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Location: Pittsburgh--Home of the 6 time Super Bowl Champions!
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Originally Posted by AustinTexan
I have a passion for Austin that none of you will probably ever understand. I love Texas as well, obviously, but I don't have the same passion as I do for Austin. I'm not full of hate whatsoever! In fact, if you met me in person, you'd never believe I was the one posting on here. I don't mean to come across as a "hater", believe me. I just want others to someday share that "spirit" that most Texans have with others that someday come along. If my ranting convinces anyone to come here with an open mind, a kinder heart, and a sensitivity to the culture, environment, and its people, then I've been successful. I'm a Longhorn at heart, graduated from there in 1995 and I bleed orange. I want Austin to remain a special place and I want it to retain it's identity. There are too many people coming here with the same ideals, standards, and mannerisms as they had in California, Ohio, etc. and it doesn't mesh well with the locals. I had a good friend who moved here from Michigan who was absolutely HATED by everyone in our company because of the way he treated everyone. After 3 years here, he's finally coming around and starting to act more "Texan." Seriously, he is already night and day different from the moment he arrived in Austin. Now that his "shell" has been broken, he's such a nice guy and he's fun to be around. Seriously, I don't mean anything personal against anyone from California or wherever, I just love this city so much, it often comes out a me just being a "jerk." I just don't know how else to get my points across. If you had seen your beloved city endure the kind of change we have seen here the past 5 years, you wouldn't be questioning my posts. It's like seeing a loved one slowly die right before your eyes and know that there was absolutely nothing you could do but sit there and watch. Well, instead of just sitting there, I'm on here trying to make people more "aware" of what's going on and hoping to change a few people...........from coming here. LOL!! No, I'm kidding.
I KNEW there was a nice Texan in there just waiting to come out This post gives me a whole new impression of you. I understand your frustration--I really do, but there are some of us on here that LOVE Austin and just want to live there...not to come in and buy up property and change things. Heck, I plan on renting. I did the house ownership and quite frankly, I'm tired of all the upkeep that goes along with ownership. I plan on adapting to the "Texas" way of life. I love the pride that goes along with the state. The first year I visited, way back in the 90's, I thought "ok this is a little too much state pride" Heck the dairy queen even had their logo colored and designed to look like the Texas flag! Over the years, I have come to accept it, embrace it and LOVE the state pride. I have a TX flag shirt, a TX flag blanket, a TX flag apron, TX magnets all over my refrigerator (no kids--so no art work Anyways, not everyone that moves there wants to change things, they are moving for a more relaxed, laid back lifestyle and the chance to live in an AWESOME city.
Last edited by TexasGirl@Heart; 04-23-2008 at 01:48 PM..
Reason: spelling
...there are some of us on here that LOVE Austin and just want to live there...not to come in and buy up property and change things. Heck, I plan on renting. I did the house ownership and quite frankly, I'm tired of all the upkeep that goes along with ownership.
Ditto.
Not only did we own a house, but we owned a duplex and were landlords. The house was built in 1922 so...lots of work. This time last year, I was up to my *ss in renovations. We made $3,000 on the sale of our house after living there for 8 years(and we were considered lucky to sell it at all)-that's how crummy the housing market is in the Cleveland area. As someone else mentioned on another thread, just getting out of there right now was an accomplishment.
When we decided to "eject" from our situation, it was with the idea that we would live as close to our jobs and the city as we could afford, share a car, take the bus/walk/bike when possible, and generally live small and efficient. We sold a bunch of our stuff which is so very liberating once you sever the emotional ties. Everything we have now, we use. We almost never sit in traffic as we rarely need to use I-35, MoPac or 183. I don't have to fix anything in our apartment, just the occasional cosmetic touch-just call and voila!, some guy fixes it. We are really loving that decision. Although we are making less $$ here, we are actually getting out of debt and enjoying a more stress-free lifestyle. Could we have moved somewhere else to achieve this? Probably. But we had a job opportunity and family here, so it made sense. The fact that I'm involved in music/arts was just icing on the cake.
We've talked about buying, but since we wouldn't be able to afford anything as close as we are now(which we really like), we might just rent indefinitely and save our money for something else. Travel? Maybe a vacation shack somewhere?
We've talked about buying, but since we wouldn't be able to afford anything as close as we are now(which we really like), we might just rent indefinitely and save our money for something else. Travel? Maybe a vacation shack somewhere?
I had the same exact thoughts and did just that in California. Unfortunately, house prices skyrocketed and rents doubled. If we had purchased a home instead of renting, then we would have been in much better shape in the long run. We enjoyed our time renting a half block from the beach, but I'm not sure if it was worth it since we were quickly priced out of our nice rental and had to move further away anyway.
I had the same exact thoughts and did just that in California. Unfortunately, house prices skyrocketed and rents doubled. If we had purchased a home instead of renting, then we would have been in much better shape in the long run. We enjoyed our time renting a half block from the beach, but I'm not sure if it was worth it since we were quickly priced out of our nice rental and had to move further away anyway.
Great point and it's certainly a risk. It's just hard for us to reconcile living in an area we're not crazy about just so that we can "own". It's a tough call. If we were at a point in our lives where living in a rural area was an option, the choice would be simple. But right now I really like being 5 minutes from my job, restaurants, Town Lake, coffee houses, the library, etc...
Great point and it's certainly a risk. It's just hard for us to reconcile living in an area we're not crazy about just so that we can "own". It's a tough call. If we were at a point in our lives where living in a rural area was an option, the choice would be simple. But right now I really like being 5 minutes from my job, restaurants, Town Lake, coffee houses, the library, etc...
Twange, you aren't missing anything/ If it works for you, its good for you. If appreciation was FAR faster than it is now in Austin, and you planned on buying in the next 3-5 years, maybe not, but you should be fine.
Great point and it's certainly a risk. It's just hard for us to reconcile living in an area we're not crazy about just so that we can "own". It's a tough call. If we were at a point in our lives where living in a rural area was an option, the choice would be simple. But right now I really like being 5 minutes from my job, restaurants, Town Lake, coffee houses, the library, etc...
What complex do you live in? That sounds a lot like Timbercreek, where I lived for 5-years. I'm sick of living in a house and wasting so much time/money keeping it up (and the stupid lawn). I also miss being within walking distance from everything I could ever need. My wife and I are considering selling out and going back to an apartment again (maybe a condo) and moving back to the urban core.
I have a passion for Austin that none of you will probably ever understand. I love Texas as well, obviously, but I don't have the same passion as I do for Austin. I'm not full of hate whatsoever! In fact, if you met me in person, you'd never believe I was the one posting on here. I don't mean to come across as a "hater", believe me. I just want others to someday share that "spirit" that most Texans have with others that someday come along. If my ranting convinces anyone to come here with an open mind, a kinder heart, and a sensitivity to the culture, environment, and its people, then I've been successful. I'm a Longhorn at heart, graduated from there in 1995 and I bleed orange. I want Austin to remain a special place and I want it to retain it's identity. There are too many people coming here with the same ideals, standards, and mannerisms as they had in California, Ohio, etc. and it doesn't mesh well with the locals. I had a good friend who moved here from Michigan who was absolutely HATED by everyone in our company because of the way he treated everyone. After 3 years here, he's finally coming around and starting to act more "Texan." Seriously, he is already night and day different from the moment he arrived in Austin. Now that his "shell" has been broken, he's such a nice guy and he's fun to be around. Seriously, I don't mean anything personal against anyone from California or wherever, I just love this city so much, it often comes out a me just being a "jerk." I just don't know how else to get my points across. If you had seen your beloved city endure the kind of change we have seen here the past 5 years, you wouldn't be questioning my posts. It's like seeing a loved one slowly die right before your eyes and know that there was absolutely nothing you could do but sit there and watch. Well, instead of just sitting there, I'm on here trying to make people more "aware" of what's going on and hoping to change a few people...........from coming here. LOL!! No, I'm kidding.
I loved your post and gave you rep for it. I can understand what you're saying. It doesn't bother me when people move here, but it does bother me that they don't feel they have to adapt. Maybe it's just me, but I believe in that whole "When in Rome" attitude. I guess not as many people move to SA (where I'm from) from Cali, so I don't see the abrasiveness some bring as much. As someone hoping to move to Austin for a job I'm currently interviewing for, I can even appreciate more of what you feel. I have been visiting Austin quite a bit over the years b/c 1.) it's close and 2.) I think it has so much to offer. I appreciate the vibe and the somewhat bohemian aspect to it. I'm not a native, but even as one who hopes to live their soon, I would hate to have it be shaped into some typical, cookie-cutter town. I guess we'll all just hope for the best.
Here's an example of where I think the govenment could help: The city of Austin has density guidelines for growth in parts of the city that are not already built out. Someone mentioned Bee Cave as an example of the sprawl that has taken place. Well, we had a lot in Austin lake Estates when Bee Cave was a 2 lane road, the main entrance was Commons Ford and there were no HEB's closer than Oak Hill. Bee Cave was Jim Bob's, the Folk Art place, Patio Haus and Springhill. Now we have 4 lanes, tons of shopping (still no good restaurants except Springhill, lol) and lots of growth. Unfortunately we also now have traffic jams on Bee Cave and just wait until all those apartments are full! Bee Cave incorporated so Lake Pointe could build their development without the city's density guidelines. Now there are way more cars on the road than it was originally built to handle. I am not opposed to the growth -heck I sure like not having to drive far for shopping, but here's an example where there was a chance to control the growth - and the amount of cars on the road - and greedy developers won out. It's not just Austin, it has to be the communities surrounding it as well.
I have news for you...it isn't greedy developers...its the apathy and transient nature of the residents themselves.....you have a poliical process and representatives for a reason...if you do nothing, the reps will be controlled by the developers like pawns......all developers are greedy.....thats the nature of the enterprise of business....if they could, they would create a scenario that would cause far worse traffic, and then bail to build the next community, and let the people/gov't deal with it. Gov't is there to keep the developers in line.....dev's feed on new, growing areas, not just cause they are growing(a tautalogy), but because there are no established citizens groups, or politicians beholden to the same....in that case, they usually act as the de faco gov't agency, do what they feel like doing, write up the local statues and by-laws themselves, and typically destroy any prior ambience, always for good, and for the worse.
Anyone who wonders why I complain about Austin's cancerlike growth, and what it has done to the ambience of the same, see the above....
I have news for you...it isn't greedy developers...its the apathy and transient nature of the residents themselves.....you have a poliical process and representatives for a reason...if you do nothing, the reps will be controlled by the developers like pawns......all developers are greedy.....thats the nature of the enterprise of business....if they could, they would create a scenario that would cause far worse traffic, and then bail to build the next community, and let the people/gov't deal with it. Gov't is there to keep the developers in line.....dev's feed on new, growing areas, not just cause they are growing(a tautalogy), but because there are no established citizens groups, or politicians beholden to the same....in that case, they usually act as the de faco gov't agency, do what they feel like doing, write up the local statues and by-laws themselves, and typically destroy any prior ambience, always for good, and for the worse.
Anyone who wonders why I complain about Austin's cancerlike growth, and what it has done to the ambience of the same, see the above....
Austin, don't feel bad, the same crazy growth is going on in San Antonio and Phoenix. In SA, seems like a new shopping centers opens every week. Is Research Blvd the heart of the new growth in Austin?
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This post gives me a whole new impression of you. I understand your frustration--I really do, but there are some of us on here that LOVE Austin and just want to live there...not to come in and buy up property and change things. Heck, I plan on renting. I did the house ownership and quite frankly, I'm tired of all the upkeep that goes along with ownership. I plan on adapting to the "Texas" way of life. I love the pride that goes along with the state. The first year I visited, way back in the 90's, I thought "ok this is a little too much state pride" Heck the dairy queen even had their logo colored and designed to look like the Texas flag! Over the years, I have come to accept it, embrace it and LOVE the state pride. I have a TX flag shirt, a TX flag blanket, a TX flag apron, TX magnets all over my refrigerator (no kids--so no art work
Anyways, not everyone that moves there wants to change things, they are moving for a more relaxed, laid back lifestyle and the chance to live in an AWESOME city. 
. As someone else mentioned on another thread, just getting out of there right now was an accomplishment. 
