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5th Street Commons

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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0_gzpDn7SqU]

This morning the I visited the folks at 5th Street Commons.  They kindly invited me for a tour of their new digs, and to discuss the incentives currently available to renters.  Located on the outskirts of downtown Austin, the 150 apartments at the 5th Street Commons are sufficiently close enough to downtown to be included here.

What I like:
1) Ground floor retail and street side parking.  Once fully occupied with commercial tenants this should become another walkable district.

2) Smart floor plans.  At only 759/ft, the A1 plan is incredibly spacious with enough room for a dining table, kitchen island, and laundry room – without feeling cramped.

3) It’s equidistant to Whole Foods as the Sabine, and closer than Legacy on the Lake, Milago, etc.

4) Standard size washer and dryer included in all units

With advertised incentives, the rents are roughly 10-20% less than AMLI on 2nd or Monarch.   Accounting for two months of free rent on a 12 month lease, one bedrooms should begin around $1300 (studios even less), two-bedrooms around $1700.

-Jude

Texaplex!!!!!!

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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FC16-4fh-Qc]

This Texas meme has been circling for a couple of days.  Cool video discussing Texas’s economic engine – 75% of the state’s population exists in the triangle formed by San Antonio, Dallas, and Houston.

From the Texaplex website
“The global financial crisis is a vicious cycle. The more we hear and talk about it, the worse it gets. However, in spite of all the national bad news, Texas is prospering! Texas, and in particular the Texaplex, has some pretty impressive facts that most Texans weren’t even aware of. This video is part of the Texaplex project which has set out to change that.”

Impostors?

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Capitalism is alive and well in downtown Austin.

KVUE is reporting on “parking lot impostors” that pretend to work for the parking company and take your money.   I prefer to call these people disenfranchised capitalistic carnival barkers.  According to KVUE.com “Parking lot impostors in downtown Austin are costing customers and parking lot owners money. Police say the issue generates more complaints downtown than any other. KVUE’s Jim Bergamo reports.”   In addition to being scammed for your cash, you’re likely to be towed, too.  This video is not news to anyone that spends time downtown, but it’s nice to see some coverage in the mass media.

The guys waiving you into a public parking space are another breed of bum-preneur.  You know the guys waving their arms along 5th street offering you a public parking space with the additional bonus of them looking after your car if you could spare some change.

link to video

The Tragedy of Suburbia

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In this video, James Howard Kunstler tells you why suburbia hasn’t been delivering on what it’s been promising: a respite from the industrial city.

The automobile created the opportunity to own a “country” house. As more people purchased cars, more people also wanted to purchase homes outside the city. What happened is the modern suburban experience became a cartoon of the original desire to have a “country” house outside of the city.

Kunstler advocates sustainability through living locally. Love this guy’s passionate delivery.

NSFW for language

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q1ZeXnmDZMQ]

According to his TED conference bio:
“James Howard Kunstler may be the world’s most outspoken critic of suburban sprawl. He believes the end of the fossil fuels era will soon force a return to smaller-scale, agrarian communities — and an overhaul of the most destructive features of postwar society.”