eh, northgate is "strong" enough for me. It really all depends on your personality. If you're into watching absolute freaks get hammered and baked simultaneously while contributing to keeping Austin "weird", then CS isn't for you. If you're into chilling out with friends, pregaming at a house party then heading to northgate with friends, relaxing and knocking back a few cold ones while hot pieces of a$$ consume just enough alcohol to make them want to grind on each other, then Northgate is plenty for you. There are a few places there that can fit any mood I'm in. Hookah Station, Logan's, Obannon's, Mad hatter, Corner, Zapatos, just to name a few. I personally believe that it's the ideal college town; Enough fun to keep you entertained but not too much to where it interferes with your education, ya know, the main reason why you attend college.
You used to be able to literally drink on Northgate, outside the bars, on the promenade, BYOB type setup. When that was the case, it definitely had its own unique vibe that helped it rival 6th. It was different. Without that differentiator it no longer holds a candle to 6th. I get why you like it, and its still definitely cool, but 6th street offers some of the best night life in the world.
My (also black) brother went for a bit on academic/corps scholarship in '92, but I didn't even think about applying there; but mostly because of it being in a small town, but partly due to the excessive/seemingly forced (?) school spirit. Kind of went through that at my first (boarding) high school, we actually had to push a damn wagon around the school with the varsity football team in it at the end of fall.
