This may sound silly, but does Austin "feel" like a big city? (Houston: apartments, condos)

[gimme it]

We are currently in NYC and my husband would prefer us relocating to a smaller city with 150,000 or less people. I was telling him that every place can feel small no matter how big it is. Even in NYC, we are in Greenwich Village and it feels like a small town. His concerns are the hassles of urban living such as traffic congestion, crowds, high prices,etc. I'm trying to convince him to check out Austin.

[NEsananto]

His concerns are the hassles of urban living such as traffic congestion, crowds, high prices,etc. I'm trying to convince him to check out Austin.

I think you get all that in Austin.

[brattpowered]

Austin most definitely does not feel like a big city, unless you are from a very small town. Austin has a pretty compact and underutilized downtown (a few blocks) surrounded by mostly suburban-style development.

Traffic congestion is bad for a town its size, but nothing compared to larger cities. There are no crowds on the streets to speak of, except for Sixth Street on weekend nights. Compared to the rest of the South, Austin is expensive. Compared to cities elsewhere, it's a bargain.

[atxcio]

Well, Austin does have traffic and homeless, but lots of people from larger metros actually dislike it for the small-market feel. And given how far apart major cities in TX are, you could live near the Austin area and be in a very small-town community.

[austifornian]

Here's what you do Goldilocks,

Take him to Houston (pop. 5M) for two days (ooohhh! this city is too big!)
Take him to Bryan/College Station (pop. 150K) for two days (ooohhh! this city is too small!)
Take him to Austin (pop. 1.5M) for 5 days, (ooohh! this city is...)

[gimme it]

Originally Posted by brattpowered

Austin most definitely does not feel like a big city, unless you are from a very small town. Austin has a pretty compact and underutilized downtown (a few blocks) surrounded by mostly suburban-style development.

Traffic congestion is bad for a town its size, but nothing compared to larger cities. There are no crowds on the streets to speak of, except for Sixth Street on weekend nights. Compared to the rest of the South, Austin is expensive. Compared to cities elsewhere, it's a bargain.

When you write,"underutilized" do you mean that the downtown is not thriving? Does it mean that most people go to chain restaurants rather than smaller restaurants or cafes? I would think the area around the Univ. would be lively and thriving. I'm trying to convince my husband to at least check it out. He loves a thriving downtown area and he is allergic to new suburban sprawl, which I am trying to convince him is everywhere these days. Help!!

[gimme it]

Originally Posted by austifornian

Here's what you do Goldilocks,

Take him to Houston (pop. 5M) for two days (ooohhh! this city is too big!)
Take him to Bryan/College Station (pop. 150K) for two days (ooohhh! this city is too small!)
Take him to Austin (pop. 1.5M) for 5 days, (ooohh! this city is...)

Love, love, love your post

[TexasHorseLady]

I wouldn't say that most people go to chain restaurants, though we do have our share of them here. We've got a wealth of small restaurants and cafes, as well.

Doesn't feel like a big city to me, but, then, I don't frequent downtown a lot, and I lived in Dallas before moving here lo these many years ago. Now, Houston, THAT's a big city, and feels like it.

[HappyTexan]

We're a small town with a big city population which results in traffic jams, waiting lists, crowds and lots of sold out items.

[twange]

Originally Posted by gimme it

When you write,"underutilized" do you mean that the downtown is not thriving? Does it mean that most people go to chain restaurants rather than smaller restaurants or cafes? I would think the area around the Univ. would be lively and thriving. I'm trying to convince my husband to at least check it out. He loves a thriving downtown area and he is allergic to new suburban sprawl, which I am trying to convince him is everywhere these days. Help!!

Don't get scared off that easily. Of course Austin's downtown is underutilized, it's the equivalent of a late-adolescent. In other words, it's still growing and at times, looks like one big construction zone. It was a small town, strictly based around the University and some dives on 6th street but if you look at the city's growth patterns the last few years, it's clearly turning into a larger city with a lot of variations between it's neighborhoods. The downtown is literally growing before our eyes and there is definitely more to the downtown then 6th street. They wouldn't be building all of the new high rise condos and apartments if they didn't think that downtown was evolving. The problem with a lot of perceptions is that people are not taking into consideration the neighborhoods that used to be on the outskirts but are now districts within the larger area of Austin like SoCo, SoFi, SoLa, NoLa, East Austin, etc. (by the way, I hate acronyms for neighborhoods but that's what is used). I consider these areas as neighborhoods of the city like the East Village, Financial District, SoHo, Meat-Packing etc...(not that Austin is comparable in scope to NYC. That's a foolish comparison), but just for perspective's sake.

Since you're from NYC, here's another example: While you live in the W. Village, you wouldn't be opposed to going to the Upper East side if there was something going on there that you wanted to do. That' farther than going from the UT campus down to South Congress(SoCo), but most people see these areas as being far apart. They really aren't. The problem is that these areas are still sort of separated and the public transportation isn't great, so it seems disconnected at times. This will change as the infrastructure is improved. It's a matter of waiting.

Outside of the city(especially north), you'll certainly see a lot of restaurant chains and big box stores, but that's America now. Even NYC has big box. The only difference is that in NYC, they're usually in some awesome old building that you can walk to...

Austin's growth spurt either surprised the city or it was simply in denial(or both). Regardless, the infrastructure is inadequate for the population and it's needs, that's why traffic sucks so bad and people make statements like the downtown is "underutilized". But to say it's not vibrant is totally inaccurate and subjective I think.

-enter artsyguy(forum inside joke).

Go to Detroit or Cleveland and you'll see what "non-vibrant" looks like.

Just come for a 3-4 day visit and see if you like it...