Austin on NYT list of best places to visit in 2020 (Houston: house, neighborhoods)

[DPatel304]

Originally Posted by cBach

Well we have the only Grand Prix in the USA! We like F1 instead of NASCAR. That should tell you right there. Also this was not 10-15 years ago, still happening!

Is that all that makes the city unique?

[atxcio]

Originally Posted by DPatel304

Brooklyn and LA (and maybe other major cities) generally start these trends and eventually they trickle their way down to cities like Austin.

I guess we'll just have to agree to disagree at this point. I just see Austin as any other city just following the trend set by more trendier parts of the country.

Again, I think we're not that far off on the point that certain influential cities have defined the template that has become "cool city, USA." You just don't think Austin is on that list of influencers. I say Austin is definitely on that list. We're not LA or NYC but this city has had an inordinate amount of influence, especially for its size. Deservedly or not, the King of all the Top 10 Cities lists has defined what is desirable to the masses. You can argue against it, but can't deny the reality of it. It's the reason for your original response to this thread, "what makes Austin so unique that it would be on this list"... Wouldn't it be better to ask, why should every place be like Austin or Portland? Why does there have to be a template to be cool city? Why do the "IT" cities have to stay the same now, why can't there be a next Austin or Portland? It seems like copying the same model is all anyone does now.

[m1a1mg]

Originally Posted by cBach

Well we have the only Grand Prix in the USA! We like F1 instead of NASCAR. That should tell you right there. Also this was not 10-15 years ago, still happening!

Currently true. Miami has just been announced as an US F1 city for 2021. No word on whether it will replace COTA.

Also, if you brought NASCAR to COTA, the crowds would be ridiculous. COTA wants it, but the boys in Fort Worth are rumored to be blocking it. If you've ever gone to F1 at COTA, you'll note that a huge portion of the crowd is not local. In fact, many of my neighbors asked me what it was 3 years ago when I was looking for tickets.

[cBach]

Originally Posted by m1a1mg

Currently true. Miami has just been announced as an US F1 city for 2021. No word on whether it will replace COTA.

Also, if you brought NASCAR to COTA, the crowds would be ridiculous. COTA wants it, but the boys in Fort Worth are rumored to be blocking it. If you've ever gone to F1 at COTA, you'll note that a huge portion of the crowd is not local. In fact, many of my neighbors asked me what it was 3 years ago when I was looking for tickets.

Umm you must not have been recently. The 2019 race was sold out each day. There were lots of people from Texas, the rest of the USA, and the whole world. For a NASCAR race you just get a bunch of Texans and other Southerners interested in the racing sport.

The Miami race will not happen - I'd bet on this. They planned a NJ race that was supposed to happen in 2016 but never did.

[cBach]

Originally Posted by DPatel304

Is that all that makes the city unique?

No. We are basically the only "outdoorsy" southern city. Dallas and Houston are mainly indoor cities. They are for people that like to keep their homes air conditioned to 70 degrees and rarely go outside except to go to their air conditioned cars and air conditioned work. Even their sports stadiums are indoors.

I was downtown in Houston in November on a nice 75 degree fall day and it was like a ghost town. The next day I was back in Austin and it was packed to the gills with people playing all kinds of sports. Our sports stadiums are outdoors and packed even on a 105 degree day (UT/LSU game anyone?)

A friend in Dallas was bragging how great White Rock Lake was and he took me and I felt like it was some kind of dystopian park that was what a park in Detroit circa 1980 might look like.

We are basically like a "Portland South" except that Portland is like an "Austin North". We invented the things Portland has before they perfected it. For instance, we were eating "Whole Foods (organic foods)" long before anyone else. We had hiking trails in our city long before other cities adopted it.

When I moved here, Dallas and Houston were so starkly different that people understood that moving to Austin in and of itself showed how cool you were. Now, Dallas and Houston are trying so hard to become like Austin, it's pathetic really.

[m1a1mg]

Originally Posted by cBach

Umm you must not have been recently. The 2019 race was sold out each day. There were lots of people from Texas, the rest of the USA, and the whole world. For a NASCAR race you just get a bunch of Texans and other Southerners interested in the racing sport.

The Miami race will not happen - I'd bet on this. They planned a NJ race that was supposed to happen in 2016 but never did.

Umm, I did go.



1. The busiest day of the year, and the busiest day ever at ABIA, is the day after F1.

2. Not sure what being sold out has to do with Austin locals supporting it or Austin being an F1 city. This year, there were no Americans sitting near us.

3. As an actual race fan, I'd much prefer Watkins Glen.

[DPatel304]

Originally Posted by cBach

No. We are basically the only "outdoorsy" southern city. Dallas and Houston are mainly indoor cities. They are for people that like to keep their homes air conditioned to 70 degrees and rarely go outside except to go to their air conditioned cars and air conditioned work. Even their sports stadiums are indoors.

Except that's really not true at all. In DFW, the MLS stadium is outdoors, the cotton bowl stadium is outdoors, and up until recently, the baseball stadium was outdoors. Austin's stadiums aren't indoors because the people are outdoorsy. The stadiums are indoors because the city isn't large enough to justify spending money on an indoor stadium. As the city grows, it too will also eventually build indoor stadiums.

Originally Posted by cBach

I was downtown in Houston in November on a nice 75 degree fall day and it was like a ghost town. The next day I was back in Austin and it was packed to the gills with people playing all kinds of sports. Our sports stadiums are outdoors and packed even on a 105 degree day (UT/LSU game anyone?)

Downtown Houston, in my experience, is quite lively with people. It makes sense since there are more people who live in Houston than Austin.

Originally Posted by cBach

We are basically like a "Portland South" except that Portland is like an "Austin North". We invented the things Portland has before they perfected it. For instance, we were eating "Whole Foods (organic foods)" long before anyone else. We had hiking trails in our city long before other cities adopted it.

You're right, the chain grocer Whole Foods was founded in Austin. But Whole Foods didn't invent organic eating, neither did Austin.

Originally Posted by cBach

When I moved here, Dallas and Houston were so starkly different that people understood that moving to Austin in and of itself showed how cool you were. Now, Dallas and Houston are trying so hard to become like Austin, it's pathetic really.

People still tell me how cool Austin is and I believed them too. I moved to Austin in 2015 and I realized it was pretty overhyped and that it was very similar to Dallas/Houston. The only differences are that they invented Whole Foods and are an F1 city, and it seems like you agree.

[cBach]

Originally Posted by m1a1mg

Umm, I did go.



1. The busiest day of the year, and the busiest day ever at ABIA, is the day after F1.

2. Not sure what being sold out has to do with Austin locals supporting it or Austin being an F1 city. This year, there were no Americans sitting near us.

3. As an actual race fan, I'd much prefer Watkins Glen.

Surrounding me were:
* a tanned Australian couple (they go every year, hard core fanatics)
* 3 Texas couples that came as a group from Dallas (it was their first F1)
* a pierced chubby UK gal
* a lesbian couple from Austin that was drunk and kissing each other
* a sunburnt Scottish guy

[cBach]

Originally Posted by DPatel304

People still tell me how cool Austin is and I believed them too. I moved to Austin in 2015 and I realized it was pretty overhyped and that it was very similar to Dallas/Houston. The only differences are that they invented Whole Foods and are an F1 city, and it seems like you agree.

We have much better nightlife and bars per capita than either Dallas or Houston.

[DPatel304]

Originally Posted by atxcio

Again, I think we're not that far off on the point that certain influential cities have defined the template that has become "cool city, USA." You just don't think Austin is on that list of influencers. I say Austin is definitely on that list. We're not LA or NYC but this city has had an inordinate amount of influence, especially for its size. Deservedly or not, the King of all the Top 10 Cities lists has defined what is desirable to the masses. You can argue against it, but can't deny the reality of it. It's the reason for your original response to this thread, "what makes Austin so unique that it would be on this list"... Wouldn't it be better to ask, why should every place be like Austin or Portland? Why does there have to be a template to be cool city? Why do the "IT" cities have to stay the same now, why can't there be a next Austin or Portland? It seems like copying the same model is all anyone does now.

Originally Posted by atxcio

No, I’m not talking Portland, LA or Brooklyn as borrowing Austin Culture. Although Portland did steal “Keep Austin Weird” from us. Wouldn’t be surprised if Brooklyn stole it too, you can do the google search. What I am saying is “IT” cities like Austin, Portland, and Brooklyn are responsible for defining the current “cool city” template that is being reproduced in every city in America.

You're contradicting yourself. Yes agree that Portland "stole" the "Keep ___ Weird" slogan, because Austin was the first to have it. With that same logic, Austin also "stole" a lot of what makes it cool, because other cities were the first to have it. If you're saying Portland stole the slogan because they weren't the first, then Austin certainly stole a lot of the things that made it cool.