6 ms·

I think both Austin and Raleigh have grown large enough that the "college town" effect is in the noise. In both cases the underlying economy is doing more to dr

I think both Austin and Raleigh have grown large enough that the "college town" effect is in the noise. In both cases the underlying economy is doing more to drive itself than the college is at this point. In those cases 40 years ago it would have made a big difference, but today better examples would have been places like College Station TX, or Gainsville FL, where the college remains the primary employer. UT Austin is the 10th largest employer in a town with a pretty self reinforcing tech economy, and a very long tail of national brand SMBs. https://www.austinchamber.com/economic-development/austin-profile/major-employers https://www.austinchamber.com/economic-development/austin-pr...

ramraj07 6y ago
Bryan/College Station is already growing beyond A&M for sure, even outsourcing companies like Cognizant are opening offices there, not to mention the oil (that might be a big if now of course) jobs around.
- vuldin 6y ago
  I don't see this at all. Bryan/College Station exist entirely because of A&M, and these towns would do the same as almost every other small town in that area if it weren't for A&M.
  - gbpz 6y ago
    What he's saying is that BCS is in it's infancy stages as a city. It's starting to draw in more jobs.
lsiebert 6y ago
Aren't Austin and Raleigh state capitals too?
- ashtonkem 6y ago
  Sometimes state capitals aren’t economically that powerful. Denver and Columbus are certainly positive cases, but Springfield and Albany are pretty middling compared to the biggest cities in the same state.
  - ghaff 6y ago
    Springfield MA is not the state capital. Boston is. But, to your broader point, there's often been a deliberate decision to site the state capital somewhere other than the main city to balance out political and business power a bit. [ADDED: Ah. Probably referring to Springfield IL.]
    - OldHand2018 6y ago
      The poster may have been referring to Springfield, IL.
      - testoo 6y ago
        i think he meant Springfield, Oh Hiya Maude!
      - ghaff 6y ago
        Ah, probably right. I'm a bit fuzzy on my random state capitals these days. :-)
        ashtonkem 6y ago
        Springfield IL was what I had in mind, but I didn’t specify that. I used to live in Chicago, so to me “Springfield” obviously meant IL, but in retrospect I should’ve been more clear.
strict9 6y ago
Raleigh is a college town around the college (Western Blvd to Hillsborough St) for sure, but there are enough tech jobs (Citrix, Red Hat, many smaller shops) and state government to keep things going regardless of how universities are affected. This is to say nothing of RTP and other areas outside of downtown. Raleigh is well-positioned to handle this and while NC State is a huge draw, not the only game in town.
eggsnbacon1 6y ago
In both of those cities the colleges have become feeder schools to the tech industry. And they're both desirable places to live on their own. Austin is gorgeous. Semi-arid but the big river gorge running through it means downtown is lush. Big hills/mountains a mile west. Tons of nature, water. Colorful history. Great downtown thats a regional vacation destination. Within 3 hours of Houston, Dallas, the ocean, and only 45 mins from San Antonio. That means 50 million people within a few hours, densest area you can find besides east and west coast. And of course the capital, which means a lot more in Texas than elsewhere due to secessional tendencies (ex the TX state capitol is taller than US capitol) Tech triangle is again in a gorgeous area. A few hours from NC coast and Blue Ridge mountains. Weather is an interesting hybrid between cold-winter northeast and humid deep south. It doesn't get very hot or cold. Probably the closest you can get to west coast weather in the east, and the nearby coast and mountains heighten the illusion. Nicely positioned for business, Miami and NYC are less than 2 hours by plane. They're both safe with great weather and a low cost of living (for tech hotspots). I have deeply considered living in both.
- ghaff 6y ago
  Depends on what you like in terms of "great weather." They're both pretty hot and humid in the summer. (Not as bad as some places but...) So long as you're OK with that sort of weather though, they're two pretty nice areas.
  - eggsnbacon1 6y ago
    NC is hot and humid compared to the west coast maybe, but the average temp of hottest month is only a few degrees more than Chicago. In contrast the average temp of the coldest month is about 20 degrees warmer. Proximity to mountains and ocean moderates the climate significantly. Austin, yes, its hot as hell in the summer :)
- SomeoneFromCA 6y ago
  I found Austin insufferably boring and hipster. San Antonio and Dallas felt much more authentic and fun.
- 6y ago
fredophile 6y ago
Out of the three cities in the research triangle I'd say Raleigh is the least like a college town. I'd expect Chapel Hill to be much more affected by this with the impact on Durham being somewhere between the other two cities.
immy 6y ago
Champaign-Urbana IL, pictured in the article but not named, is characteristic of a campus that I think will be impacted. 32,000 undergrads, 14,000 graduate students, tons of research departments, and increasing (til now) corporate satellites.

ramraj07 6y ago

Bryan/College Station is already growing beyond A&M for sure, even outsourcing companies like Cognizant are opening offices there, not to mention the oil (that might be a big if now of course) jobs around.

vuldin 6y ago
I don't see this at all. Bryan/College Station exist entirely because of A&M, and these towns would do the same as almost every other small town in that area if it weren't for A&M.
- gbpz 6y ago
  What he's saying is that BCS is in it's infancy stages as a city. It's starting to draw in more jobs.

lsiebert 6y ago

Aren't Austin and Raleigh state capitals too?

ashtonkem 6y ago
Sometimes state capitals aren’t economically that powerful. Denver and Columbus are certainly positive cases, but Springfield and Albany are pretty middling compared to the biggest cities in the same state.
- ghaff 6y ago
  Springfield MA is not the state capital. Boston is. But, to your broader point, there's often been a deliberate decision to site the state capital somewhere other than the main city to balance out political and business power a bit. [ADDED: Ah. Probably referring to Springfield IL.]
  - OldHand2018 6y ago
    The poster may have been referring to Springfield, IL.
    - testoo 6y ago
      i think he meant Springfield, Oh Hiya Maude!
    - ghaff 6y ago
      Ah, probably right. I'm a bit fuzzy on my random state capitals these days. :-)
      - ashtonkem 6y ago
        Springfield IL was what I had in mind, but I didn’t specify that. I used to live in Chicago, so to me “Springfield” obviously meant IL, but in retrospect I should’ve been more clear.

strict9 6y ago

Raleigh is a college town around the college (Western Blvd to Hillsborough St) for sure, but there are enough tech jobs (Citrix, Red Hat, many smaller shops) and state government to keep things going regardless of how universities are affected. This is to say nothing of RTP and other areas outside of downtown. Raleigh is well-positioned to handle this and while NC State is a huge draw, not the only game in town.

eggsnbacon1 6y ago

In both of those cities the colleges have become feeder schools to the tech industry. And they're both desirable places to live on their own. Austin is gorgeous. Semi-arid but the big river gorge running through it means downtown is lush. Big hills/mountains a mile west. Tons of nature, water. Colorful history. Great downtown thats a regional vacation destination. Within 3 hours of Houston, Dallas, the ocean, and only 45 mins from San Antonio. That means 50 million people within a few hours, densest area you can find besides east and west coast. And of course the capital, which means a lot more in Texas than elsewhere due to secessional tendencies (ex the TX state capitol is taller than US capitol) Tech triangle is again in a gorgeous area. A few hours from NC coast and Blue Ridge mountains. Weather is an interesting hybrid between cold-winter northeast and humid deep south. It doesn't get very hot or cold. Probably the closest you can get to west coast weather in the east, and the nearby coast and mountains heighten the illusion. Nicely positioned for business, Miami and NYC are less than 2 hours by plane. They're both safe with great weather and a low cost of living (for tech hotspots). I have deeply considered living in both.

ghaff 6y ago
Depends on what you like in terms of "great weather." They're both pretty hot and humid in the summer. (Not as bad as some places but...) So long as you're OK with that sort of weather though, they're two pretty nice areas.
- eggsnbacon1 6y ago
  NC is hot and humid compared to the west coast maybe, but the average temp of hottest month is only a few degrees more than Chicago. In contrast the average temp of the coldest month is about 20 degrees warmer. Proximity to mountains and ocean moderates the climate significantly. Austin, yes, its hot as hell in the summer :)
SomeoneFromCA 6y ago
I found Austin insufferably boring and hipster. San Antonio and Dallas felt much more authentic and fun.
6y ago

fredophile 6y ago

Out of the three cities in the research triangle I'd say Raleigh is the least like a college town. I'd expect Chapel Hill to be much more affected by this with the impact on Durham being somewhere between the other two cities.

immy 6y ago

Champaign-Urbana IL, pictured in the article but not named, is characteristic of a campus that I think will be impacted. 32,000 undergrads, 14,000 graduate students, tons of research departments, and increasing (til now) corporate satellites.