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Honestly, that is very comparable to Charlotte's projects in the high-rise/mid-rise category and urban infill. Austin does have more currently under construction, or about to start. Within a year, Charlotte will be catching up to Austin on high-rises being built, assuming some of those proposed projects in Austin don't take off.
Charlotte has more light rail being built as we speak, plus streetcar and massive freeway widening and new one's being built and/or retrofitted for freeway (US 74 in East Charlotte, Monroe Bypass). Austin has none of that being built that I can see.
I'm a little confused as to why Austin is ahead of Charlotte on this poll, when they are winning on high-rises, but not even in the same stratosphere on infrastructure/rail? Maybe I'm missing something there....
I live in north Texas, have family in Charlotte and frequent Austin. What you are missing is Charlotte, despite being of similar size, is not Austin. It was surpassed ten years ago by Austin for several reasons:
1. Austin is a capital and has the largest and wealthiest university in the South, the University of Texas.
Those two variables guarantee local economic stability, institutions which Charlotte doesn't have.
2. Austin has a hot, vital industry-Technology. Texas is second only to California in Tech jobs. The only
silicon chip plants Samsung has outside of Korea are in Austin, these assets represent a $15billion
investment. Apple has a 50 acre campus under construction there. Whole Foods and Dell call Austin
home. Charlotte has Bank of America and Lowes Home Improvement as economic anchors but really what else?
3. Tourism is greater there than Charlotte. Charlotte has the NASCAR HOF and two races. Austin
is gateway to the Texas Hill Country, camping, wineries, artists, ranches, hunting, several lakes.
Austin has the two of the three biggest music festivals in the U.S. (SXSW and ACL). The city hosts
the U.S. Formula One Grand Prix. its why the largest J.W. Marriot in the U.S. is almost finished in
downtown Austin.
I live in north Texas, have family in Charlotte and frequent Austin. What you are missing is Charlotte, despite being of similar size, is not Austin. It was surpassed ten years ago by Austin for several reasons:
1. Austin is a capital and has the largest and wealthiest university in the South, the University of Texas.
Those two variables guarantee local economic stability, institutions which Charlotte doesn't have.
2. Austin has a hot, vital industry-Technology. Texas is second only to California in Tech jobs. The only
silicon chip plants Samsung has outside of Korea are in Austin, these assets represent a $15billion
investment. Apple has a 50 acre campus under construction there. Whole Foods and Dell call Austin
home. Charlotte has Bank of America and Lowes Home Improvement as economic anchors but really what else?
3. Tourism is greater there than Charlotte. Charlotte has the NASCAR HOF and two races. Austin
is gateway to the Texas Hill Country, camping, wineries, artists, ranches, hunting, several lakes.
Austin has the two of the three biggest music festivals in the U.S. (SXSW and ACL). The city hosts
the U.S. Formula One Grand Prix. its why the largest J.W. Marriot in the U.S. is almost finished in
downtown Austin.
You have a valid point about UT, but the rest is flawed. Texas is a huge state, and "tech jobs" is very vague. I have no problem believing Texas has the second most, but they most certainly aren't all concentrated in Austin. Using that definition it's very likely Austin doesn't even have the most in the state! Austin has a thriving tech scene, but is still well below Silicon Valley, not to mention places like Seattle, Boston, and NYC. Even though I think this point is usually overblown, Charlotte does have banking. As such, it draws many other firms into the area even if it isn't where their HQs are located, just like what Apple and Samsung are doing in Austin with tech.
People are not coming from all over the country to go camping, visit wineries, and swim in Austin's lakes. I agree that Austin is a bigger tourist draw, but I think it is more inconsistent than some would like to believe. It centers around things like SXSW and conventions. By the way, Marriott's largest hotels are not under the JW brand. They are under the Marquis brand for the most part. To give you an example, a hotel project rumored to be a future Marquis going through the permitting and design review process in Seattle has over 1700 rooms proposed.
I live in north Texas, have family in Charlotte and frequent Austin. What you are missing is Charlotte, despite being of similar size, is not Austin. It was surpassed ten years ago by Austin for several reasons:
1. Austin is a capital and has the largest and wealthiest university in the South, the University of Texas.
Those two variables guarantee local economic stability, institutions which Charlotte doesn't have.
2. Austin has a hot, vital industry-Technology. Texas is second only to California in Tech jobs. The only
silicon chip plants Samsung has outside of Korea are in Austin, these assets represent a $15billion
investment. Apple has a 50 acre campus under construction there. Whole Foods and Dell call Austin
home. Charlotte has Bank of America and Lowes Home Improvement as economic anchors but really what else?
3. Tourism is greater there than Charlotte. Charlotte has the NASCAR HOF and two races. Austin
is gateway to the Texas Hill Country, camping, wineries, artists, ranches, hunting, several lakes.
Austin has the two of the three biggest music festivals in the U.S. (SXSW and ACL). The city hosts
the U.S. Formula One Grand Prix. its why the largest J.W. Marriot in the U.S. is almost finished in
downtown Austin.
Formerly living in Austin and now living in Charlotte, I can tell you majority of your post is not true.
1. While Austin has the University of Texas, this does not mean economic stability. Austin could experience what Charlotte did in 2008/2009 at any time.
2. Austin's spot in the technology industry is on par with Charlotte's position as a banking city and let's not ignore the fact Charlotte has more Fortune 500 headquarters (therefore more economic anchors) as well as a larger economy.
3. No, tourism in Austin is not greater than in Charlotte. At least when comparing annual tourism numbers (Charlotte's 25 million vs. Austin's 19.7 million).
I live in north Texas, have family in Charlotte and frequent Austin. What you are missing is Charlotte, despite being of similar size, is not Austin. It was surpassed ten years ago by Austin for several reasons:
1. Austin is a capital and has the largest and wealthiest university in the South, the University of Texas.
Those two variables guarantee local economic stability, institutions which Charlotte doesn't have.
2. Austin has a hot, vital industry-Technology. Texas is second only to California in Tech jobs. The only
silicon chip plants Samsung has outside of Korea are in Austin, these assets represent a $15billion
investment. Apple has a 50 acre campus under construction there. Whole Foods and Dell call Austin
home. Charlotte has Bank of America and Lowes Home Improvement as economic anchors but really what else?
3. Tourism is greater there than Charlotte. Charlotte has the NASCAR HOF and two races. Austin
is gateway to the Texas Hill Country, camping, wineries, artists, ranches, hunting, several lakes.
Austin has the two of the three biggest music festivals in the U.S. (SXSW and ACL). The city hosts
the U.S. Formula One Grand Prix. its why the largest J.W. Marriot in the U.S. is almost finished in
downtown Austin.
1. Being a state capital isn't much of a guarantee in and of itself; the small/midsized state capitals of sizable states proves as much (e.g., Albany, Tallahassee, Springfield, Harrisburg, Lansing, etc.). UT is certainly an asset that is unmatched in Charlotte, but two points of correction: the University of Central Florida is the largest university in the South by enrollment, and Duke University is the wealthiest in the South by endowment. UT isn't far behind either though and is certainly much further ahead than any university in metro Charlotte.
2. As of 2012, Charlotte has a metropolitan GDP of $137.2 billion compared to Austin's $98.7 billion. Charlotte has BOA and Lowes, plus six other F500 companies including the nation's largest utility (Duke Energy) and the nation's largest steel producer (Nucor). Other notable companies headquartered in the area include Chiquita, Extended Stay Hotels, and Continental Tire the Americas.
3. Austin barely edges Charlotte out in tourism, most likely due to events such as SXSW and ACL, but the two cities are very much comparable in this regard. In 2010, Austin attracted 19.8 million visitors with an economic impact of $3.9 billion. Charlotte attracted 18 million visitors with an economic impact of $3.5 billion.
So your statement that Charlotte was supposedly surpassed by Austin 10 years ago seems to be without much merit at all.
I live in north Texas, have family in Charlotte and frequent Austin. What you are missing is Charlotte, despite being of similar size, is not Austin. It was surpassed ten years ago by Austin for several reasons:
1. Austin is a capital and has the largest and wealthiest university in the South, the University of Texas.
Those two variables guarantee local economic stability, institutions which Charlotte doesn't have.
2. Austin has a hot, vital industry-Technology. Texas is second only to California in Tech jobs. The only
silicon chip plants Samsung has outside of Korea are in Austin, these assets represent a $15billion
investment. Apple has a 50 acre campus under construction there. Whole Foods and Dell call Austin
home. Charlotte has Bank of America and Lowes Home Improvement as economic anchors but really what else?
3. Tourism is greater there than Charlotte. Charlotte has the NASCAR HOF and two races. Austin
is gateway to the Texas Hill Country, camping, wineries, artists, ranches, hunting, several lakes.
Austin has the two of the three biggest music festivals in the U.S. (SXSW and ACL). The city hosts
the U.S. Formula One Grand Prix. its why the largest J.W. Marriot in the U.S. is almost finished in
downtown Austin.
You didn't research this very well before you typed....
This is one thing Charlotte needs... a major med school. UNC system doesn't want UNC-Charlotte to have a med school. Only thing Charlotte has right now is this: UNC School of Medicine Charlotte Campus > Medical & Clinical Education, for 3rd year med students. Been rumor of Queens University partnering with Presbyterian Hospital for a med school one day...
This is one thing Charlotte needs... a major med school. UNC system doesn't want UNC-Charlotte to have a med school. Only thing Charlotte has right now is this: UNC School of Medicine Charlotte Campus > Medical & Clinical Education, for 3rd year med students. Been rumor of Queens University partnering with Presbyterian Hospital for a med school one day...
Having UT-Austin is a huge bonus for Austin.
You guys might eventually get one because the situation was similar for UT-Austin. It just takes a change in the political environment for it to happen.
I live in north Texas, have family in Charlotte and frequent Austin. What you are missing is Charlotte, despite being of similar size, is not Austin. It was surpassed ten years ago by Austin for several reasons:
1. Austin is a capital and has the largest and wealthiest university in the South, the University of Texas.
Those two variables guarantee local economic stability, institutions which Charlotte doesn't have.
2. Austin has a hot, vital industry-Technology. Texas is second only to California in Tech jobs. The only
silicon chip plants Samsung has outside of Korea are in Austin, these assets represent a $15billion
investment. Apple has a 50 acre campus under construction there. Whole Foods and Dell call Austin
home. Charlotte has Bank of America and Lowes Home Improvement as economic anchors but really what else?
3. Tourism is greater there than Charlotte. Charlotte has the NASCAR HOF and two races. Austin
is gateway to the Texas Hill Country, camping, wineries, artists, ranches, hunting, several lakes.
Austin has the two of the three biggest music festivals in the U.S. (SXSW and ACL). The city hosts
the U.S. Formula One Grand Prix. its why the largest J.W. Marriot in the U.S. is almost finished in
downtown Austin.
This isn't helpful and most everything listed is outside the scope of the conversation. Austin probably has more construction going on than any city under 3 million, but no reason to side track it.
For the person earlier asking for a list. I submitted a link that lists out all the various projects, but I can provide a more concise link on current projects U/C and planned. Credit goes to Hill Country at SkyScrapers.
Here's an updated list of proposed high rise projects:
I believe there are some proposals missing from this, but its still a good overall summary of what is going on in downtown Austin. This does not include anything infrastructure related. These are only 100ft+ buildings.
Good list. I saw that on Austin's UP page last week. There's a semi-interactive Google map for Charlotte projects, but it hasn't been updated in a long time, and a few things were actually deleted for no apparent reason.
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