Yeppers. Back in the 70’s to the mid 80’s austin was a pretty good place. The Population doubled when UT was in session and dropped off in the Summer. Barton Springs was awesome and not laden with E-Coli. Lake Travis was not a$$holes to elbows.
Armadillo World Headquarters was a good place to go to get some Nachos and a Beer or glass of wine and jam to Frank Zappa or hit the Bars on 6th Street and sit 10’ away from Stevie Ray Vaughn for a few drinks and small cover charge.
Grab a Buffalo Burger at Huts Hamburgers on 6th Street , Dirty Martin’s on The Drag and get an OT Special w/ Onion Rings (while Doc was still there) and Katz’s Deli on 5th Street at 03:00 for a Ruben.
The Real Estate and Housing boom went BANG! and POOF then the down hill slide began. And then Dell moved into Round Rock and everything started going down the tubes. Traffic tripled with brainless drivers that had Cellphones glued to their head. And the Masses of Techies that got up in the morning and bowed to the North while on their knees. Lake Travis was so full of Boats that you could walk from Lago Vista to Mansfield Dam without touching the water.
290 & 183 was 2 lanes each way on both and grass on all 4 corners. 183 & IH-35 was 3 lanes each way. Nary a Toll Road anywhere.
I remember as well but not all of what you elucidate on but otherwise I do agree especially up until about 1990 and then I saw the city spiraling downwards too. I also started noticing the down turn into sin city and with all of its ugliness.I stopped driving down to Austin for those very reasons. I live about 45+ miles north of Houston up Hwy 59 in the rural countryside.
But in essence Austin is more like a petri dish chocked full of nastiness and diseased thinking ad way of life and other bad things that is tearing down our society. It is no longer a city where a man would want to try and raise a family in. It has become just too wicked and evil and dirty in many places just like some of the cities out in California and getting worse. It has become the embodiment of Sodom and Gomorrah IMHO.