Are high-tech companies having a positive impact on historically low to middle-income neighborhoods? An observational study in East Austin, Texas

This paper discusses stresses placed on housing and community resources as high-tech industry professionals and businesses transform the eastside of Austin, Texas U.S.A. In the late 1920s, segregationist policies relocated minority and low-income residents to designated districts east of downtown which has long been anchored by black and latinx communities who built and nurtured these neighborhoods. Influx of higher-earning households began in the 1970s with the incubation of tech-giants in the northeast of Austin-Round Rock Metropolitan area. While parts of Austin received improvements and services, the eastside was underserved and thereby underperforming by comparison. Cost of living and property values increased by the early 2000s, rendering long-term residents of East Austin vulnerable to displacement. East Austin is growing to be an affordable destination for emerging tech professionals to live and work in an urban setting due to its ease of access to downtown, the international airport, and a balance of urban authenticity and historic charm. This paper surveys east of I-35 highway, framed by US 290 on the North, TX-130 on the East, TX-71 on the South and I-35 on the West that is being transformed. Projected development of the area suggests a building out of this territory, a nexus of tech startups, many of which whose products seamlessly merge virtual and lived experiences of the city. A major question in East Austin is how this disruption will be done equitably to benefit both new residents and those with long established roots.

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ISBN
978-1-944214-31-9