As Austin grows, real estate leaders look at state of city’s character, reputation

There were no explicit Old Austin versus New Austin clashes during a recent discussion among local development leaders about the state of the city’s character, but issues such as diversity and equity, opportunities for area youth and struggles to manage growth took center stage.

Wednesday’s Urban Land Institute panel discussion featured leaders from the local creative economy and a parks advocate giving pointers to engineers, developers and other real estate professionals on the ways their industries are pushing Austin toward becoming one of the largest cities in the U.S.

Carl Settles, executive director of the E4 Youth creative agency, reminded the audience that recent state legislation reducing parkland set-asides from new building projects may help developers’ financials but will have a negative impact on quality of life for residents. Settles, who is Black, also focused on the city’s history of racial segregation and the ongoing decline in the Black population.

“When I was young, there really wasn’t equity for Black folks here in Austin during that time, and East Austin was blighted,” he said. “Since that time, Austin has continued to grow and blossom and yet the amount of Black folks here has been shrinking during that time. The hottest real estate in Austin is in East Austin. A lot of people have been pushed out. It’s very difficult for people to stay here.”

Roy Spence, one of the founders of the GSD&M advertising agency, recalled city leaders urging the company to move its headquarters downtown in the late ’90s at a time when the city core was struggling. As the city’s fortunes have changed and growth pressures affect all regions, Spence said city leaders need to look beyond accommodating growth and instead decide on what the mission of the city will be in the future.

“We are in the business now in Austin of stimulating progress, not preserving the core. We are not in the purpose business. We’re in the growth business, in my opinion. We need to be less of a political city and more of a purpose-driven city. We need to be less about policies and more about purpose,” he said. “Austin could be the first city in America that designs its purpose statement. Aristotle said … ‘where your talents and the needs of the world intersect, therein lies your purpose.’”

With an eye toward local parks and the way they support major cultural institutions like Austin City Limits Festival, Joy Casnovsky, chief mission officer for Austin Parks Foundation, said partnerships with festival promoter C3 Presents have helped raise $50 million to support parks throughout the city. Referencing the coming reductions in parkland from developers caused by the state, she said the city will have to find new ways to preserve its character while making room for a constant flow of new residents.

“What Austin and many of Texas’ cities are facing is we are fighting to govern ourselves in the constraints of Texas,” she said. “Whether it’s the parkland dedication ordinance, whether it’s what is encouraged in terms of transportation, I’m going to have to look over the Capitol and say, I think we are trying to create something in Austin that necessarily is not aligned with state government influence. And that’s tricky.”

Despite those challenges, Luis Patiño, CEO of Austin PBS and Austin City Limits, said the city’s brand continues to stand out across the country.

Patiño, who recently moved back to Austin from the West Coast, said shows like “Austin City Limits” and the recent hit series “Taco Mafia” help to burnish the city’s reputation.

“I realized when I came back, is that I think we take that for granted once we’re here in our bubble, that we almost have a duty and a responsibility to be good stewards of our Austin brand.”

Photo made available through a Creative Commons license.

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