Do you ever feel like Lubbock is stuck in a weird in-between? We’re not quite a big city, but we certainly aren’t a sleepy college town. With new housing developments popping up seemingly overnight, constant road construction, and new chain restaurants opening all the time, the question is- are we growing too fast, or not fast enough?
The Housing Market
New housing is hot in Lubbock right now. Numerous small cookie-cutter neighborhoods are cropping up on the outskirts of town, filled with cheaply made homes that all resemble one another.
Something about them has always bothered me. They don’t look like homes that are going to hold up for 40 or 50 years. They might seem like a great deal up front, but I feel like there’s more behind the curtain. I can’t help but wonder if Lubbock is doing the best it can to make housing affordable for everyone, or if we are all just trying to make a dollar off one another. Double off the poor folk, naturally.
Road Construction
The constant road construction is mind-numbing, but some areas need it badly, and I’m willing to put up with it for the greater good. I wonder sometimes, though, if we are focusing on expanding more than on fixing portions of town that have been all but forgotten. As Lubbock grows, I hope that the older parts of our city and the run-down areas are not forgotten. I hope we mend them, build them up, and expand them. I hope our city grows closer together and not further apart.
Chain Establishments
Chain establishments have been opening shops in Lubbock like crazy. They all seem to be insanely popular for a few weeks, with drive-thru lines out into the street. Then, the madness dies down, people stop going, a new place opens, and the other one struggles to survive. Some make it. Some don’t. One business that couldn’t cut the mustard here, that has always surprised me, is Jack In The Box. Do you remember the craze? It was WILD. It came and was gone in a flash, just like so many others.
Thoughts?
Whether you’re searching for an affordable home, stoked for the new Dutch Bros by your apartment, or cursing a dreaded construction zone, one thing’s clear: Lubbock is changing. The only question left is- are we ready for it?…