Austin Texas named best city in the USA for the next decade

The May 25th edition of Kiplinger’s Personal Finance Magazine named Austin THE BEST city for the next decade, due to its forward-thinking culture, entrepreneurial climate, can-do spirit and lively arts and entertainment scene creating a vibrant, energized community.

According to the editors, “Austin is arguably the the country’s best crucible for small business, offering a dozen community programs that form a neural network of business brainpower to help entrepreneurs. Now overlay that net with a dozen venture-capital funds and 20 or so business associations, plus incubators, educational opportunities and networking events. Mix all these elements in what many call a classless society, where hippie communalism coexists with no-nonsense capitalism, and you’ve got a breeding ground for start-ups.

Don’t discount the fun factor: In the self-proclaimed live-music capital of the world, music and business creativity riff off one another. The city’s famous South by Southwest festival, where concerts, independent film screenings and emerging technology overlap, is a prime example.”

Placing first on the magazine’s list of the Top Ten cities, Austin beat out such venerable favorites as Seattle, Washington DC, Boulder, and Salt Lake City, which rounded out the top five.

Schlitterbahn Waterparks representatives recently announced the company’s intentions to build a water-themed resort in Cedar Park, Northwest of Austin, TX. The plan is currently under review by the Cedar Park (TX) Community Development Corporation. 

Schlitterbahn owns four water parks, including Schlitterbahn Vacation Village—a $749 million retail entertainment center made up of multiple shopping, dining, lodging and entertainment venues. A man-made river system carries guests between lodging units, a summertime water resort, a marine park, stores and restaurants. A covered riverwalk also crisscrosses the development.

Recently rated the #1 Water Park in the USA by Conde Nast Traveler Magazine, the Schlitterbahn Waterpark in New Braunfels, TX (between Austin and San Antonio) remains as one of Texas’ top tourist attractions. The company also has parks in Galveston Island, TX, South Padre Island, TX and Kansas City, KS. The Cedar Park location is expected to generate close to 1,000 new jobs.

Austin Texas music and nightlife

Writers at Travel and Leisure Magazine visited Austin recently and published their findings in the February 2010 issue of their magazine, just released and on newsstands now.  Living up to its advance billing, Austin provided the writers with an eclectic, varied and relaxed experience, while they stayed, dined, danced and imbibed at some of Austin’s most famous spots.

Read the full article here

Needless to say, this article is great for Austin’s travel-worthy reputation, and is sure to keep the visitors coming.  But it’s another great example of why so many people are relocating here!  Austin has a vibe all it’s own, and it only takes a short while (ie. five days or less) to catch it.

At Fine Austin Living we often don’t have time to keep up with all the “pop” music rockin’ the airwaves, since there’s so much excellent music available right in our own backyard in Austin’s countless live music venues, the ACL Festival, at South by Southwest, etc.  Nevertheless, in continuing our year-end wrap-up theme, we found this little dittie that encapsulates the Year (2009) in Pop Music in under 5 minutes. (Oh, and we’ve included a link to the 2008 version for you musicvid junkies!)

From the Black Eyed Peas to Beyonce, Taylor Swift to Lady Gaga, Kelly Clarkson to Katy Perry, Flo Rida to Miley Cyrus and others, this mashup* by DJ Earworm pulls it all together in a tidy little package.  Just imagine how much time it would take to listen to full-length versions of the nearly 25 top songs!?!?!  So sit back, turn up the volume, and prepare to …

a) enjoy

b) tap your feet

c) get up and wiggle

d) vomit

 *= a musical compilation blending snippets from various songs into a cohesive unit (- you be the judge how well it turns out)

Click here for the 2009 mashup:  United States of Pop 2009

and here is 2008’s version:  2008 mashup – United States of Pop

What a year it’s been in Austin, the Live Music Capital of the World, home of the University of Texas Longhorns and the wonderful Texas Hill Country.  We’re so thankful to live and work in one of the very best cities (and real estate markets) in North America.  And we’re not just saying that…the following publications all put Austin at-or-near the top of their lists in 2009, and we thought you might want to share the pride of our community!

Legend: Rank | Category | Publication, Date

#1 – Best Bargain City in the USA – Forbes Magazine, 5/09

#1 – Top 10 Performers of the USA’s 200 Largest Metro Areas – MilkenInstitute.org, 11/09

#1 – Best Cities in the USA for Recession Recovery – Forbes, 6/09

#1 – Best Cities for Advancing Your Career – Shine (Yahoo.com), 5/09

#1 – Best Cities for a Fresh Start – Relocation.com, 5/09

#1 – Best Big Cities for Jobs – Forbes, 4/09

#2 – Best Cities for Working Moms – Forbes, 8/09

#2 – Healthiest Housing Markets in the USA – BuilderOnline.com, 2/09

#2 – Top 10 Cities Where Americans are Relocating – Forbes Magazine, 3/09

#3 – Best Cities for High-Paying Jobs – Forbes, 7/09

#3 – Top 10 Best Places to Live in the USA – US News & World Report, 6/09

#4 – Top 10 Cities for Most Job Postings per Capita – USNews.com, 7/09

#5 – Fastest Growing U.S. Metro Area – Bizjournal.com, 5/09

#5 – Top North American Cities of the Future – FDI Magazine, 5/09

#7 – Best Technology Centers in the USA – Bizjournal.com 5/09

#8 – Top 10 Best Cities of 2009 – Kiplinger.com, 7/09

#8 – Best Places for Business and Careers – Forbes Magazine, 3/09

#9 – American Fitness index Rankings – ACSM.org,  5/09

#10 – Best Cities in the USA for MovieMakers – MovieMaker.com, 2/09

#11 – Best Cities in the U.S. for the Outdoors – Forbes, 5/09

#14 – America’s Strongest Housing Markets – Forbes, 1/09

#14 – Coolest North American Cities – MSNTravel.com, 2/09

If you would like us to send you a PDF of all of the 2009 rankings of these lists, just let us know!

The Austin Convention and Visitors Bureau (ACVB) is conducting it’s 2009 Austin Theme Song Contest, and we’re taking this opportunity to plug a friend of ours who has been selected as a finalist!

Yes, the ACVB thinks we need a “power ballad” to tell others why Austin is such a great place to live, and one of the five finalists (out of over 100 entrants!) is Jimmy Shortell, a local musician singer/songwriter that you probably never heard of…but he’s a friend so I’m doing this shameless plug to get you to vote for his ballad. It’s actually pretty clever!

But you’ve gotta place your vote by May 5th!   Here’s the link:  http://www.austintexas.org/musicians/contest_index

and of course, he’s positioned #4 on the ballot (in case you need your reading glasses!!)

Austin IS truly a wonderful place to live, and all of these songwriters have crafted very unique tunes to sum up what makes our city special, so I hope you enjoy a bit of musical entertainment from your friends at Fine Austin Living.

And a one..and a two…   VOTE FOR JIMMY!