During the very early days of the pandemic, I set out to capture Airport Boulevard, the 6.6 miles of pavement that intersects a large swath of greater East Austin. The historic street passes through a mixed-use development that once was the Robert Mueller Municipal Airport, and across I-35 where it comes to an end.
It’s one of many traffic corridors in a sprawling city, in which access to a mode of transportation becomes a prerequisite to employment, food, health care, education, and entertainment.
For those unfamiliar with Austin, East Austin is a historically Black neighborhood. Dating back to the early 1900s, city planners began segregating Austin, pushing minority communities east. Over the last decade, the area has undergone aggressive gentrification. And Airport Boulevard serves as a point where gentrification audaciously continues to push forward.
