So, I have lived in Austin since the mid-90's, having come here from the midwest via Silicon Valley (back when it was based on actual silicon, i.e. semiconductor companies).<p>You know you have become a true Austinite when you first say "it's not as cool as it was back when I first moved here". I was hearing it in the mid-90's when I moved here, I have heard it continually in the 25+ years since. Sometime in 2050, Austinites will be talking about how it is no longer as cool as it was in 2022, back when they moved here.<p>The thing is, Austin's vibe comes in part from the large number of newcomers. Newcomers to a city add energy, because they are still out and about looking for things to do and new friendships to make. A town of the same size, with the same industries, etc. which had been that size for a while, would not have the same vibe. Cities are vectors, not scalars; what gives Austin it's cool vibe is in part that there is a lot happening, and a big part of that is that new people are constantly showing up.<p>Sure, Austin has problems from this, because building enough housing to keep the prices down is hard, and keeping the infrastructure up is also hard, and Austin needs to do better on both. But, if you could somehow freeze Austin's size where it is, or where it was in a few decades back, you would not get the same feel. Rather, it would feel stultifying, full of people who already have their close circle of friends and don't feel a need to go out much, or if they do go only to the same things they went to last year. You can't freeze a candleflame, and a growing city is more like a candleflame (reacting and changing) than it is like an ice sculpture.