06/20/2025
Although I've moved, I'll be back at some point with an "I told you so." I hope it's a good "I told you so."
I Told You So
For those who haven’t heard, I’ve moved to Chicago in order to be somewhere safer than Texas for transgender people (yay getting internally…
06/19/2025
On why big developers are not usually YIMBYs
05/31/2025
I'm in Chicago now. Fun game: how many different ways is this apartment building illegal in Denton?
05/27/2025
I don’t recognize anyone in my neighborhood anymore! Why do the kids I used to know seem to grow taller, look older, and move away? I need every political candidate to clarify their position on the passage of linear time.
It wasn’t always like this. I moved to this city as a wide-eyed twenty-year-old, ready to take on the world with energetic abandon. Now, I’m no longer twenty years old. Something really has changed with this city.
Growth is inevitable, and growth can be good! Let’s focus on consistent growth all the way up to two stories. We can even expand the idea of a city, and by expand, I mean twist and choke the idea of a city until it’s a suburb.
We can’t do it alone. We need bold leadership that courageously pushes our city to remain trapped in historical amber.
The Problem with My City Is That It’s a City
I’ve lived in this city for decades, but I’m noticing more and more problems. There’s crowding, congestion, changing people, tall buildings, and th...
05/25/2025
Hey y'all. I'm moving this week.
When the national elections came down last year it started a timer for me. I love Denton, I love the folks here. I've massively enjoyed being involved here in the ways I have, and I can brag quite a bit about all the things I've participated in. I participated in efforts to get $5M extra on that affordable housing bond and $5M budgeted for sidewalk on that incredibly dangerous section of McKinney. I'd love nothing more than to keep doing that.
Unfortunately, the national elections happened. And I'm a transgender woman. At this point I'm scared to legally change my name in this state because they might confiscate my ID, there's a whole slew of anti-trans legislation headed through the state house/senate this cycle, and I'm sure it will only continue to get worse. Unfortunately, I'm out.
For everyone staying who's appreciated the time and effort I've put into fighting for affordable housing, safer streets, and progressive causes, id encourage you to do what you can moving forwards
- D3 runoff starts this week. Go vote for Suzi Rumohr if you live in D3, and get your friends to do the same
- get involved with Bike Denton or Stronger Denton, they're some of the smartest folks in the city on city issues
- keep an eye on city council, school board, or DCTA
- Tell your friends and neighbors what's going on
In a week or so, I'll be handing off my various social media accounts to a friend who's reasonably aligned with me on the issues. Live tweeting government, summarizing stuff, figuring out how to explain things is all actually more difficult than it seems, so be nice to them as they get up to speed.
Don't worry, I'll delete all your DMs. I have a few articles still to post over on my medium, and I'll handoff my rent archive stuff to a UNT prof.
If you'd like to help support my move, I have a GoFundMe up: https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-kristine-move-to-a-town-with-trains-and-human-rights
Thanks everyone for being interested in all the nerdy little bits of city government that I like talking about, and I wish y'all luck. I hope in 10 years I come back to a Denton with lots of cheap rent, safe streets, tons of buses, and a very cool and q***r arts scene.
Donate to Help Kristine Move to a City With Trains and Human Rights, organized by Kristine Bray
Help me move to Chicago!! I gave Denton my all, but th… Kristine Bray needs your support for Help Kristine Move to a City With Trains and Human Rights
05/19/2025
Is it a bubble, or is it a market that is fundamentally increasing in cost but also has cycles?
Cause for the last 5 decades, every high has been higher and every low has also been higher.
So probably not *just* a bubble.
05/17/2025
If you look at communities in Denton that historically had some characteristic - Black, Hispanic, or working class - and then look at census data, you'll see Denton communities are being destroyed.
Not by development, which adds more housing, but by a lack of development. With little or no new housing, homes get bid up out of reach of the community that calls the place home.
I wrote a little about home flipping in South East Denton on my medium, and the video below is a good watch too.
Why You Can’t Afford to Live Where You Grew Up (and how we can fix it)
This is how zoning laws can drastically affect home pricing. If we want housing prices to drop, we need to take steps that allow for more home types to be bu...
05/16/2025
Los Angeles could largely solve its $1B budget crisis by allowing more housing near mass transit. Denton is raising services and utility costs while also cutting back on services...
So first we just have to get actually useable mass transit.
How Land Use Reform Could Help Solve the Los Angeles Budget Crisis
Our high-level analysis shows how restrictive, exclusionary zoning has accentuated the City’s financial crisis, and how targeting upzoning could help balance budgets. Senate Bill 79 would create capacity to grow the City of LA’s annual property tax income by nearly $1 billion.
05/09/2025
It's so funny that you can just trace the housing shortage to English law