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Central Austin

Photo Credit: Historic Hyde Park Homes Tour

While the big city conveniences of Metro Austin are nearby, Central Austin retains the flavor of its humble beginnings. On Baylor Street in Old Austin, the 600-year-old Treaty Oak stands as a testament to the area’s heritage. Legend has it that the Treaty Oak was the site of treaty signings between Stephen F. Austin (the “father of Texas”) and local Indians. But while there is no official record of Austin ever being in the city that bears his name, Central Austin contains a rich set of historical elements ranging from residential properties to community sites to businesses that provide a clear picture of Austin from the late 1800s. The 3.27-acre West Austin Park is still one of the most popular family spots in the city. A Moonlight Tower, one of the 17 fully restored towers remaining in Austin, still stands at the corner of 12th and Blanco Streets; an omnipresent reminder of how important it is to remember the heritage of Central Austin and preserve the quality and character of the neighborhood for future generations.

Central Austin neighborhoods include:

Aldridge Place | Allandale | Bryker Woods | Clarksville | Crestview | Old Enfield | Hyde Park | Tarrytown | Travis Heights

Aldridge Place
Aldridge Place is a small neighborhood of about 140 homes bordered roughly by 30th Street, 34th Street, Speedway and Guadalupe Street. The central feature of the neighborhood is Adams-Hemphill Park, located along the banks of Waller Creek.

There's always activity around the park, with moms pushing little ones in strollers, joggers and walkers and university students riding bikes to and from classes. People run into each other on the street and stop to talk. It's a friendly place.

“Families are attracted to the central location and the quality of the homes,” said Suzanne Pringle, broker associate with Moreland Properties. “The homes are all different. The quality of the homes is also very good.” Several homes have received City of Austin historic designation, which gives homeowners a tax break as long as they maintain and preserve the home.

A mix of people call Aldridge Place home much because they enjoy the stimulation of a university environment and the proximity to downtown. You can pretty much get anywhere without a car, that’s a good thing because the one problem with the area is parking. Many university students choose to park along the neighborhood streets. But otherwise it’s a peaceful, happy place.

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Allandale
An active, involved neighborhood association is the heart and soul behind the successful sense of community spirit that inhabits the Allandale neighborhood. In fact, “active” is probably an understatement when it comes to describing the Allendale Neighborhood Association.

The neighborhood association has been responsible for, among other things, working with the city to have a retention pond built in 1986 to prevent flooding, having new bridges built to for flood control, working with Congressman Lloyd Doggett’s office to keep trains from stopping over in the neighborhood and noisily idling their engines for days on end, and building sewer line improvements under Shoal Creek Boulevard that would prevent harming its namesake, Shoal Creek.

The neighborhood used to be considered Northwest Austin, but with all the growth it’s now considered “Central,” which makes long time residents laugh. But people who move here hate to ever have to move out. It’s a good well-rounded neighborhood and there’s always something going on.

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Bryker Woods
It is the physical beauty that attracts most people to the neighborhood, but it’s the atmosphere that keeps them here.

Bryker Woods is near to downtown but still away from it all. Because of its well-defined geography, the neighborhood is confined. There are advantages to that — not a lot of through traffic. That helps many residents feel safe and comfortable raising a family in the area.

“People who buy here are looking for a neighborhood like the one they grew up in,” said George McGee of George Sears McGee, Realtors. “They want the charm of an older neighborhood. They tell me to exhaust looking here before they'll consider looking elsewhere.”

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Clarksville
This is a historic neighborhood where a new Mercedes-Benz may be parked in front of a renovated home next to a modest bungalow with a 20-year-old domestic car outside. It's not unusual to find these same homeowners sitting next to each other at the counter at Nau Enfield Drug enjoying hamburgers and milk shakes. Nau's, as it's affectionately known, is considered the heart of Clarksville.

Doctors, lawyers, architects and restaurant owners and waiters call Clarksville home. It's a wonderful mix of architecture and people. Residents are pretty tolerant of different lifestyles and cultures. The University of Texas apartments for married students, manyof whom are international, are in the neighborhood.

Need to get to work fast? A few blocks in any direction gets drivers to MoPac Boulevard, Lamar Boulevard and Sixth Street. Some residents are known to bicycle to work downtown. Capital Metro also is an option. Within the neighborhood, people still walk and children ride bicycles under the shade of majestic old trees that have stood for a century or more. One of Austin's best-known trees, the Treaty Oak, is just outside Clarksville on Baylor between Sixth and Fifth streets.

There are some who are concerned that the rapid changes in the neighborhood may not bode well for all. Sam Archer, president of Old West Austin Neighborhood Association, which includes Clarksville, said the skyrocketing property values may force out descendants of original families. “Many families sold when people in the suburbs started seeing the value of living close in,” Archer said.

He can also understand the attraction. “It's laid out very pedestrian-oriented,” he said. “The streets are narrow, homes are close together. There are pedestrian paths where vehicles can't go. It has a sense of a real intimate community.”

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Crestview
Crestview is a neighborhood in transition. The charm of the neighborhood and the affordability of homes here is great. This is an ideal location for people who don’t mind working on their homes and can see the potential of renovating an older home.

Although residents are making changes to their homes, the neighborhood as a whole is dedicated to maintaining the little nuances that make it special. One local explains, “We have a small strip mall center that’s been here for years, with a Mini-max grocery store, a pharmacy and a deli–it’s really nice to just walk down the street and get something literally from the corner store. We have a wonderful fire station that’s a fixture here at the corner of Grover at West St. John Street.”

Crestview’s location does indeed make it a “best buy” for homeowners wanting the cachet of an older home without the high price of other established Austin neighborhoods, says realtor Gary Knippa. “Typically, it’s the young professional type crowd buying homes in Crestview, who don’t mind rolling up their sleeves and making their homes suit their individual tastes.”

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Old Enfield
This neighborhood is a treasure trove of colonial architecture and quiet streets canopied by the branches of majestic live oak trees reaching across the street. Add its history into the mix, and it's the perfect neighborhood as far as long time resident Wadene Harrison is concerned.

While many residents have lived in the vicinity 30 to 50 years, the area is attracting young families. It's convenient to downtown and it's a completely blended neighborhood. Old Enfield has people in their 90s and people in their 20s. There are many neighborhoods where people don't interact. But this is the type of neighborhood where people watch out for each other.

The neighborhood's charms have attracted University of Texas students as well as CEOs. Former Mayor Kirk Watson and former Lt. Gov. Ben Barnes have called Old Enfield home. Residents are not without a sense of humor. West Lynn Street residents decorate their homes in honor of Elvis's birthday. But many people prefer touring the neighborhood during Christmas, when the columned porches and grand balconies are decked out in their finest decorations.

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Hyde Park
Hyde Park feels more compact than other areas of Austin, and is a good model of an inner city neighborhood. It’s the best walking neighborhood in Austin, with good sidewalks, level streets, and a nice assortment of shops and grocery stores.

Most home sales made now are to young professionals who want something eclectic, something with a little history and character. The whole area speaks to a profile of Austin itself. The area also has a very strong neighborhood association with some of the most vibrant folks in the Austin community.

This neighborhood has a funky feel to it, with its front porches and alleys. The grid here is well laid out, with short blocks and lots of trees and cross streets to help people get around. There are always a lot of people walking around the neighborhood–so many, in fact, that it’s almost like a parade!

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Tarrytown
You may get “sticker shock” at the prices of homes here, but residents insist homes are worth every penny. It takes 10 minutes to get to downtown Austin, some may consider that alone “priceless.”

The neighborhood doesn’t just offer location, location, location. It’s also very charming, with good schools and a great park with swings, slides, picnic tables and a pool. That’s hard to top.

Because of the expense, the vast majority of the homes are owner-occupied. The neighborhood attracts families, professionals and retired people who have lived in the neighborhood since it was built.

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Travis Heights
Travis Heights has long been known for its diversity and acceptance of people from all walks of life — lending even more color to a neighborhood that architecturally resembles a kaleidoscope in nature, as it changes block-to-block, and even house-to-house.

“We have artists, musicians, students, business professionals, teachers, writers…all living here in Travis Heights,” says Claudette Lowe, a real estate agent with Moreland Properties and herself a resident of Travis Heights since 1978. “We definitely have the most liberal voting precinct in Austin. It’s hard to say what the ambience is. But if you want to live in a neighborhood where everything is exactly the same, then Travis Heights probably isn’t the place for you.”

Other factors that contribute to the neighborhood’s appeal are its easy access to parks, local eateries, shops, bus routes, etc.

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