All Over the Map Austin, Texas by Charley Devany “Why am I blogging while walking?”

June 28, 2020

North of the University of Texas campus                                                                                  78705 and 78756 zip codes

“Why am I blogging while walking?” and “Covid reaction between shutdowns”

I’m hoping this will be a daily or every other day post.  The blog title has double meaning (1) it may be seem like I am figuratively “all over the map” as I may be talking about Covid reactions and ramifications, gentrification, politics, race, district boundaries or real estate taxes as the walks will dictate the subject matter and (2) I am literally going to be visiting neighborhoods throughout Austin which are all over the map.

My initial blog post is Covid-19 driven to some degree.  I miss my daily yoga at the studio and have been running most days (and now walking due to sore knees) and of course I can not travel freely.  So why not re-discover my own city during these trying and limiting times?  While walking 4 miles in an hour in different parts of town I should be able to view and later record what I see. In other words, exercise with purpose.

My journey began Sunday, June 28, 2020 where I covered a little over four miles from the UT campus area to the Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired on 45^th, west of Lamar.  My focus that day was Covid related – how many folks are complying with full social distancing and how many businesses have closed or are in danger of closing.

I saw twenty-two out of forty (55%) people wearing masks, no unnecessary crowding and general social distancing respect.  I counted people who had masks around their necks while on lunch break or were walking alone with a mask on around their neck, which would come back up when confronting others.  The numbers may have been skewed as many of the people counted were entering or leaving a store/restaurant and essentially forced to wear a mask.  On the other hand, the last few times I counted mask wearing percentages in this area it was always under 50%, so I believe Austinites are taking Covid more seriously, especially since our latest spike in new cases and the horrendous numbers coming out of Houston 160 miles away.

On the business closing front, it was a little more ominous.  From 24^th to 35^th on Guadalupe St.  I saw 20 definite closings and 8 potential closings (in my opinion).  I’m also wondering where we can fix our bikes as both local stores have closed.  I noticed a large amount of graffiti (not BLM related or artistic murals) on the closed buildings, which is not a good look and contributes to a longer recovery period.  I know it’s summer with a mostly closed campus, but the economic situation just north of campus is not promising and may be one more sign of slower recovery than expected.

The Apartments of Austin – Get Out the Vote

All Over the Map                                                                                     Austin, Texas                                               by Charley Devany

September 19 to September 28, 2020

East St. Johns, Windsor Park  

78753 and 78758 zip codes

The past ten days I have been canvassing for the “Get Out the Vote” effort at various apartment complexes through out Austin.  At the end of the day, 120,000 apartment doors were supplied with bi-lingual instructions and an easy postage paid return card to complete.  I personally delivered to almost 5,000 doors, most of them in east Austin.

Besides the never-ending stairs and a few rainy days, it was actually a pleasure to get out of my comfort zone and see for a brief moment how a large section of Austin lives.

These complexes are almost invisible to most of us, yet at least 25% of Austin’s population live in them, and they are not necessarily inexpensive.  One of the more rundown places was still advertising a one bedroom, 1 bath for $950/month.  Many complexes had complementary yellow school buses in the parking lots as free wi-fi hotspots for students trying to study online in likely very crowded homesteads with limited supervision during the day.  At the roughest complex I visited, I saw rat droppings, a well-used bong and young children on a Monday early afternoon going door to door looking for friends to play instead of attending school.  None of them spoke English, and I wondered how far behind they are getting after several months of “virtual learning.”

Occasionally, I’d meet somebody who was enthusiastic about our GOTV effort and even asked for a second form for a spouse or friend.  I limited my butchered Spanish to “instructiones en Espanol” with as many “buenos dias” and “gracias” as possible.  A friend from the community advised wisely not to start a conversation in Spanish, which I could not finish.  Just because you can order a meal or find a bathroom in Spanish does not mean you are prepared to talk about “importancia de votar.”

Several men said they were “not allowed to vote.”  I assumed it was probation issues but I did not pry. Over two million men and women are incarnated in the U.S.  and their options are limited when they get out.  One more strategy to disenfranchise lower socio-economic people of color?

Some responded with dismissive “it’s not for me” as a short cut for “it’s rigged and how’s it going to affect me?”

An angry older white man who lived as a minority in his community, shouted “four more years and I’m not going to live in some GD Socialist country.  As a non-partisan volunteer I just wished him a good day.

Like the free-standing homes, I walked around the past few months, I saw the same consistency with apartment dwellers as homeowners – most people just want to be left alone, and to make a warm home to feel safe and nurtured.  Some of the plants spilling out of the porches and stairs were amazing.  With limited real estate the door mat was often their best communicator and hundreds of apartments were already decorated for Halloween six weeks early, but who knows if the kids will be allowed to trick or treat.

The highlight may have happened when I met an Arabian American translator who was in the U.S. Airborne division on a green card waiting for accelerated citizenship as an active duty soldier.  I enthusiastically thanked him for his service and said I’d be glad when he can vote.  His three young children beamed as I complimented him.  It was not the best apartment, but likely an upgrade from the home country and I bet they’d be moving up soon.

With 5,000 contacts I’m hoping that 100 (or 2%) will actually fill out the cards and register.  Maybe my scores of brief conversations will help and motivate.  The next step will be getting them to vote.  I’ll be canvassing again in several weeks, mask on but eyes open.

The Definition of Gerrymandering by Charley Devany

All Over the ATX Map                                                                                            

Guadalupe & 45^th to E 7th                                                                                                                 78705, 78701 and 78702 zip codes

You can walk 4.6 miles from the south east corner of the Triangle (Guadalupe, Lamar and 45^th) to the Wendy’s on 7^th Street and the IH access road and be in four different congressional districts.  Mike McCaul’s 10^th Congressional District gets Allendale, most of Brykerwoods all the way to 45^th and Guadalupe, plus East St. John’s, most of 78759 and plenty of conservative eastern counties all the way to Cypress (outside of Houston) to keep a safe Republican seat, while being free to ignore the Austin progressives politically.

As I walk due south on Guadalupe I am in Roger Williams 25^th Congressional District for some time.  If I veer straight instead of right when Guadalupe runs into San Antonio St. and walk a few blocks south of 24^th into West Campus I enter the domain of Chip Roy’s 21^st Congressional District, which meanders thinly south of the river into Travis Heights, south to Travis Country into Hill Country and conservative, progressive diluting counties west and south.  The only rationale for this block that carves into Austin like the foot of Italy is that they were trying to mirror the state of Massachusetts if someone pulled Cape Cod due north.

As I head back east Roger William’s 10^th District quickly grabs the east side of the UT campus, most of downtown and a huge chunk of quickly gentrifying east Austin until I get to E. 7^th street where Lloyd Doggett’s 35^th Congressional district begins.  His district also picks up east of Austin, circling back to the Georgian Acres in North Austin and heading south in a skinny route to the tip of San Antonio.  Doggett used to represent the entire campus area, downtown and got nowhere near San Antonio. The 73-year-old Democratic Congressman has been serving since 1995 in three different districts.

https://www.govtrack.us/congress/members/lloyd_doggett/400111

Voting records per govtrack  cited are highlighted for the four local Congressman with longer track records than Chip Roy (first elected in November 2018 and 3^rd least likely to vote with a bi-partisan bill) below:

Lloyd Doggett’s voting summary

Human Rights Campaign 100%

League of Conservation Voters 100%

National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws B

 

Roger Williams

Human Rights Campaign 0%

League of Conservation Voters 0%

National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws D

 

Mike McCaul

Human Rights Campaign 0%

League of Conservation Voters 3%

National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws D

 

Bill Flores (17^th Congressional District with (R) Pete Session favored to take his place)

Human Rights Campaign 0%

League of Conservation Voters 3%

National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws D

 

The UT students are not represented by one congressman but by four depending on where they live.  I’m going to venture a guess that Doggett’s (who doesn’t represent many UT students anymore) B in marijuana reform versus D’s from his Republican colleagues is the more popular position on campus.  Same for climate control and human rights.

How does the Gerrymandering work in detail: Doggett gets 70% of his Congressional vote.  Nobody cares by how much he wins, and then the other five races are won in relatively tight fashion including John Carter’s (out of Williamson County, north of Austin) 31^st District.  In these six races the Republican votes were 828,000 versus 822,000 for the Democrats in2018 yet that minuscule difference lead to 5 Congressional Republican seats and only 1 Democratic.

 

Anyway, it was interesting to do some research and actually walk the district edges on foot with the question are the Congressmen (and no need to neutralize gender here) representing these neighborhoods in name only?

The Worst Neighborhoods in Austin

July 1 to August 20, 2020

“The Worst Neighborhoods in Austin”

https://www.roadsnacks.net/these-are-the-10-worst-austin-neighborhoods/

I found the site above a few days ago and realized I only had one more neighborhood to visit from the list, so I drove there (it was only a few miles from my home).  Ironically, the neighborhood I walked barely made the list, but as I moved away from my car, I did feel worried for my vehicle for the first time in my walking journey.  Was it the vast overcrowding, the car broken into with broken glass still covering the street, the different faces on edge, the washing machine on the 2^nd story porch, the perpetual sign of old mattresses and broken furniture on the side of the road where there are no sidewalks and bulk pickup is not scheduled for months.  A see of apartments in need of care a few blocks from the highway tasted like generations of despair.

Growing up outside of New York City it was always the large ghetto apartment complexes that scared me.  You’d see similar images of Chicago and Newark in the movies and news where the projects were consolidated, dirty and mean.  How could the vast majority of law-abiding citizens get through their day in constant fear of drug needles, gangs and shooting?  As we get ready for the Republican Convention next week this will be their running theme – the streets are unsafe, and these brown and black people are coming for you next.  We need a tough President who will fight for law and order, not the stuttering, effete, elitist alternative of “Mr. Empathy.”  Don’t be surprised if the opening montage is the national “riots” and Trump’s “tough” response while he either hugs the flag or holds the bible upside down.

Here’s a new idea: Instead of crushing protestors with a militarized response why don’t we listen to them and try and make their lives better.  Where do we start?  Education.

“Progressive” Austin, we are no better than the rest of the country, perhaps worse. Only 74% of our students go to traditional public schools and this includes Westlake and Travis which have Austin addresses of mostly all white populations and a handful of poor people.  The white kids who attend AISD are mostly going to Anderson, LASA, Bowie, McCallum and Austin where they still hold majority status for the most part.  The private schools (about 11% of the student population) are over 70% white, while the charter schools (about 12% of the student population) are about two thirds Hispanic and home schools are overwhelming white.  Over 70% of African American and Hispanic students are going to “minority” schools with incredibly large portions of economically disadvantaged, English language learners of well over 50% and a much higher special education percentage of students.

We cannot expect everyone to have an exactly equal educational experience and completely diversified student populations that mirrors the state, but should we have such huge disparities? An English learner or special education student is going to require more resources and deserve those.  A student who needs subsidized or free school lunch has other needs as well.  In a pandemic how do we serve these students with special needs?

Lastly, the poor Austinites are not segregated in one section of town, they are all over, invisible from a passing a highway or tucked away in a neighborhood we’ve never visited.  I believe it would be possible to re-partition school districts without additional busing and have much more diverse student populations.  Would that drive more white families to Kyle, Buda, Travis, Cedar Park and Westlake?  Probably but why don’t we continue to fight for everyone?  Let’s make all the schools better, safer, equipped to handle Covid-19 and give opportunities for all to improve their lives so that the AISD does not go the way of New Orleans which is now 100% charter school (and most of the white kids going to private schools).

Why was I uncomfortable in that final neighborhood?  The unknown, decades of media sensationalism and maybe knowing deep down that I am part of the problem as well.

 

 

“Dividing lines” Mueller, Windsor Park and Ridgetop Neighborhoods by Charley Devany

July 7 and August 6, 2020

Zip codes 78723 and 78751

Ridgetop is west of IH 35, Mueller and Windsor Park east. Mueller is south of 51^st street, Windsor Park is north.  What these dividing lines do is dictate if you are zoned into McCallum Highschool with 18% economically disadvantaged students (Mueller and Ridgetop) or Northeast Highschool with 91% economically disadvantaged.

Windsor Park tucked behind Capital Plaza, which has not been the prime outdoor mall in decades, are older apartments and then the ubiquitous signs of gentrification in the single-family home streets where young professionals are moving in quickly with a new mega HEB and trendy restaurants, coffee shops and entertainment popping up like weeds.  I saw more BLM signs than average, and the heavily treed streets give it a feel of permanence.

On the southside Mueller has been growing even faster with room to grow. When I started walking south from the HEB on 51^st I thought I’d never get out as I walked by what seemed like miles of new construction and no indigenous trees in site. Remember Mueller was the city’s airport for decades.

I have family who moved into Mueller near the beginning in a beautiful new condo, which has appreciated nicely.  On Halloween the streets are packed and most houses run out of candy by 8 PM as children from a few miles east (Eastside Memorial High district) drive in, giving the blocks a festive atmosphere and much more diversity than normal.  There is also a grand pavilion, great shopping and the Dell Children’s Hospital within walking distance.

Ridgetop is another older neighborhood, with student apartments off the UT shuttle route and smaller houses appreciating quickly.  I rented a house with a thirty-degree slope inside for a few years as an undergrad in the early 80’s on 47^th.  My share of the rent was $100.  Back then Mueller Airport was still running and being in the flight pattern and nearby a railroad was not attractive.  The biggest challenge today may the homeless camps underneath the Airport and IH35 overpass.

The Sears has closed in Hancock Center (North University Neighborhood), which was the pride of Austin fifty-five years ago until Barton Creek Mall opened five years later, and the gradual decline began.

Yet the Airport move to Bergstrom, jobs and wealth were created in technology and the neighborhoods thrived; but what happens to those who did not participate in the tech boom and could not afford to pay property taxes as they doubled and tripled?  My next blog will cover where the poverty still exists in Austin and how we are educating our students in a mostly informally segregated fashion.

 

 

 

“Apolitical for a Reason” Langford Elementary Neighborhood (78744) by Charley Devany

August 9, 2020

“Apolitical for a Reason (78744)”

Langford Elementary is south of William Cannon and east of Bluff Springs Road.  Several blocks of mobile homes (worth a few thousand dollars on $60,000 lots of less than .2 acres, according to TCAD) bring us to the school where more traditional houses (some worth over $200,000) are across the street. The side roads are narrow, and your start to feel the vast number of cars, most of them operating, in front of each home (sometimes on the lawn).  There are scattered signs of ADT and other security companies, but more often the less expensive “beware of dogs” is the favorite choice for securing property.  Six tiny dogs of various breeds run up to me from behind a chain link fence, drowning out the chickens from several yards.  A few yards have gathered beer cans out front, but more often than not, you see great pride in these houses, though most are likely rentals.  They are painted Kelly green, lime green, pink, orange and shades of blue normally not “acceptable” to most HOAs.

The vibe I get is consistent with most neighborhoods, wealthy or struggling.  They just want to be left alone.

To that end, I did not see a single political sign (except for three BLM) and only two US flags.  There were no flags from the home country and the only political bumper sticker was for Beto and “Secede” on one car, which is a bit of a disconnect.  Only two signs for Crockett High grads and none for 5^th graders, the exact opposite to Westlake where these signs were popping up like weeds.

The central question is why?  Why are these people so inclined to show nothing of their political leanings, culture and opinions?  The answer I believe is fear.  Fear of the deportation, fear of being bothered by the police, fear of being judged.  This is the type neighborhood, which likely vote at the much lower levels than the rest of Austin.  Mass voter registration is unlikely as well, which means they are not eligible for jury duty (and that pivotal representation). They will not turn in census information (remember how the Trump administration wanted to include citizenship on the census but lost in the courts).  How many residents in this neighborhood still believe that question is in the census or they will get trouble with the landlord if they reply two families and eight people are sharing 1,200 square feet?

Are these modern day share croppers keeping our economy churning during a pandemic?  Keeping their heads down and doing whatever they can just to survive (knowing it is still safer and a better standard of living than in their home countries)?

They are not counted. They are not represented, and to most they are invisible until they finally have enough and go to streets.  I did not see any gang signs.  I saw people who are just getting by, want to be left alone and make a better way for their children.  They sound like most of us.  Shouldn’t they be involved and what can we do to make that happen?

 

“Not so far away and still part of Austin school zoning or not” Southwest Austin (Travis Country, Oak Hill & Hays County)

August 1, 2020

Zip codes 78735, 78736 and 78737

Full disclosure I did not walk between these neighborhoods.  But once my car was parked, I was able to get some nice walks in.  78736 (Oak Hill) and 78735 (Travis Country) zones into Austin High.  78737 zones into Dripping Springs High, has an Austin address but is part of Hays County (similar to the Northwest Austin Williamson County neighborhoods which attend Round Rock schools).

My goal was to cover all the 787XX zip codes, and I’m starting to believe there are two million people living in greater Austin.  There also are endless possibilities.  78737 may be 12 to 15 minutes from downtown but Mopac goes to 45 now and it can’t be too bad during Covid traffic.

When I was first moved here in 1978, you had to circle Austin High to go south on Mopac and the north end stopped at Steck, instead of looping to IH35 as it does now.  I also saw Stevie Ray at the Armadillo World Headquarters, but I know you are already tired of hearing my Austin bona fides from “the good old days”, so I will get back on track.

In 78737 you can get a beautiful 3,500 square foot house on a quarter acre and not be part of the AISD (which unfortunately is the goal of many home owners as the suburbs balloon and the AISD shrinks) for half a million. In Travis Country that same home and “only” 2,300 square feet goes for $600,000 because you’re at least seven miles closer to town.

I saw whole tree laden established streets, which could easily be transported into 78731 (NW Hills) but they’d cost $750,000 in that part of town because you can get to downtown without using Mopac, and Anderson High is within walking distance.

This was also a trip down memory lane for me as our first two homes were in Travis Country from a town home without kids to our first house where both children were born (at the hospital in case that was not clear).  I planted a tiny tree from the city and twenty-five years later it is ten feet above the roof, leafy, wide and proud.  The current owners had two of the four BLM yard signs I saw in the neighborhood, and this made me proud, too.

In Oak Hill, I found a street with twelve BLM signs (almost every other house) and then the rest of the neighborhood was more reserved with Oak Hill Elementary and Austin High grad signs being the most popular.

I know it is a polarizing time.  Laughter, enthusiasm, loving spirit and hate are all contagious.  Let’s work to the promote the first three.

 

Old Westlake 78746 “Large lots, Eanes Independent School District and a newly hired diversity consultant”

July 29, 2020

Westlake 78746

After spending the prior morning in western Tarrytown, I was still not disappointed in the beautiful, hilly neighborhoods of “old” Westlake where I walked mostly due north of Hill Country Middle School and Bee Caves Road (just west of Rollingwood). I didn’t even make it to the “newer” neighborhoods such as Davenport running to the Austin Country Club and Rob Roy west of 360 not to mention the Westlake Drive mansions west of Tarrytown, none of which could have been imagined by the early 20^th cedar choppers who lived on the “wrong” side of the current (Tom Miller) dam in a world far apart from Austin proper.

The lots in “old” Westlake are typically 1/3 to a full acre where the average lot in “residential” Austin is about .17 acre.  There is no need to worry about, which school district applies to your neighborhood as all the elementary and middle schools of the Eanes Independent School District roll into the coveted, academic stronghold and perennial football power house Westlake High.

There are few political signs but ubiquitous red and blue ribbons (Westlake’s colors) and more 8^th and High School graduates than imagined.  School pride is real and for good reason.

Luckily, for Westlake the overall tax rates are even lower than Austin and many homes have barely increasing per the TCAD roles over the past four years, which is not always in line with the real market increases.

In this ideal situation with great schools and also wonderful homes also exists a very homogenous population where there have been signs and incidents of racial insensitivity to say the least.  The school district took the almost immediate position of hiring a Mark Gooden as its Diversity, Equity and Inclusion consultant for the 2020-21 school year after it appeared several Westlake High students or recent grads were yelling racial epithets at BLM protestors.

“Being black at Westlake High School was exhausting,” one alumna was quoted in the Community Impact piece below. “Not a week went by that I did not hear the N-word directed at me or one of my black peers, and people stood by idly as this happened for years.”

One African American teacher said teachers would often confuse her with other black students or call her racist names. She also remembered feeling afraid to attend football games, where she said students would often chant, “We’re rich, we’re white, we’re Westlake.”

https://communityimpact.com/austin/lake-travis-westlake/education/2020/06/10/several-dozen-westlake-community-members-recall-long-history-of-racial-impropriety-call-for-action-within-eanes-isd/
I am using another source and did not speak to either person quoted from the article so I can’t opine on its veracity, but there does appear to be a pattern and the district is taking action.  Westlake does so many things well and increasing racial and economic sensitivity is a great goal to aspire.  I wish them well, as we all will benefit.

“Tarrytown – close to downtown and lakeside access”

July 28, 2020

Tarrytown 78703

I’ve spent the past several days traversing some of the traditionally lower, socio economic neighborhoods, so today I decided to see how the “other half” lives.

The neighborhood east of Exposition was actually first established as a working class “suburb” and then ballooned west into lakeside property with the early 20^th century marketing gem “Where Oak Trees Charm the Eye.”

Some of the 2,000 square foot homes from the 40s and 50s east of Exposition still exist but are creeping up to million-dollar values and $20,000 property tax bills without the homestead exemption.

As you travel west towards the Lake the real estate is often breathtaking and the wide streets still heavy with Oak trees give welcome shade in a neighborhood of friendly walkers, bikers and joggers and limited yard signs.  I saw one Black Lives Matter sign, two for Democratic candidate Julie Oliver and a half dozen American flags (in the Cedar Park neighborhood I visited, you almost saw flags at every other house). I also saw three properties, which were being rebuilt from scratch.  I don’t know if you can call it gentrification if you’re tearing down a $800,000 home to raise one that’s worth $1.2 million?  It is nice to see new construction on a site that will almost definitely be fully occupied.

On Scenic Drive (perhaps the most aptly named street in Austin) the winding hilly streets serve incredible homes with the western half having direct access to the Lake.

I saw two and five million dollars homes (per TCAD), which only increased in value 7 percent since the 2015 tax rolls.  The latter is still paying close to $100,000 in taxes, but note that many homes on the east side of IH 35 have increased in value per the tax rolls 30 to 50% during that same period (with their underlying land value being the main cause).  For the upper echelon houses you can hire many real estate tax protest firms or even attorneys to decrease your taxable property values.  With tens of thousands of dollars at stake and the professional tax savers getting 35% of the savings, this is an exercise that will be pursued.

Tarrytown is zoned into Casis Elementary, O Henry Middle School and Austin High.  Austin High stretches into east Austin, so the overall demographics are not overly skewed to this toniest of neighborhoods. For those attending public schools (and I only saw two private school signs in 4 miles) the Austin High AISD stats are as follows:

53% White, 36% Hispanic, 4% African American, 2% Asian and 5% other or mixed with 21% economically disadvantaged and 6% English learners.  This does not quite mirror the state of Texas but all of the students are hopefully being exposed to many walks of life, and the overall academic scores are in the high 80s as well.

I definitely recommend taking a walk here, and if you’d like to read about some interesting neighborhood drama from a few years back check this out as well –

https://www.texasmonthly.com/articles/the-terror-of-tarrytown/

“School district zoning – cross the street and everything changes” East and west of Burnet Road 78757

All Over the Map                                                                            

Austin, Texas                                                                                                                                

July 27, 2020

78757

“School district zoning – cross the street and everything changes”

I went to Anderson High School in the late 70s with classmates who attended both Burnet and Murchison Middle Schools, and some who were bussed over from the east side.  The differences between Burnet and Murchison back then, and the differences between Lanier or Reagan and Anderson High Schools were not that large. Today, statistically the differences are stark and strictly determined by which side of Burnet Road you live.

On the east side of Burnet Road, you are zoned into Wooten Elementary, Burnet Middle School and Lanier (now Navarro) High School. On the west side, it’s Pillow, Burnet and Anderson.  A few years back you may have been able to get into Murchison from the Pillow area, but Murchison has been locked for transfer since at least the 2016-2017 school year and so has Anderson.

The stats-

Burnet Middle – Reading 51%, Writing 46%, Economically Disadvantaged 96%, English Language Learners (“ELL”) 63% and Special Ed 18%.

Murchison Middle – 85% Reading, Writing 80%, EconDisadv. 20%, ELL 10% and Special Ed 11%.

Navaro High – 56% Reading, 87% Science, EconDisdav. 80%, ELL 53% and Special Ed 15%.

Anderson High – 85% Reading, 94% Science, EconDisadv 21% ELL 6% and Special Ed 9%.

One thing I’ve learned in research after my walks is that at least 10% on average of the AISD students are classified as Special Ed.  I am glad and grateful that we are servicing this population.  This number is much higher than I would have expected.  Perhaps because what we don’t see, we don’t know.

What I do know it that during Covid, caring for special ed students at home, coming from an ELL family, being economically disadvantaged and most likely living in smaller quarters with jobs that cannot happen virtually must be incredibly difficult.

In my own northwest neighborhood, our homeowner’s association has been arguing over the pool being closed.  Sometimes you need to step back and have some perspective.

During my walk today, I noticed how similar the homes were between east and west of Burnet Road, yet the educational opportunities were vastly different.  I’ve heard your zip code often dictates how successful you will be.  In Austin, you’ll need to drill down another level as 78757 and most others have incredible differences within their given zip codes.

The land values east of Burnet have already crept up with just a few newer condos, and already land values have increased dramatically with renters and home owners on the east side of Burnet seeing property values increase 38 to 67% in four years.

Reviewing the racial and economic stats for Burnet Middle School, I highly doubt that most of the neighborhood west of Burnet Road is actually attending Burnet.  Unlike, the tony residences in northern Travis Heights the households west of Burnet Road cannot likely pay the highest prices for any private school, but I am speculating they are likely attending private Catholics schools (which are often subsidized by the Catholic Diocese), charter schools or magnet programs like Kealing Middle School offers.

I don’t know for sure, and the real estate prices are relatively close between east and west of Burnet Road, but what I do know is that an educational divide exists and according to the AISD website Murchison has 1,353 students while Burnet has dwindled to 968.

ATX Suburbs by Charley Devany “Lots of choices and greater Austin even more divided”

July 12-25, 2020

Zip codes – 78737 (Austin, Hays County), 78653 (Manor), 78621 (Elgin) and Cedar Park (78613)

When African Americans started leaving Austin in the 1980’s they headed to Manor, Elgin (east of Austin) and south Pflugerville.  The Hispanic population has continued to grow at much higher rates than Anglos due to an infusion from Mexico and Central America and a higher birth rate.  Today the AISD is over 60% Hispanic, and Anglos hold a plurality in Texas but no longer a majority.

Yet the political landscape has not changed in the state since “W” beat Ann Richards for the Governorship in 1994.

What we face now is that 60% of the students in Texas are economically disadvantaged (either eligible for reduced or free meals, and not getting either during this pandemic).  Those household income level limits for a family of four are $47 thousand and $37 thousand per year.  Sixty percent of our students are struggling financially.

If you’re renting a house anywhere downtown Austin your property taxes may have doubled in the past four years, and if you’re renting the landlord is likely passing that entire increase to you. Thus, the suburbs call.

Manor and Elgin have lower crime rates than most of Austin and they are much more affordable, but 70 and 67%, respectively, of their students are economically disadvantaged and 35 to 40% are English learners.

West of Austin, Cedar Park (which is part of the Leander ISD) is also affordable with even lower crime rates and these statistics – 56% white, 26% Hispanic, 4% black, 9% Asian and 5% mixed or other with “only” 20% economically challenged and 7% English learners.  The neighborhood I walked near the High School was very conservative, and very white.

Are we surprised that Leander ISD high schools have grown from three to six and a 92% increase in students in the last eleven years?  In that same period AISD student population has grown by 3% and shrunk the year prior to Covid-19, while Hays county (south of Austin) grew 93% in high school students.  Hays is more affordable than Leander and economically and racially mixed somewhere between Austin High/Anderson and Manor/Elgin.  Hays is 57% Hispanic, 37% white and 2% African American with 36% economically disadvantaged.

We are seeing white flight on steroids.

Local property taxes drive the quality and spending in a school district, but so do parental guidance, nutrition, safe drinking water and after school programs.  A not insignificant part of local Texas property taxes are being re-distributed from more to less affluent school districts in the state, but booster clubs are an effective way of getting around this.  A booster club can raise funds for their school without interference or chipping elsewhere in Texas.  These clubs can complement spending on training facilities, pre-game meals, band equipment, you name it.

The neighborhoods I walked were sometimes vastly different and I can see why people, especially with families in the public schools are moving to the suburbs.  It is, however, disappointing to me that segregation is happening inside and outside the city, even if it is informal.