From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| City of Austin |
|
|
| Nickname: Live Music Capital of the World[1] |
|
Location in the state of Texas |
| Coordinates: 30°16′2″N 97°45′50″W / 30.26722, -97.76389 |
| Country |
United States |
| State |
Texas |
| Counties |
Travis
Williamson |
| Settled |
1835 |
| Incorporated |
December 27, 1839 |
| Government |
| - Type |
Mayor-Council |
| - Mayor |
Will Wynn |
| - City Manager |
Toby Futrell |
| Area |
| - City |
296.25 sq mi (767.28 km²) |
| - Land |
251.5 sq mi (651.4 km²) |
| - Water |
6.9 sq mi (17.9 km²) |
| - Metro |
4,285.7 sq mi (11,099.91 km²) |
| Elevation |
489 ft (149 m) |
| Population (2006)[2] |
| - City |
709,893 |
| - Density |
2,396.3/sq mi (925.21/km²) |
| - Metro |
1,513,565 |
| - Demonym |
Austinite |
| Time zone |
CST (UTC-6) |
| - Summer (DST) |
CDT (UTC-5) |
| ZIP code |
78701-78705, 78708-78728, 78730-78739, 78741-78742, 78744-78769 |
| Area code(s) |
512 |
| FIPS code |
48-05000GR2 |
| GNIS feature ID |
1384879GR3 |
| Website: www.ci.austin.tx.us |
Austin is the capital of the U.S. state of Texas and the seat of Travis County. Situated in Central Texas and part of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 16th-largest in the United States of America, as well as the 3rd fastest growing large city in the nation from 2000 to 2006.[3] As of the 2006 U.S. Census estimate, Austin has a population of 709,893.[2] The city is the cultural and economic center of the Austin–Round Rock metropolitan area with a population of more than 1.5 million.
Austin was selected as the No. 2 Best Big City in "Best Places to Live" by Money magazine in 2006, and the "Greenest City in America" by MSN ("Greenest" referring to a commitment to sustainable living). [4][5]
Residents of Austin are known as "Austinites," and include a mix of university professors, students, politicians, lobbyists, musicians, state employees, high-tech workers, blue-collar workers, and white-collar workers. The city is home to enough large sites of major technology corporations to have earned it the nickname "Silicon Hills." Austin's official slogan promotes the city as "The Live Music Capital of the World", a reference to its status as home to many musicians and music venues.[1] In recent years, many Austinites have also adopted the unofficial slogan "Keep Austin Weird"; this refers partly to the eclectic and progressive lifestyle of many Austin residents, but is also the slogan for a campaign to preserve smaller local businesses and resist excessive commercialization.
History
-
Before the arrival of settlers from the United States, the area that later became Austin was inhabited by a variety of nomadic Native American tribes, including the Tonkawa tribe, the Comanches, and the Lipan Apaches.[6]
Edward Burleson laid out the town of Waterloo in the mid-1830's. In 1838 Mirabeau Lamar, vice-president of the Republic of Texas, visited Waterloo, where he stayed with one of the earliest settlers, Jacob Harrell. Lamar was elected president shortly thereafter. When The Texas Congress formed a commission to seek a site for a new capital to be named Austin, Lamar advised the commissioners to investigate Waterloo, which was then indeed chosen. In May 1839 Lamar's designated government agent Edwin Waller organized and led a workforce of about 200 men from Houston to Waterloo to construct the new city.
At first, the new capital thrived. By the early 1840's the population stood at about 850 people. But when Lamar's political enemy Sam Houston regained the presidency in 1841, he used two Mexican army incursions to San Antonio as an excuse to move the government to Washington (now known as Washington-on-the-Brazos). Within months Austin's population had shrunk to about 200, and many Texans assumed that that city would die. Remaining Austin residents responded to the threat by forcibly keeping the national archives in their city in defiance of President Houston's attempts to bring them to Washington.
Anson Jones became president in 1844. The following year he called a convention in Austin to discuss annexation to the United States as well as to consider a new constitution. Once annexation became official, delegates wrote a new state constitution in which Austin was again named the seat of government.
The Texas State Capitol was completed in 1888 advertised as the 7th largest building in the world. Funded by the famous XIT ranch, the building still remains part of the Austin skyline. The state capitol building is taller than the United States capitol building.
In September of 1881, Austin public schools held their first classes. The same year, Huston-Tillotson College opened its doors.
In the 1950's, Austin's first research labs and think tanks were built. As Austin's economy prospered, several movie theaters, public pools, and a local library system were opened.
The Austin music scene was born in the 70's when artists such as Willie Nelson brought national attention.
Today, Austin is known as much for its cultural life as its high-tech innovations. It is also known for the senators and schoolteachers who shaped its beginnings. The same success that has gained the city a national reputation has brought with it many difficult choices.
Geography
Austin is located at 30°16′N 97°45′W / 30.267, -97.75 GR1 and is approximately 541 ft (165 m) above sea level. According to the 2000 census, the city has a total area of 258.4 mi² (669.3 km²). 251.5 mi² (651.4 km²) of it is land and 6.9 mi² (17.9 km²) (2.67%) is water.
Austin is situated on the Colorado River, with three man-made (artificial) lakes wholly within the city limits: Lady Bird Lake, Lake Austin, and Lake Walter E. Long. Additionally, the foot of Lake Travis, including Mansfield Dam, is located within the city's limits. Lady Bird Lake, Lake Austin, and Lake Travis are each on the Colorado River. The city is also situated on the Balcones Fault, which, in much of Austin, runs roughly the same route as the State Highway Loop 1 (Texas) or Mo-Pac Expressway. The eastern part of the city is relatively flat, whereas the western part and western suburbs consist of scenic rolling hills on the edge of the Texas Hill Country. Because the hills to the west are primarily limestone rock with a thin covering of topsoil, portions of the city are frequently subjected to flash floods from the runoff caused by thunderstorms. To help control this runoff and to generate hydroelectric power, the Lower Colorado River Authority operates a series of dams that form the Texas Highland Lakes. The lakes also provide venues for boating, swimming, and other forms of recreation within several parks located on the lake shores.
Austin is located at the intersection of four major ecological regions and is consequently mostly a temperate-to-hot green oasis but has some characteristics of the desert, the tropics, and a wetter climate. It is very diverse ecologically/biologically and the home of a variety of beautiful animals and plants, notably the wildflowers that blossom throughout the year but especially in the spring, including the popular bluebonnets, some planted in an effort by Lady Bird Johnson.
The view from Mount Bonnell
A popular point of prominence in Austin is Mount Bonnell. At about 780 feet above sea level, it is a natural limestone formation overlooking Lake Austin on the Colorado River, approximately 200 feet below its summit. From the observation deck, many homes are visible.
The soils of Austin range from shallow gravelly clay loams over limestone in the western outskirts to deep fine sandy loams, silty clay loams, silty clays or clays in the city's eastern part. Some of the clays have pronounced shrink-swell properties and are difficult to work under most moisture conditions. Many of Austin's soils, especially the clay-rich types, are slightly to moderately alkaline and have free calcium carbonate.
- See also: List of Austin Neighborhoods
Climate
Austin has a humid subtropical climate, characterized by hot summers and mild winters.[7] On average, Austin receives 33.6 inches (853.4 mm) of rain per year, with most of the precipitation in the spring, and a secondary maximum in the fall.[8] During springtime, severe thunderstorms sometimes occur, though tornadoes are rare in the city. Austin is usually at least partially sunny.
Austin summers are usually hot and humid, with average temperatures of approximately 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32 Celsius) from June until September. Temperatures above 100 °F (38 °C) are common. The highest recorded temperature was 112 °F on September 5, 2000.[7][9][10] For the entire year there is an average of 111 days above 90 °F (32 °C) and 198 days above 80 °F (27 °C).[7]
Winters in Austin are mild and dry. For the entire year, Austin averages 88 days below 45 °F (7 °C) and 24 days when the minimum temperature falls below freezing. The lowest recorded temperature was -2 °F on January 31, 1949.[7] Snowfall is rare in Austin, but once every year or two Austin is hit with an ice storm that freezes roads over and shuts down much of the city for around a day.[7]
| Month |
Jan |
Feb |
Mar |
Apr |
May |
Jun |
Jul |
Aug |
Sep |
Oct |
Nov |
Dec |
Year |
| Avg high °F (°C) |
60 (16) |
65 (18) |
73 (23) |
79 (26) |
85 (29) |
91 (33) |
95 (35) |
96 (37) |
90 (32) |
81 (27) |
70 (21) |
62 (17) |
79 (26) |
| Rec high °F (°C) (year) |
90 (32) (1971) |
99 (37) (1996) |
98 (37) (1971) |
99 (37) (1939) |
104 (40) (1925) |
108 (42) (1998) |
108 (42) (1925) |
110 (43) (2003) |
112 (44) (2000) |
100 (38) (1938) |
91 (33) (1947) |
90 (32) (1955) |
112 (44) (2000) |
| Avg low °F (°C) |
40 (4) |
44 (7) |
51 (11) |
58 (14) |
65 (18) |
71 (22) |
73 (23) |
73 (23) |
69 (21) |
60 (16) |
49 (10) |
42 (6) |
58 (14) |
| Rec low °F (°C) (year) |
-2 (-19) (1949) |
-1 (-18) (1899) |
18 (-8) (1948) |
30 (-1) (1926) |
40 (4) (1925) |
51 (11) (1926) |
57 (14) (1924) |
58 (14) (1915) |
41 (5) (1942) |
30 (-1) (1993) |
20 (-7) (1976) |
4 (-16) (1989) |
-2 (-19) (1949) |
| Rainfall in (mm) |
1.89 (48) |
1.99 (51) |
2.14 (54) |
2.51 (64) |
5.03 (128) |
3.81 (97) |
1.97 (50) |
2.31 (59) |
2.91 (74) |
3.97 (101) |
2.68 (68) |
2.44 (62) |
33.6 (853) |
- Averages are from the 30 year average from 1971–2000 at Camp Mabry, and records are from Camp Mabry and from previous climate sites, spanning from 1897 to present.[8][10]
Government and politics
Law and government
Austin is administered by a city council of seven members, each of them elected by the entire city, and by an elected mayor under the mayor-council government system of municipal governance. Council and mayoral elections are non-partisan, with a runoff in case there is no majority winner. Austin remains an anomaly among large Texas cities in that council members are elected on an "at large" basis by all voters, as opposed to elections by districts.
The current mayor of Austin is Will Wynn. His second term ends in 2009.
Wynn is a member of the Mayors Against Illegal Guns Coalition,[11] a bi-partisan group with a stated goal of "making the public safer by getting illegal guns off the streets." The Coalition is co-chaired by Boston Mayor Thomas Menino and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
Austin is located in Travis County, Texas.
- See also: List of current and former capital cities in the United States
Politics
The main political actors in Austin city politics are interest groups such as the pro-environmental Save Our Springs Alliance, Save Barton Creek Association, Equality TX, the Austin Police Association, and the Austin Business Council.[citation needed] Texas Democrats are very active here as well are several youth groups, including the Youth Activists of Austin.
The controversy that dominated Austin politics during the 1990s was the conflict between environmentalists, strong in the city center, and advocates of urban growth, who tend to live in the outlying areas. The city council has in the past tried to mitigate the controversy by advocating smart growth, but growth and environmental protection are still the most divisive issues in city politics. Today conservatives in Austin argue that the city's various highway traffic problems are rooted in the denial of past highway/infrastructure development by political action committees who do not support highway expansion. Environmentalists counter that their efforts contributed to the city's large green spaces, which many Austinites enjoy. Progressives also maintain that unlike several other cities in Texas, Austin's smart growth policies have contributed to a rapidly-increasing population density in and around the downtown area.
Austin is well known as a center for liberal politics in a generally conservative state. Suburban neighborhoods in Austin, especially to the west and north, and several satellite municipalities, however, tend toward political conservatism.
As a result of the major party realignment that began in the 1970s, central Austin became a stronghold of the Democratic Party while the suburbs tend to vote Republican. One consequence of this is that in the most recent redistricting plan, formulated by former U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay and enacted by the Republican-majority legislature, the central city has been split among multiple, sprawling districts. Opponents characterized the resulting districting layout as excessively partisan gerrymandering, and the plan was challenged in court on this basis by Democratic and minority activists; of note, the Supreme Court of the United States has never struck down a redistricting plan for being excessively partisan. The plan was sub
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