A relaxed, casual environment that is primarily outdoor dominates the bars on Rainey Street. To represent the culture of the street, I have juxtaposed hats and seating. Hats appear to be part of the fashion on Rainey Streeet, as patrons relax with friends on picnic tables and walk throughout the streets during social outings in downtown Austin.
In the last few decades, the city of
Austin has grown from a small, alternative city to one with a global economy.
Still, Austin strives to maintain a reputation for being cool, unique, and
“weird” while balancing the growing pains associated with commercialization.
The city’s expansion has brought land use changes, which have resulted in
gentrification- a process where lower income residents in developing areas are
displaced due to urban renewal and rising property values. The Rainey Street
district, an area of downtown Austin now known for its bar scene, is one area
that has seen these changes. While the bars on Rainey Street have been
successful in creating a laid-back, friendly social atmosphere, the changes
have come at a price. Changes in zoning, rising property values, and an
evolving downtown scene have changed the Rainey Street district from a historic
residential area to a commercialized entertainment space. This alternative use
of residences as businesses also challenges the meaning of space.
The
change in land use from residences to bars in the Rainey Street area came from
a 2004 decision to change the zoning from residential to Central Business
District. The purpose of this change was to attract the construction of a
convention center, and since this has yet to happen, business owners have
decided to use the space for entertainment purposes (Dunbar). The houses on
Rainey Street were constructed between 1900 and 1924, and the area has been
named a historic district (FindTheData). Although the intent of making the area
a historic district was to preserve the area as a residential space, it has
instead turned into an area for entertainment and tourism (Feit).
Factors
about the Rainey Street district identified by the U.S. Census show why it is
an attractive and convenient place for young people with no children to hang
out. According to AmericanFactfinder by the U.S. Census, the tract that Rainey
Street is located in has a higher number of residents than immediately
surrounding areas, but a lower average number of people in each household. The
average household size in the Rainey Street census tract is similar to that of
other downtown areas, about 1.9 people, while the east and west side of the
city have higher average household sizes up to 2.9 people. Similarly, the
Rainey Street tract has a low child dependency ratio, similar to that of other
downtown areas, compared to the east and west sides of the city. The bars were
literally once used as houses, and the change in use of the space challenges
our ideas of what a public bar, should look like, and how it should be used. The
aesthetics and the built environment of the Rainey Street district affect the
type of socialization that occurs at these establishments. While the bars on
6th Street are like fortresses, with a single wall separating the private bar
from the street, the low fences and front yards of the Rainey Street bars give
a more public and welcoming feeling. The homey feel of the street makes patrons
feel relaxed, as if they are spending time at the home of a friend where both
the indoor and outdoor spaces are used as one.
The
usual boundary lines between public and private space are blurred because of the
social integration between the street, the yard, and inside the bars. While the
street feels free and fun, the area is heavily patrolled. Employees for each
bar stand at the edge of the property, checking identification of every person
that enters the business. In addition, these employees provide social control
of the space, making sure guests are not behaving in a way they feel is
inappropriate. Just like the private shopping malls discussed by Margaret Kohn
in The Mauling of Public Space, the
Rainey Street district has become a sort of “entertainment mecca” or vacation
spot that “combines the pleasures of public life with the safety and
familiarity of the private realm.” Any form of demonstration could easily be
reported by bar owners as loitering, disturbing the peace, or harassing
customers, which takes from the democratic value usually associated with a
public street.
The exclusivity of the Rainey Street
district is seen further by the fact that most people appear to arrive in cars,
unless they are residents of the high priced downtown living. I have observed
that the Rainey Street patrons seem to be relatively young, appear to be
affluent, and are mostly white. Although the population seems to be homogenous,
the area still feels like a welcoming and relaxed place, although there is no
denying that the area is gentrifying. As of now, the Rainey Street area has an
appealing “gritty authenticity” (Zukin) that seems to be brought by the
historical nature of the houses. Just like the city of Brooklyn, which Sharon Zukin
describes as evolving into a “cool” place because of its urban renewal, pop
culture, and trends, the Rainey Street district is clinging to its “cool
factor” as the city of Austin changes (Lemon). In the case of Austin, the
“coolness” associated with the alternative nature of the Rainey Street bars is what
Austinites proudly describe as something that helps to “Keep Austin Weird.” As
discussed by Joshua Long in Weird City,
it is the commercialization of the very term that is a sign of the changing
dynamic of the city, from a small “Creative city” to a top U.S. high-technology
city.
The
change in the use of the historical houses on Rainey Street seems to be just
another step in the process of Austin’s transformation and integration to the
global economy. It has been argued that Austin’s uniqueness cannot coexist with
the commercialization and growth going on in the city today. For now, the
Rainey Street district is both a popular spot for locals and tourists to visit,
and also still a unique, “weird” part of Austin that has used old residences in
a new way. At the same time, the future of Rainey Street and nearby residents
is uncertain. New construction and gentrification in the area has the
possibility of displacing those who have come to call the area home.
References
Dunbar, Wells. "City Hall Hustle:
The Lure of Rainey Street, What Happens When a
Neighborhood
Grows without Planning Forethought." Editorial. The Austin Chronicle 28
Jan.
2011: n. pag. Web. 02 July 2013.
Feit, Rachel. "The Ghost of
Developers Past." Editorial. The Austin Chronicle 25 May 2012: n.
pag.
Web. 02 July 2013.
<http://www.austinchronicle.com/food/2012-05-25/the-ghost-
of-developers-past/>.
Find The Data: http://historical-places.findthedata.org/l/22340/Rainey-Street-Historic-District
Kohn, Margaret. Brave New
Neighborhoods: The Privatization of Public Space. New York:
Routledge,
2004. Print.
Lemon, Robert: From class lecture on
his definition of the “geography and urban ‘cool factor.’”
Long, Joshua. Weird City: Sense of
Place and Creative Resistance in Austin, Texas. Austin:
