Austin Profiles: North Campus

In Austin, Texas, just north of one of the largest universities in the US, lies the neighborhood many refer to solely as North Campus. This should be a small indicator of exactly how much Austin's culture and prosperity is influenced by the University of Texas. This area is home to an incredible amount of diversity for relatively compact size. Of all the North Campus residents, the largest demographic is also the most difficult to describe with any certainty: the students. While the population of Austin has expanded in part because of the constant influx of students, (and graduates, who often find that after four years of Austin, they'd rather stay) in the neighborhood of North Campus this effect is more pronounced than in most any other. A sizable majority of the neighborhood's residents are college-educated (or in the process of becoming so) and politically active, both traits that reflect a neighborhood steeped in more cultural diversity than any cookie-cutter suburb. Another indicator of eclectic and progressive taste comes from the local businesses, whom are particularly outspoken about the importance of keeping things local in as many ways as possible, from distinctive local coffee shops like Spider House and Lava Java to Wheatsville, a cooperatively-owned local grocery which specializes in bringing locally and organically grown produce to consumers at lowered costs to members. Many other businesses are strewn throughout the interior of North Campus, such as Fricano's Deli and the local bike shop Clown Dog.

As North Campus bumps up against Guadalupe Street, as well as several other major thoroughfares, the opportunities for shopping, dining, and entertainment are quite diverse. Many businesses on this strip, referred to ironically as the Drag, also host regular cooperative, community-oriented events such as Third Thursday that include live music and many sales from stores such as the exceptionally distinctive toy store Toy Joy and vintage/resale clothing store Buffalo Exchange, where buyers and sellers alike seek to deal in "new and recycled fashion." All these businesses care deeply about preserving the community and spirit of this area, and are quite knowledgeable to boot. Like many areas in Austin, North Campus also had some unusual city planning regarding roads, resulting in some confusing (yet endearing) discontinuities. Part of the blame lies with the land itself, which is famously hilly and unpredictable.

This has made the campus area, and Austin in general, very attractive to professional cyclists like Lance Armstrong who often train here for some months out of the year. Bicycles are also very popular in the neighborhood, both for students with few campus parking options and older residents who are looking for a way to keep healthy and get around. While some large apartment developments have made some inroads, by and large North Campus is characterized as having similar houses to other adjacent neighborhoods: a mixture of smaller, adorable bungalows (perfect for couples and the nuclear family structure more common in the 1940's and 50's, when many of the homes were built) and larger, Victorian-style sprawling two-story properties that have been home to groups of students and families for generations.