Austin Defunded the Police - Impacts 2020-2022?

Question

I keep reading news about how in a lot of cities, people are moving further out to lower costs since they can WFH. Furthermore, since Austin just defunded the police, what are everyone's thoughts about how safe it will be to stay within Austin this year, as opposed to moving further out to Cedar Park, Round Rock, Leander, etc? Given the social unrest and upcoming elections, things may get strange later this year.

(Note: I don't want this to deviate into a purely political post, I am merely trying to see peoples thoughts on whether it is a good idea to buy (AND LIVE) within the city of Austin NOW or wait till next year when things calm down, and whether they predict these situations will be short term or a long period of time). Or are there certain parts of Austin/neighborhoods/zip codes you would avoid? Which parts should likely be fine?

After going through a number of articles, I am seeing the following:

I also see Gov. Abbot apparently disagrees with Mayor Adler on the defunding, and is considering having no more increase in property taxes because of this? ( https://www.npr.org/sections/live-updates-protests-for-racial-justice/2020/08/19/903872006/texas-governor-floats-plan-to-freeze-tax-hikes-in-cities-that-defund-police )

Gov. Abbot is saying this will make Texas cities like Austin less safe.

Mayor Adler says only 21mil has been cut so far, but much more will be "reallocated" (80mil + 49mil). 80 mil to 911 call centers, forensics labs, administrative services, and internal affairs. 49 mil to eliminate "entire police units like patrol and traffic enforcement for other public safety options"

Of course, politicians always frame things in a way that suits their agenda, so not sure what to interpret from all of it.

Kris Wong · Answer

To me, Austin has always felt like one of the safest large cities in the US (at least compared to the cities I have been to), and I don't buy at all that any "defunding" initiative is going to change that, unless policy makers fail to reallocate that budget effectively toward social programs that will help alleviate and deal with crime in the city. I found Abbott's words to be completely empty, and lacking any reasoning or merit (though I don't always disagree with him). Perhaps if he could cite any data at all to back up his position. Emotional arguments don't resonate with me. I need to see logic and reason. But hey, I am totally on board with freezing property tax increases!

Anyway, I live in the 78741 zip code (central/east, 2 miles from downtown), and I am not concerned by the points you mention. What I am concerned with are the homeless camps that are ALL OVER Riverside Dr. So IMO, seeing some of this money reallocated to programs to deal with homelessness is a huge priority, because it's only going to get worse as the pandemic continues to play out.

Anyway, I live in the 78741 zip code (central/east, 2 miles from downtown), and I am not concerned by the points you mention. What I am concerned with are the homeless camps that are ALL OVER Riverside Dr. So IMO, seeing some of this money reallocated to programs to deal with homelessness is a huge priority, because it's only going to get worse as the pandemic continues to play out.

Bryan Hancock · Answer

I have lived in Austin for around 40 years now and this is precisely why I've never owned a rental property here and never will.  There are too many conservative counties around with leaders who think through things rationally instead of reacting to all the SJW nonsense.  The city should leaders should be ashamed of themselves.

Luckily nearby Williamson County offers proximity to Austin without all of the political drama.

Aaron Gordy · Answer

And Austin will keep booming. And the city will keep having high appreciation. Why? Essentially its job growth and the "bassackwards" zoning policies of the metro. It has a very long history of booming while other metros are busting. There always seems to be a rift between the city and the state and that predates the current administration going all the way back to Circle C and Save our Springs and before that even.  While all the squabbling continues to happen house prices keep going up and the rents keep going up.

Ryan Kelly · Answer

@Kris Wong I agree completely the council's lack of strategy with the homeless problem is of greater concern. I think the police budget over time will work itself out. We all want to help the homeless and see a plan to improve the situation. Clearly major cities have all had struggles with helping the homeless population, but our current "do nothing" strategy is not helping anyone.

Billy Zhao · Answer

I have a slightly different perspective, especially from my own dealing with the police department and their lack of efficiencies in dealing with property crimes. And I am not going to take a strong judgment on politics of it all since I am strived to not be ideological.

The real issue with Austin is minor property crimes and the Police, in general, is ineffective in dealing with them.

Many police are military veterans with a 2nd career after the military and 2nd pension. My experience with them is that they tend to be paid very well (with overtime) and I am not sure how to measure their performance really. I am kind of underwhelmed with their response in the last few times I needed help from them.

My take on the defunding issue is that I feel it's part an ideologically driven thing also part of practical appeasement to calm certain populations that are boiling with anger and despair. I'm not entirely sure if this strategy works but I would try mitigation before going all-in with confrontation (use force against force). It's a classic conflict resolution in my opinion.

Police are necessary and their presence provides a sense of security. Their actual crime prevention ability is highly questionable.

Mike Cumbie · Answer

"49 mil to eliminate "entire police units like patrol and traffic enforcement for other public safety options"

Until the first car flies past a school at 90MPH.

Jordan Moorhead · Answer

Defunding the police sounds more drastic than what is actually happening. They're essentially restructuring the police department. There isn't much crime in Austin anyway, we could probably get away with a few dozen armed officers.

Greg Scott · Answer

Personally, I wouldn't be buying in Austin right now.  Not for political reasons, but practical ones.

These things tend to go in cycles.   A couple years of increasing crime, decreasing property values, and general nastiness, the funding for police will come back.  But, in the ensuing years, many people may permanently leave the city of Austin.  Better to buy in the surrounding towns.

Joe P. · Answer

Also trying to avoid a deluge into politics, because politics affect the view of what's happening, not the actual result.

So, facts are, the budget is slashed by ~33%. That's a major slash. But it sounds like money is being pushed elsewhere so police don't have to handle those issues.

My feeling is, and if there are any police officers here, they can weigh in -- that 95% of the job is civil response that has a chance to become dangerous at any time, and 5% is...serious, dangerous, and threatening.

Play out those scenarios. Lets say that budget is being used to create a citizen task force that could be called for things like minor traffic accidents, neighbor disputes, police-report-after-the-fact, spending time in court, etc. Sounds like a better use of funds and time for the citizen task force. But I worry that police decrease their involvement with the citizens they protect, which is not always a good thing.

We cannot expect police to do everything. They deal with a lot of nuisance, as do our fire and EMTs. It makes sense, operationally, to shift the "nonsense" away from first responders so they can do what they do best -- fight crime, fight fires, and apply immediate/near-immediate services to those in need.

You all have a job...how many times do you have to do some stupid stuff that's "filler" instead of what you'd actually like to do, or are trained to do? I suspect that's what this is -- and has the worst name for it. Talk to any officer and they'll tell you they're mired in paperwork and desk nonsense and not able to do their jobs effectively.

The optimist in me says let the police become a positive presence in our communities, one where they are trusted and can be a face/name that we all can believe in. IF these measures are aimed at doing that, then I am all for it. I want my officers out and about, not filling out reports.

Just my $0.02. Now, if I can get political for a moment, if any pro-police people believe that "defunding the police" is a direct attempt to have crime go up, get your head examined. No reasonable (or even unreasonable) person asks for more crime. I won't give it any points for marketing efforts. But think of the possibilities from a police officer standpoint -- they want to either fight crime, or help to deter future crime, right? Does anyone get into the profession to deal with b()!!$&1#? Probably not.

The world is different and I believe if the government can do something right, the creation of a "citizen safety" or "citizen civics" group to deal with a lot of this nonsense is not a bad idea. The proof will always be in the pudding -- crime needs to maintain or drop and non-police issues need to be solved either equal or better/faster than today.

Keaton M. · Answer

@Jordan Moorhead

I think those few dozen armed officers showed up across my fourplex due to “gunshots”, also known as kids with fireworks.

I’ve never felt unsafe in this city and I doubt that will change. My neighborhood is improving just by the quality of tenants being brought in.

Austin Defunded the Police - Impacts 2020-2022?

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