re: "Coolness factor" draws developers to Austin Tx

Honestly, you're not making the process sound all that bad.

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Same thing happening in East Austin as has happened in every other "cool" inner city hood. First, the Hipster Gentrification Army moves in because of cheap rent. Then bars, cafes, etc move in to serve the hipsters.....then people from other parts of town and the burbs hear about a cool bar and come to visit and realize the hood is not dangerous anymore. Then more restaurants/ bars open to serve the hoards of suburban tourists who arrive on the weekends. Then developers realize there are huge areas of undeveloped land or underutilized land. Shitty condos and apartments sprout and suddenly the hood is full of frat douches. The Hipster Gentrification Army invades another area of town.

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Denver in a nutshell.

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Austin Tx

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Coolnes factor"

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coolness factor huh... Austin reminds me of the old lady in Billy Madison. "If peeing in your pants is cool, call me Miles Davis."

This story is way more accurate

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Well, frick that. I've lived in Austin long enough to know that this city can drive you fricking crazy. It's a sweltering, congested sub-metropolis full of slack-asses and yuppies who simultaneously take themselves too seriously and not seriously enough. It's a place where spending $11 on a sandwich is considered a societal good. It's a place where entitled people claim ownership of everything.

Austin is a place where bad people move. People in Austin actually believe they invented the breakfast taco. People in Austin will tell a Mexican family who has lived on the same street for generations that they're doing their best to "save the neighborhood."

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In all actuality, Austin isn't as cool as that NYT article makes it out to be, nor as bad as the article I just linked

I lived there for 17+ years and the first 16 were great for the most part. I would move back to the area for the right reasons, however, I dont think I have it in me to live in Austin proper ever again. At least not until the hype dies down in 20 years or so.

I thought Austin was a nice town....just a little forced.

Like the image it had built was established decades back and now it was just sort of commercialized, gridlocked, and kind of annoying (but still trying to be weird).

I'd move there but at my age I'd probably just go straight to the suburbs.

been there last year. if you drink and like live music, then it's cool. i'm at the point of my life where that's not a priority for me anymore, so i don't see the big deal

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have joined to turn an old 11-acre rail yard into a “transit-oriented development” — a dense mix of uses near public transportation — at Plaza Saltillo. The plan calls for 800 apartments, 120,000 square feet of office space and 110,000 square feet of stores and restaurants.

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What is not mentioned here is that the neighborhood has voiced enough in protest that the height of the buildings just went from 125 to 70. And it's taken 3 years, literally 3 years, to get to this point. That is the real story of development here.

It is a constant struggle between needed growth/density and the existing residents & affordability (property taxes). It is my job to be in the middle of it and it is wildly contentious and frustrating

Austin is a city surrounded by Texas.

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Is that surprising at all? Louisiana, due in large part to it's people and their elected politicians, will never have nice things or see growth like this

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The only reason Baton Rouge won't be another Jackson or New Orleans or Detroit within 20 years is LSU. But it will be almost as bad