GatorDaze
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5/8/2007
My comments reflect 1/3 a century of knowing the town I did my BSc degree in, and once owned a home in (`73-76).
To some extent it is NOT the fault of Gainesville(GVL) nor the UF, per se. What has happened to GVL has been mirrored in Santa Cruz, Ft.Collins/Boulder, Madison, and Eugene, to name just a few. College towns used to be ideal places to live until about 25 yrs ago, when eventually, enough people told all their out-of-area friends precisely just that.
Then, next thing U know, the ubiquitous & insidious phenomenon begins. First enrollment explodes at the local Univ.; noticing this, transients invade. Not long after, college athletics BOOMS, & the Univ. gains national prominence in one or more sports. Then, working people begin to buy homes there, causing the cost of homes & living to inflate. Next, small high-tech industries try to jump start themselves there, then a WalMart, etc.
Soon thereafter, crime & pollution mushroom...this is all well documented. The once fine city of Santa Cruz, CA is now fighting for its life, thanx to the `success' & phenomenal growth of UCSC. Not much one can do, but love it or leave it, altho it is a national tragedy, happening as I write, with no end or fix in sight.
Jim | Corvallis, OR