Blue Skies Here | Central Texas

Where to Live if you're Young and Hip? Austin

The Wall Street Journal put out an article today in their "Careers" section, outlining the top ten "Youth Magnet Cities."  Number five for folks ages 18 to 29 is our terrific city: Austin, Texas.

Here's the full article:

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703787204574442912720525316.html?mod=WSJ_myyahoo_module

New Pflugerville Water Park: Blu Bambu

Coming from someone who spent Sunday at Schlitterbahn, I gotta tell you: it will be SUPER to have a water park closer to home.  Pflugerville will be the site of a new water park - set to open in 2010 - that may bring 300,000 visitors each year.  The park will be located at the corner of Pecan Street and Tollway 130.

If you want to read the full story - check out Community Impact News.

Texas ROCKS

It appears that three of the top four BEST places to live in the United States according to Forbes magazine are right here in the Lone Star State.  Check it out:

TEXAS METROS AMONG BEST TO LIVE, WORK

NEW YORK (Forbes.com) – Dallas, Houston and Austin are among the top four U.S. cities in which to earn a living, according to Forbes Magazine.

The magazine found Dallas to be the most desirable city in the nation to live and work, while Houston was second and Austin came in fourth.

Among the best reasons to take up residence in Houston or Dallas, according to Forbes, is the number of top-ranked companies headquartered in each city: 38 and 15, respectively.

The rankings were determined by median income, cost of living, job growth and the quality of the business environment. 

Did you get an offer from Travis County Appraisal District?

Heard today that 15,000 folks received an offer from TCAD in lieu of proceeding with a formal hearing on their property tax valuation.  I provided stats to a number of folks protesting their taxes this year - and am curious - did you receive an offer?  If so, are you going to take it or proceed with a hearing?

New Seat belt, Booster Seat and Cell Phone Laws

Some legislation that makes sense!  As of today, everyone riding in the car must wear a seat belt - in both the front AND back seats.

If you break the law (drivers and passengers alike) - could be fined $25-$50 for an adult and $100-$200 if a child is not buckled up in the back seat..

Also, kids under 8 have to be in a child safety seat or a booster seat unless they are 4 feet 9 inches tall. Though the law is effective today, tickets cannot be issued until June 2010.

. Children younger than 5 may not ride on a motorcycle, though they may ride in a sidecar.

. People riding in 15-passenger vans must use seat belts and child safety seats as required in other vehicles. Before, only drivers of the vans were required to wear seat belts.

. Drivers may not use cell phones in school zones unless they use a hands-free device (there is some debate as to whether local governments can get around this law by not installing warning signs. The City of Austin plans to install signs).

note: excerpted from the Austin-American Statesman

Sprouts Opens September 4

While grabbing some sushi at Origami for lunch, noticed that there were signs up at the new Sprouts Farmers Market location in Round Rock.  They stated that they'll be opening September 4.  The store is located at I-35 and 620 on the west side.

Very cool!

Best Areas for Job Growth

According to a recent CNNMoney.com list, Williamson County is included among the top counties for job growth from 2000 to 2008.  It will be interesting to see what the stats are from 2008 forward.  That said, here are how the six Texas counties that ranked fared:

Rank	County	Job Growth 2000–2008
2	Rockwall	84.9%
6	Fort Bend	61.3%
14	Williamson	53.2%
15	Collin	52.7%
22	Hidalgo	50.6%
24	Webb	49.2%

Sprouts Comes to Round Rock

For those of you with friends or relatives in the Dallas area, you likely know all about Sprouts Farmers Market -- the latest rage in food shoppery.  Well - good news for the Central Texas - we'll be getting two Sprouts stores very soon. 

The first is in Round Rock (another sign of the city's growth), the sign has gone up for the shop at 620 and I35 (site of the former Albertson's).  The location will open this fall.  And in Austin, the store will be coming in 2010 at 10225 Research.

Want more information about this terrific retailer?  Visit: http://sprouts.com/home.php

Fourth of July - Austin and Central Texas Area Celebrations

If you're looking for a place to celebrate the Fourth of July and take in the fireworks - here's a list of places you can go.  Time to enjoy some fried chicken and beer!

http://www.gracytitle.com/e-flyer/July4th/4thOfJulyCalendar_holly.html

Austin Gross Metro Product Up - From ABJ

More good news about our area from the Austin Business Journal:

The Austin area's gross metropolitan product increased 0.6 percent from the fourth quarter of 2008 to the first quarter of 2009, ranking it 2nd among the top 100 metros, according to a new study.

Liberal think tank the Brookings Institution on Wednesday published its “MetroMonitor,” which tracks economic recession and recovery in the nation’s largest metro areas. In addition to gross metropolitan product, other areas covered by the study include changes in employment levels, unemployment rates, wages and housing prices.

Austin also posted a 0.5 percent drop in employment--one of the more modest decreases among the metros. Meanwhile, wages for employees increased 1.4 percent between the end of 2008 and first quarter of 2009 and housing prices ticked up an average of 2.4 percent.

Brookings ranked San Antonio, Oklahoma City, Austin, Houston and Dallas as the top five metro areas in the country in economic performance in the wake of the recession.