A wealthy Austin neighborhood has “given the finger” to the state capital and voted en masse to leave the city amid a growing crime crisis.
In Lost Creek, a wealthy enclave on Austin’s west side, an overwhelming 91 percent of residents voted to secede from the city during the May 4 election.
Many never wanted to be part of the city of Austin when it was annexed nine years ago in 2015 to begin with.
But as the Democratic-run capital of Texas faces a public safety crisis — with a shortfall of nearly 500 police officers — tempers have reached a boiling point and many residents believe they would be better off alone.
‘Wow for Austin Mayor and Council’ tweeted Retired local judge and attorney Bill Aleshire on election night.
And Lost Creek is not alone, as two other neighborhoods also voted to leave the city this month.
Lost Creek, a wealthy enclave on Austin’s west side, voted 91 percent to secede from Austin during the May 4 election.
Lost Creek was annexed by the city of Austin in 2015, but now residents have
The backlash on social media reached Lost Creek residents who voted to leave Austin by 91%.
Leslie Odom, a longtime resident of the community, told KVUE that when she decided to buy her home in the area more than 13 years ago before it was absorbed by Austin “because I wanted a safe place to live.”
Austin became the poster child for America’s prosperous Sunbelt during the pandemic, with property prices soaring. It is now the fifth most expensive metropolitan area in the United States.
But residents are increasingly concerned about rising crime.
Leslie Odom, who has lived in Lost Creek for 13 years, said KVUE: ‘When I chose to buy my property and live in this area it was because I wanted a safe place.’
But now he explained: ‘Robberies are normal. Car thefts are normal. People show up in garages. Sometimes it seems like a powder keg about to explode.
When Lost Creek became part of Austin in 2015, residents who owned multi-million dollar homes became taxpayers to the city of Austin.
But the public services that pay those taxes are increasingly scarce, especially when it comes to police.
The city is short-staffed — 483 officers — after the former mayor and city council went to war with police in 2020, cutting the department’s budget by a third.
He was later forced to return the money due to a state law that penalized municipalities that defunded the police.
A map of homes for sale in Lost Creek shows home prices in the area, according to Zillow.
Odom and others like this resident who have lived in Lost Creek for the past nine years said this safe place is no longer safe, citing how burglaries and robberies are now the norm.
A local who has also lived there for nine years cited this sad state as the reason why the united city has chosen to separate itself from the city of Austin, of which it has been a part since 2015.
This means residents are supposed to receive the same civic services assigned to the nearby city, something this 30-plus year resident said is not the case. He and others in the area voted to secede from Austin on May 4.
Meanwhile, the city, known for its multimillion-dollar homes and scenic views of the Texas Hill Country, is trapped in an understaffed police force after the former mayor and city council went to war with police in 2020 and reduced enforcement. the department’s budget by a third
Austin’s anti-police policies are very different from the rest of the state, which prides itself on being pro-law enforcement.
Those policies have led dozens of officers to retire early or flee to other police departments.
Police vacancies mean there simply aren’t enough officers to respond to 911 calls.
Any calls that are not considered a life-or-death emergency are now redirected to the non-emergency number 311.
At one point, the current mayor asked Texas police to step in and help patrol the city for a few months last year while local cops were able to graduate a class of cadets.
The partnership lasted a few months before the city ended it in 2023.
Homeowners have resorted to hiring off-duty police officers to patrol their neighborhood, as the Austin Police Department does not have enough personnel to respond.
“If they were doing the job they promised they were going to do, we wouldn’t be where we are,” resident Ryan Brennan told KVUE.
Austin currently faces a shortfall of 483 officers, which has created a public safety crisis.
Lost Creek residents say they are paying twice for the police: city taxes for unresponsive Austin police officers and then hiring off-duty cops to patrol their streets.
“This is a big deal for the city of Austin,” the local content creator tweeted. Jaime Hammons.
‘The Lost Creek residences basically just pointed the finger at the city of Austin, the mayor, and most importantly, the councilwoman who represents the area. Wow.’
The “deannexation” of Austin means that Lost Creek will now get police protection from the county sheriff, for which they are already paying taxes.
“I’m really jealous that they have better management and would rather do it on their own than have anything to do with the city,” local public safety activist Cleo Petricek told DailyMail.com.
Lost Creek residents were able to vote to leave Austin thanks to state law HB 3053.
The law requires the state’s largest cities to allow some neighborhoods to vote on whether to leave city limits, but only if they were annexed between March 3, 2015 and December 1, 2017.
The vote will need to be ratified by the county elections department and Lost Creek will be required to pay money they owe the city of Austin before residents can officially leave.
Meanwhile, other areas of Austin could soon follow suit.
Petricek said: ‘Barton Creek, this is another area that has been ignored and mismanaged by the city. City Hall is not listening to the majority of Austinites who live here and are not receiving the services we expect.’
Two other neighborhoods also voted to leave the city in this month’s election.
One is near Blue Goose Road in Northeast Austin and the second is near River Place in West Austin.
The City Council declined to comment for this story.