Austin On Our Minds

           The discussion of gentrification in this weeks reading (Harlem On Our Minds) was extremely thought provoking. The arguments and opinions laid out in this book­–both from the author’s unique research perspective and from the voices of Harlem’s youth­–shine light on a controversial topic that I have little exposure to. The idea of gentrification is very layered, as the affects on the surface seem to be “good” for the neighborhood. When old buildings are bought and refurbished, the result would seemingly mark an improvement for the community, but these new constructions often come with increased rent and lease prices for the area that can displace life long residents. Because of higher rent prices, the “improvements” result in a swift influx of “new” neighbors to the neighborhood, people who would normally avoid an area like Harlem if not for the nice new condos. The resulting changes clearly have a negative impact on the low income residents of the neighborhood, and can bring about cultural shifts in the community that are not necessarily accepted by the long term community members.

            The ideas presented in this text about Harlem have forced me to evaluate similar trends occurring in Austin. As we all know, Austin is among the fastest growing cities in the country with between 150-200 people moving here every single day. This rapid growth is very beneficial to Austin in a lot of ways, but after reading Harlem On Our Minds I began to question whether or not a similar trend of gentrification is happening in Austin right now. This is certainly an area I would need to explore in further detail, but as the city continues to expand I am sure it is pushing low-income families out of their traditional environments and into new settings. Large condos are rising in the East side and off of South Lamar at a rapid rate, and the small neighborhoods surrounding Austin’s downtown are quickly becoming larger developments. Housing prices are beginning to swell and rent is certainly on the rise in a lot of areas of Austin. One only needs to look at Rainey Street to see the impact that a growing population has had on small urban neighborhoods, as almost all of the houses on Rainey have been purchased and refurbished into bars to accommodate a growing nightlife scene. These single-family homes, like a lot of homes around the area, are no longer viable options for low-income families. And, as areas like Rainey Street continue to evolve as popular night life destinations, rent prices on the nearby East side houses will continue to rise. The area, for lack of a better term, is becoming more “desirable” to young white people, and securing a lease on a single-family home around the area is becoming more competitive. This influx of new residents can also begin to shift cultural and community norms in certain areas, which may not always be welcome by long-term residents.

            Rainey street is just a microcosm of the larger gentrification issues surrounding the growing urban landscape of Austin–and it may not serve as a good example at all–but I think as Austin continues to expand we need to be conscious of the existing communities that are already in place and respect people’s right to their home cultures. Just as the book explains, there can be “good” new neighbors and “bad” new neighbors, and the “bad” ones are the people who do not integrate with the existing community and acknowledge that a community and culture exist in these environments already.