if San Antonians judge success by the number of chain-eateries they can amass.
I had hoped with a new, younger Mayor would come younger ways of thinking, but so far I've been dead wrong. He's a dud in the forward-thinking department.
The only thing against Austin I can say is that it tries awfully hard to maintain that 'hip' status. In some cities, it just seems to come naturally (Seattle, Venice Beach, LES/NYC), but over the past few years I've watched Austin go from 'weird' to very, very mainstream. Many of the younger set are scratching to hang onto that independent vibe that South Congress used to have before the now-overpriced thrift stores invaded. I remember when The Drag was actually interesting. Now it's filled with 'beggars' who likely have parents driving BMWs and living in the North burbs. Total posers.
It's almost like asking what the hippies did after Woodstock was over. Austin is fully embracing money, the monied lifestyle, mass new development and the big city vibe: It's not weird anymore and it's left a whole population of folks who knew the real Austin far behind. I've always felt that if San Antonio played its cards right, they could be the new 'weird' city and pick up the Austin cast-offs. We're ripe for the scene, but I honestly don't see local ideals making it possible.
Sorry for the long-winded post. Lots to think about.
I'm a Texas-transplant- having grown up in Chicago- so I don't have much of a dog in this fight. Yes, I live in San Antonio now, but find a lot of what's being said here about the city to be absolutely true. It's not that SA is some small cow-town without any chance of making it big, but a combination of public attitude and boring urban sprawl are what (to me) are the downfalls of the Alamo City. It's almost as if San Antonians judge success by the number of chain-eateries they can amass.
I had hoped with a new, younger Mayor would come younger ways of thinking, but so far I've been dead wrong. He's a dud in the forward-thinking department.
The only thing against Austin I can say is that it tries awfully hard to maintain that 'hip' status. In some cities, it just seems to come naturally (Seattle, Venice Beach, LES/NYC), but over the past few years I've watched Austin go from 'weird' to very, very mainstream. Many of the younger set are scratching to hang onto that independent vibe that South Congress used to have before the now-overpriced thrift stores invaded. I remember when The Drag was actually interesting. Now it's filled with 'beggars' who likely have parents driving BMWs and living in the North burbs. Total posers.
It's almost like asking what the hippies did after Woodstock was over. Austin is fully embracing money, the monied lifestyle, mass new development and the big city vibe: It's not weird anymore and it's left a whole population of folks who knew the real Austin far behind. I've always felt that if San Antonio played its cards right, they could be the new 'weird' city and pick up the Austin cast-offs. We're ripe for the scene, but I honestly don't see local ideals making it possible.
Sorry for the long-winded post. Lots to think about.
BN
Excellent post.
I worked in SA for 7 years (lived in New Braunfels) & have now lived in Austin the past 6 years. I think you have nailed the pro's & con's of each city. Austin used to be funky & cool.....now it's "hip"...with plenty of "posers". SA used to be a very comfortable (& very fun) "Big Town", now it is striving to be "hip".
City leaders of each seem to be hopping over dollars to pick up pennies....& both cities have "out of state" businesses, builders & new homeowners that are creating new infrastructure needs that neither city is able to keep up with. And both cities resemble less & less what they once were. (Looks like i'll need to move to San Angelo or Abilene or someplace that is comfortable with their own identity & doesn't feel the need to appeal to the next wave of newcomers or hipsters).
Is San Antonio & Austin merely the new Vegas & Phoenix?
& for the most part I don't have a problem with BMW drivers....but i do have a problem with BMW drivers who complain about no sports teams, no In & Out burgers & that their GPS doesn't work on the new roads (that THEY are responsible for being built). But the main reason i don't have a problem with BMWs is that usually they when they bounce off my truck as they're trying to cut me off they only leave a little nick.... or if when they bump me from behind i usually rub the smudge of pain off (while they're being towed to the nearest body shop).
It's not that SA is some small cow-town without any chance of making it big, but a combination of public attitude and boring urban sprawl are what (to me) are the downfalls of the Alamo City. It's almost as if San Antonians judge success by the number of chain-eateries they can amass.
The only thing against Austin I can say is that it tries awfully hard to maintain that 'hip' status.
BN
Austin (and by this I mean the metro area) is giving San Antonio a run for the money in terms of urban sprawl and chain retail and eateries. I think the core of Austin (and by this I mean the actual city) has tried to maintain its hip and weird vibe, but being surrounded by the sprawling metro area it has become, it is losing the battle and the weirdness is being diluted. Everyone thinks they live in Austin, but less than half actually do. The rest could just as easily be a part of suburbia in any other Texas city, or America for that matter.
In San Antonio's case, the city annexed itself to its sprawl, spreading itself thin in the pursuit of keeping the upper income tax base within its boundaries rather than letting newer areas become their own municipalities. The result is a microcosm of what is America, with everything a constant battle between old and new, poor and relatively rich. The charm and uniqueness is still there in the core of the city, but is balanced with the sprawl.
In short, Austin and San Antonio are both less recognizable today and both are turning more and more into places like DFW and Houston... for better and worse.
As a thirty-something single man, I think Austin has a lot to offer, at least in terms of what I'm looking for. If you're into the indie crowd and somewhat intellectually ambitious people (grad students, writers, filmmakers, etc.), it's a great place to be. Lots of similar people flock there from all over the country. There's quite a bit of attitude, and a ton of totally vacuous hipsters (who are at least fun to look at), but it's also clean, wealthy, and "where it's at."
If I were already "settled down" (in any fashion), I think I would prefer to spend just about all of my time in San Antonio. (As it is, I spend much of the week in San Antonio and much of the weekend in Austin, more or less, although lately SA has been extremely fun on the weekends.) It's quirky, friendly, unique, and oh so affordable--with great architecture in the urban core--and it's only getting better. And this is coming from a socialist, punk rock vegetarian with a PhD and a professorship who loves to hang out, dance, go to shows, etc. San Antonio is truly a unique community with a long history and a multi-generational culture that keeps reproducing itself as THE Tejano stronghold. It's almost like another country, and it lacks little for a guy like me. Great restaurants, great art, and all of your regular haunts become "Cheers"-like establishments--people will always know you and be happy to see you, as long as you're outgoing and not a pretentious bastard.
The parts of San Antonio I like best (the near-north side and the near-south side) remind me of the parts in Austin I like best: South First or the near east side (a little grimy and dilapidated but quite cool). And I still have seen little in Austin that would compare to King William or Monte Vista in San Antonio. The newer, more up-scale neighborhoods in Austin remind me of Alamo Heights and Olmos Park in San Antonio, which are extremely clean and upscale with a lot of good eats and a pretty "professional" vibe.
To break it down: Austin is a really cool "enclave" for the right crowd (and I fit that crowd fairly well), and San Antonio is more of a real city with a real culture (with all of the good and the bad) that, in many places, seems more like Mexico than the United States. Very different places, but both have a lot to offer. Each offers way more in terms of things to do than I could ever make full use of.
Suburban sprawl in each place is probably exactly the same, although Stone Oak in San Antonio has its own little "where it's at" complex going on--not my scene at all.
I don't think SA will ever embrace "hipness" because the point of reference of many people who live there is so far out of touch with the rest of the country. It's like living in the Twilight Zone.
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did have Flemings in there though 
