Where would you move if you were to leave Austin? (San Antonio: home, neighborhoods)

[Shredding_Gnar78]

Originally Posted by ImOnFiya

what really do you know?

read the OP, k thanks.

[orngkat]

Native here (well almost) and yes, in the past few years things have definitely changed with all of the influx. I sometimes say to my husband "who are all these people and what is happening to our city?" when we are out and about. We will be leaving in a few years to some place smaller, cooler and with a slower tempo - still doing the research...

[ImOnFiya]

Originally Posted by orngkat

Native here (well almost) and yes, in the past few years things have definitely changed with all of the influx. I sometimes say to my husband "who are all these people and what is happening to our city?" when we are out and about. We will be leaving in a few years to some place smaller, cooler and with a slower tempo - still doing the research...

Because of the people, the atmosphere, or is it retirement? Personally, I don't get the complaining...sorry, I was raised Texan. Deal with it, solve it, or don't talk. Texans are resilient, tough, and not whiny.

Don't start now.

[lemonlime22]

Originally Posted by Shredding_Gnar78

I moved here from Cali last year. I've traveled extensively and internationally.. which gave me plenty of reference. Austin seemed like a great place for me; a single musician that does tech stuff for a living.

I had no pre-conceived notion that Austin is being inundated with Californians. Perhaps this would have changed my path. Regardless, a year later, I realized that this wonderful city is being transformed rapidly. And sadly I feel like I may have got here late.

Yes. Way late.

I think the best thing in Austin is the people.. and by that, I mean generally the Austin Natives and Central Texans. I love the lush green landscape, beautiful red and blue birds, downtown events, great food, and job opportunities. Spring and Fall are unequivocally beautiful here. Once I made some friends, I was downtown and starting getting some dates, meeting some really fun girls. Which was a great change. (ever heard of 'man-diego?') I have a nice apartment now, which took about 6 months to find. Alas, Austin has welcomed me with open arms.

My beef is that, in the short time since my arrival, I've watched construction downtown... $3000/mo apartments and people with $75,000 cars that have out of state plates, etc. I have heard over and over again that:

A) the old Austin is on its way out. The local government people, collaborating with developers, are going to make this place into their own vision of a 'hip' town, which is basically a marketing vehicle to attract more rich people. I also heard that many people moved here from Louisiana and the gulf area after Katrina, and more recently, the oil spill. Summary: more people, new yuppie playground downtown.
[COLOR="rgb(46, 139, 87)"]
I guess it's a matter of perspective but, I think "old Austin" was gone a long time ago. The Whole Foods you mention is two models ago for some of us...[/color]

B) the city doesn't have the infrastructure to support the current level of growth (2011 census put Austin at 20% population growth in the last 10 years) Sprawl will continue in all directions.
It NEVER did.

C) no musicians are thrilled about the situation here, as far as I can tell. I have dozens of musician friends. The slogan "The live music capital of the world" has become dark satire. Don't get me wrong - I love blues and cover bands as much as the next guy. But go the Austin craigslist musican section... lots of frustration and negative energy. SXSW isn't what it was. Everything has a time horizon. I don't mean to be rude, but frankly, I've never understood why musicians moved here anyway. Maybe I'm hopelessly out of it, but really, when is the last time Austin has produce a nationally known (and successful) band/singer? Please don't say Stevie Ray...If you're really interested in earning a living from your music, I think you ought to go where the music companies have offices. Nashville was my first thought. But if you can't stomach another oceanless burg, get your butt to NYC. I hear there are plenty of authentically cool, busily gentrifying neighborhoods in Brooklyn to enjoy (Greenpoint, Red Hook, Williamsburg) and no one will mistake them for Miami or the OC.

D) apartments and jobs are tight. My rent went up 15% in the first year. I spent 3 months of daily job searching to find something worth calling a job.. and it ended up being pretty crappy because of a poor business model and deceptive CEO. But I've got my foot in the door and have 2 interviews this week And as someone posted on this board, real estate is most likely going to experience growth when compared to the market nationally.

I grew up in Orange County and lived in both LA and San Diego. I love the beach and the burritos... San Diego wasn't easy to leave... (OC blows)
I'm with you, I miss the ocean!!! But I can't do snow anymore. Still working on it...

I loathe the plastic Socal culture of selfishness and greed. Pretentiousness of the rich OC elitists was something I grew up with and learned to adapt to. (I took to punk and metal music, started smoking and being a bad kid at like 12 years old) The urban sprawl, over development, traffic, competition for everything. Where is the love? It like a commercial culture, where everyone is caught in some idea - some picture - that was sold in a magazine. After the recession, liveable wage jobs were few and far between. The state of California doesn't do much to attract business like other states do. Yes, plastic. It IS becoming more California in that sense (only without the ocean, mountains, and perfect weather!) My husband calls the culture here 'adolescent'.

Anyway, long story short, I've made my way here.. and now I'm thinking about the future. My Mom always told me "you have to live where you can work". She's so smart. People keep moving here for whatever reason, but from what I observe, the city was never built to scale. And much of this new Austin looks like home in the OC. The same thing happened to San Francisco. Things Change. Everything has a time horizon.

I'm pretty good at forecasting.... I see Downtown Austin turning into something like Santa Monica in the next 5 years or so... a culture that features material wealth, where you are judged on your physical appearance more than anything. If you want to see it first hand, go to whole foods on 6th and Lamar on Sunday afternoon. That, in my opinion, is the epicenter, and the focal point of my argument.

where do we go now, sweet child of mine?

Good luck in whatever you decide.

[orngkat]

Because of the people, the atmosphere, or is it retirement?[LEFT]
Read more: //www.city-data.com/forum/austi...#ixzz1NTnWPgFe
[/LEFT]

Just time for a change...not sure what I would be able to change about people's general behavior which I think has gone downhill in our fair city.

[soundlightmaya]

I'd say Seattle-ish area but I'm thinkin' of heading towards Austin~ (native Texan from South Padre)..i have loved much about living here for near 8 years~ but bottomline it just gets too cold (friendly factor) and rainy and it's terribly expensive. I'm gonna lose my mind if I don't adapt to a serious lack of Sun. I think LIVABLE wage is a growing problem everywhere. I may try vagabonding or going mobile with Internet-based pursuits. Check out sites like 4HWW and relateds? [url=http://untemplater.com/mobile-lifestyle/37-young-bloggers-who-will-get-you-excited-to-shatter-the-template-lifestyle/]40 Young Bloggers Who Will Get You Excited to Shatter the Template Lifestyle - Untemplater[/url]

Best!

[kube]

For what it's worth, my wife and I are moving from Austin to Portland, Oregon in a month. I've lived in Austin since 1998 (when I started going to school at UT), and I've seen some of the changes you describe. We aren't moving so much to get away from these changes, it's just that since we've lived here 10+ years (our entire 20's) and have felt the last couple of years have been a bit repetitive.

I have my personal favorite hangout spots (various coffee shops, pubs, restaurants, music venues), but I have hung out downtown along the same strips of Duval/North Loop/Burnet Rd/East Side/UT/South Lamar/Congress/Red River so many times now that my days are starting to blend together and I'd like a more drastic change than changing neighborhoods within the same city again.

We are aware of Portland's downsides (mostly weather and job market related), but we found it to be a good match when we visited during the rainy season. Seemed to have a reasonable cost of living, we loved the food/beer/coffee/carts, its proximity to other major cities (Seattle, Vancouver, San Francisco) and parks/lakes, the public transportation is much better, and it had the laid back vibe that we like about Austin. Plenty of people are moving TO Austin from Portland/Seattle/San Fran though, so we'll see how it goes for us.

[AustinGuy]

Originally Posted by kube

For what it's worth, my wife and I are moving from Austin to Portland, Oregon in a month. I've lived in Austin since 1998 (when I started going to school at UT), and I've seen some of the changes you describe. We aren't moving so much to get away from these changes, it's just that since we've lived here 10+ years (our entire 20's) and have felt the last couple of years have been a bit repetitive.

Portland will be a great city to live in for a few years as a change from Austin. Of course, there are a lot of similarities with the vibe of the city, but the scenery is much different and there are lots of amazing places within driving distance. Good luck on your move.

[AustinGuy]

Personally, if I ever leave Austin, it will be to San Diego, Santa Barbara, Marin, or Hawaii. Gotta make some more money before I even consider any of the above places though.

[je4xff]

Originally Posted by Shredding_Gnar78

A) the old Austin is on its way out.

People have been saying this for as long as I can remember...

In 20 years, when Austin is still the bomb, people will still be saying it.

Originally Posted by AustinGuy

Personally, if I ever leave Austin, it will be to San Diego, Santa Barbara, Marin, or Hawaii. Gotta make some more money before I even consider any of the above places though.

Not planning on leaving either, but if they kick me out, I'll see you in Hawaii...