Gainesville, Florida, United States

🇺🇸 Gainesville is the county seat of Alachua County, Florida, and the largest city in North Central Florida. It is the principal city of the Gainesville metropolitan area. Gainesville is home to the University of Florida, the fourth-largest public university campus by enrollment in the United States as of the 2021–2022 academic year. The university hosts the Florida Gators sports teams in the NCAA competitions.

History There is archeological evidence, from about 12,000 years ago, of the presence of Paleo Indians in the Gainesville area, although it is not known if there were any permanent settlements. A Deptford culture campsite existed in Gainesville and was estimated to have been used between 500 BCE and 100 CE. The Deptford people moved south into Paynes Prairie and Orange Lake during the first century and evolved into the Cades Pond culture. The Deptford people who remained in the Gainesville area were displaced by migrants from southern Georgia sometime in the seventh century. These migrants evolved into the Alachua culture and they built their burial mound on top of the Deptford culture campsite. When Europeans made first contact in the area, the Potano lived in the area. They were descendants of the Alachua culture people. European contact diminished the numbers of native peoples (through disease, enslavement, war) and Spanish colonists began cattle ranching in the Paynes Prairie area in the 18th century. The Spanish ceded Florida to the US in 1821.

Gainesville was established in 1854 and named after Edmund P. Gaines. The town of Gainesville was incorporated in 1869 and chartered as a city in 1907. The University of the State of Florida was moved from Lake City to Gainesville in 1906 and its name was simplified to University of Florida in 1909.

Geography Gainesville is located at roughly the same latitude as Houston, Texas. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has an area of 62.4 square miles (161.6 km²), of which 61.3 square miles (158.8 km²) is land and 1.1 square miles (2.8 km²) is water. The total area is 1.74% water.

Gainesville's tree canopy is both dense and species rich, including broadleaf evergreens, conifers, and deciduous species; the city has been recognised by the National Arbor Day Foundation every year since 1982 as a "Tree City, USA". A 2016 ecological assessment indicates Gainesville's urban tree canopy covers 47 percent of its land area.

Gainesville is the only city with more than 10,000 residents in the Gainesville, Florida, metropolitan statistical area (Alachua, Levy and Gilchrist counties), and it is surrounded by rural area, including the 21,000-acre (8,500 ha) wilderness of Paynes Prairie on its southern edge. The city is characterized by its medium size and central location, about two hours' driving time from either Jacksonville or Orlando, three hours from Tampa, and six hours from either Atlanta or Miami. The area is dominated by the University of Florida, which in 2008 was the third-largest university by enrollment in the US, and as of 2021 was the fourth-largest.

Cityscape Since the 1990s, suburban sprawl has been a concern for a majority of the city commissioners. The "New Urbanization" plan to gentrify the area between historic Downtown and the University of Florida may slow the growth of suburban sectors and spark a migration toward upper-level apartments in the inner city. The area immediately north of the university is also seeing active redevelopment. Many gentrification plans rely on tax incentives that have sparked controversy and are sometimes unsuccessful. University Corners, which would not have been proposed without a $98 million tax incentive program by the city, was to be "a crowning jewel of the city's redevelopment efforts", 450 condos and hotel units and 98,000 square feet (9,100 m²) of retail space in eight stories covering three city blocks, on 3.4 acres (1.4 ha) purchased for $15.5 million. 19 thriving businesses were demolished in April 2007, but in May 2008 deposit checks were refunded to about 105 people who reserved units, and in July 2008 developers spent "$120,000 to beautify the site, so we won't have this ugly green fence".

Gainesville's east side houses the majority of the city's African-American community, while the west side consists of the mainly student and White resident communities. West of the city limits are large-scale planned communities, most notably Haile Plantation, which was built on the site of its eponymous former plantation.

The destruction of the city's landmark Victorian courthouse in the 1960s, which some considered unnecessary, brought the idea of historic preservation to the community's attention. The bland county building that replaced the grand courthouse became known to some locals as the "air conditioner". Additional destruction of the downtown area's historic buildings has left a small handful of older buildings, like the Hippodrome State Theatre, at one time a federal building. However, revitalization of the city's core has picked up, and the city is replacing many parking lots and underutilized buildings with infill development and near-campus housing that blend with existing historic structures. There is a proposal to rebuild a replica of the old courthouse on a parking lot one block from the original location.

Helping in this effort are the number of areas and buildings added to the National Register of Historic Places. Dozens of examples of restored Victorian and Queen Anne style residences constructed in the city's agricultural heyday of the 1880s and 1890s can be found in the following districts: • Northeast Gainesville Residential District • Southeast Gainesville Residential District • Pleasant Street Historic District

Additionally, the University of Florida Campus Historic District, consisting of 11 buildings and 14 contributing properties, lies within the city's boundaries. Most of the buildings in the Campus Historic District are constructed in variations of Collegiate Gothic architecture, which returned to prominence in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Historic structures on the Register in and around downtown are: • Bailey Plantation House (1854) • Colson House (1905) • Matheson House (1867) • Thomas Hotel (1910) • The Old Post Office (now the Hippodrome State Theatre) (1911) • Masonic Temple (1908) • Seagle Building (1926), downtown Gainesville's tallest building. • Baird Hardware Company Warehouse (1890) • Cox Furniture Store (1875) • Cox Furniture Warehouse (c. 1890) • Epworth Hall (1884) • Old Gainesville Depot (1907) • Mary Phifer McKenzie House (1895) • Star Garage (1902) • A. Quinn Jones House

Developments and expansions • Innovation Square • University Corners • The Continuum – Graduate and Professional Student Housing.

Languages As of 2019, 82.90% of residents age five and older spoke English at home, while 8.20% spoke Spanish, 1.93% spoke Chinese, 0.96% spoke French, Haitian Creole, or Cajun, 0.78% spoke Vietnamese, 0.55% spoke Russian, Polish, or other Slavic language, 0.50% spoke Tagalog, 0.34% spoke Korean, and 0.37% spoke German, 0.35% spoke Arabic, 2.14% spoke some other Indo-European Language, 0.75% spoke some other Asian or Pacific Islander language, and 0.24% spoke some other and unspecified language. In 2015, 0.61% of residents age five and older spoke Hindi at home.

Economy Numerous guides, such as the 2004 Cities Ranked and Rated: More than 400 Metropolitan Areas Evaluated in the U.S. and Canada, have mentioned Gainesville's low cost of living. The restaurants near the University of Florida also tend to be inexpensive. The property taxes are high to offset the cost of the university, as the university's land is tax-exempt, but the median home cost is slightly below the national average, and Gainesville residents, like all Floridians, do not pay state income taxes.

The city's job market scored only 6 out of a possible 100 points in the Cities Ranked and Rated guide, as the downside to the low cost of living is an extremely weak local job market that is oversupplied with college-educated residents. Gainesville's median income is slightly below the U.S. average.

Gainesville heavily promoted solar power by creating the first feed-in tariff (FIT) in the United States. The FIT allowed small businesses and homeowners to supply electricity into the municipal power grid and paid a premium for the clean, on-site generated solar electricity. The FIT started with a rate of $0.32 per kilowatt-hour and allowed a person or business to enter into a 20-year contract where Gainesville Regional Utilities would purchase the power for 20 years. The FIT ended in 2013, when the rate was set at $0.18 per kWh, but the city is still seen as a leader in solar power. This increase in solar installations put Gainesville at number 5 in the world in solar installed per capita, beating Japan, France, China and all of the US.

The sports drink Gatorade was invented in Gainesville in the 1960s to help refresh the UF football team. UF still receives a share of the profits from the beverage, but Gatorade's headquarters are now in Chicago.

The Florida Department of Citrus's department of economic research is on the UF campus.

Economy: Top employers The city's economic engine is the University of Florida, which is by far the largest employer in the area and brings in a large amount of state and federal money. According to Gainesville's 2017 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the top employers in the city include: 1 University of Florida; 2 UF Health; 3 Gainesville Veterans Administration Medical Center; 4 Alachua County School Board; 5 City of Gainesville; 6 North Florida Regional Medical Center; 7 Gator Dining Services; 8 Nationwide Insurance; 9 Alachua County; 10 Publix.

Startups Greater Gainesville (Alachua County) is home to many startups with over 160 high growth enterprises. Gainesville is also home to dozens of organizations that support startups along their entire continuum of growth.

Education The Gainesville urban area is served by Alachua County Public Schools, which has 75 different institutions in the county, most in the Gainesville area. Gainesville is also home to the University of Florida and Santa Fe College. The University of Florida is a major financial boost to the community, and UF athletic events, including SEC football games, create hundreds of thousands of dollars in additional revenue. According to a 2019 study by the university's Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, the university contributed $16.9 billion to Florida's economy and was responsible for over 130,000 jobs in the 2017–2018 fiscal year.

Desegregation Gainesville's schools began desegregating in the 1960s and its high schools were integrated from 1968 to 1970, the "colored" schools having been either closed or integrated.

Education: Elementary • Boulware Springs Charter School • Chiles Elementary School • Duval Elementary School • Caroline Beatrice Parker Elementary School • Foster Elementary School • Glen Springs Elementary School • Hidden Oak Elementary School • Idylwilde Elementary School • Lake Forest Elementary School • Littlewood Elementary School • Meadowbrook Elementary School • WA Metcalfe Elementary School • Norton Knights Elementary School • Rawlings Elementary School • Talbot Elementary School • Terwilliger Elementary School • Wiles Elementary School • Williams Elementary School

Education: Middle Middle schools in the county run from 6th to 8th grades. • Howard Bishop Middle School • Fort Clarke Middle School • Kanapaha Middle School • Lincoln Middle School • Westwood Middle School

Education: High High schools in Gainesville run from 9th to 12th grades. • Buchholz High School • Eastside High School • Gainesville High School • Loften High School

Private schools • Brentwood School • Countryside Christian School • Cornerstone Academy • Gainesville Country Day School • Laniakea Montessori School • Millhopper Montessori School • Oak Hall School • Queen of Peace Academy • St. Patrick Interparish School • The Rock School • Trilogy School of Learning Alternatives • Westwood Hills Christian School • St. Francis Academy • Newberry Christian Community School

Education: Universities • University of Florida • Santa Fe College • Saint Leo University (Gainesville Education Center) • City College (Gainesville campus)

Developmental research schools • P. K. Yonge Developmental Research School

Public libraries The Alachua County Library District provides public library service to Gainesville and to all of Alachua County. The Library District has reciprocal borrowing agreements with the surrounding counties of Baker, Bradford, Clay, Columbia, Dixie, Gilchrist, Lafayette, Levy, Marion, Putnam, St. Johns, Taylor, and Union. These agreements are designed to facilitate access to the most convenient library facility regardless of an individual's county of residence.

Transport In 2009, the Gainesville metropolitan statistical area (MSA) ranked seventh highest in the United States in percentage of commuters who biked to work (3.3 percent).

Transport: Road Gainesville has an extensive road system, which is served by Interstate 75, and several Florida State Routes, including State routes 20, 24, and 26. Gainesville is also served by US 441 and nearby US 301, which give a direct route to Jacksonville, Ocala, and Orlando.

See also: List of county roads in Alachua County, Florida • I-75 runs north-west and south-east across the western edge of the city, with interchanges at SR 121/SR 331 (exit 382), SR 24 (exit 384), SR 26 (exit 387), and SR 222 (Exit 390). • US 441 is the main local north–south road through Gainesville. It runs on the eastern edge of the University of Florida. It is known to locals as 13th Street, before curving to the north-west and finally joining SR 20, converting into an additional hidden state road. At the intersection of SR 121, the DeSoto Trail moves from SR 121 to US 441. • SR 20 runs north-west and south-east through Gainesville. In east Gainesville, the road again becomes a stand-alone four-lane highway as it heads to Hawthorne, Interlachen, and Palatka. Northwest of Gainesville, SR 20 coincides with US 441 as a hidden state road through the town of Alachua before splitting at the fork a half-mile from downtown High Springs. SR 20 then coincides with US 27 as it heads to Fort White, Branford, Mayo, Perry, and Tallahassee. • SR 24 runs north-east and south-west through Gainesville. The north-east corner of SR 24 and SR 222 is the site of the Gainesville Regional Airport, before heading to Waldo, Starke, and Jacksonville (Via.U.S. Route 301)(Gainesville-Jacksonville Highway). Southwest of Gainesville, SR 24 passes through the towns of Archer and Bronson before ending at Cedar Key. • SR 26 is the main local east–west road through Gainesville. West of the city, it spans from Fanning Springs to Trenton, Newberry, and Jonesville. Eastward, SR 26 heads to Melrose before reaching its terminus at Putnam Hall in Putnam County. • SR 120 runs east and west through the city. Its western end is at the junction with US 441, its eastern end at the junction with SR 24. • SR 121 runs north and south on the western part of the city. The DeSoto Trail breaks away as SR 121 heads north to Lake Butler, Raiford, and Macclenny. Southward, it travels to Williston before reaching its terminus at Lebanon Station. • SR 222 runs east and west on the northern part of the city. Its western end of state maintenance is at the junction with I-75 before continuing as County Road 222 to County Road 241, while its eastern end is at the junction with SR 26 a few miles east of the Gainesville Regional Airport. • SR 331 runs north-east and south-west through the city. It also serves as a truck route for State Roads 24, 26, and 121. Despite skirting the Gainesville City Limits, SR 331 runs north and south as a four-lane divided rural highway.

The city's streets lie on a grid system, with four quadrants (NW, NE, SW and SE). All streets are numbered, except for a few major thoroughfares, many of which are named for the towns they lead to (such as Waldo Road (SR 24), Hawthorne Road (SR 20), Williston Road (SR 121/SR 331), Archer Road (also SR 24) and Newberry Road (SR 26)). Streets called Avenues, Places, Roads or Lanes (often remembered by use of the acronym "APRiL") generally run east–west, while other streets (including Streets, Drives, Terraces, and Ways) generally run north–south.

Intercity rail Amtrak Thruway Motorcoach buses connect with Jacksonville (Amtrak station) to the north and Lakeland (Amtrak station) to the south. Bus service connects with Amtrak's Silver Service. Amtrak service is available at Palatka, 32 miles (51 km) to the east.

At one time, Gainesville had railroad lines extending in six directions and was served by several depots, one of which, the Seaboard Air Line Depot, survives and has been restored and lies in a city park. The earliest route reached the town in 1859. By 1938, traffic and business patterns changed, Seaboard Air Line Railroad (SAL) had ended its Jacksonville-Waldo-Gainesville-Inverness-Tampa train and its Jacksonville-Waldo-Gainesville-Cedar Key train and the less heavily used railroads were abandoned beginning in 1943. Some routes realigned, with the last trains running in the middle of Main Street in 1948.

Passenger service by the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad (ACL) included: an overnight local train from Jacksonville, due south from Gainesville to Ocala, Clearwater and St. Petersburg and the West Coast Champion from New York City running on the same route during the daytime. Chicago service on the ACL's Dixie Flyer was furnished by a transfer at Jacksonville. In 1967, upon the Seaboard Coast Line Railroad from the merger of ACL and SAL, the overnight local train through Gainesville was terminated. However, by 1968, the Champion was diverted east via a route through Palatka and Orlando. The Jacksonville-Gainesville-Ocala-St. Petersburg route became a local section (SCL #93 south/#94 north). Service into Gainesville ended at the end of April, 1971 at Amtrak's creation.

By the 1980s, the only freight operator into the city was the Seaboard System (formerly the Seaboard Coast Line Railroad, now merged into CSX).

Airport, bus, and others In addition to its extensive road network, Gainesville is served by Gainesville Regional Transit System, or RTS, Florida's fourth-largest mass transit system. The area is also served by Gainesville Regional Airport ("GNV") in the north-east part of the city, with daily service to Atlanta, Charlotte, North Carolina, Dallas-Fort Worth, Fort Lauderdale, and Miami.

According to the 2000 census, 5.25 percent of Gainesville residents commuted to work by bike, among the highest figures in the nation for a major population center.

Culture Gainesville is known for its support of the visual arts. Each year, two large art festivals attract artists and visitors from all over the south-eastern United States.

Cultural facilities include the Florida Museum of Natural History, Harn Museum of Art, the Hippodrome State Theatre, and the Curtis M. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts. Smaller theaters include the Acrosstown Repertory Theatre (ART), Actors' Warehouse, and the Gainesville Community Playhouse (GCP). GCP is the oldest community theater group in Florida; in 2006, it christened a new theater building.

The presence of a major university enhances the city's opportunities for cultural lifestyles. The University of Florida College of the Arts is the umbrella college for the School of Music, School of Theatre and Dance, School of Art and Art History, and a number of other programs and centres including The University Galleries, the Center for World Art, and Digital Worlds. Collectively, the college offers many performance events and artist/lecture opportunities for students and the greater Gainesville community, the majority offered at little or no cost.

Since 1989, Gainesville has been home to Theatre Strike Force, the University of Florida's premier improv troupe. Gainesville also hosts several sketch comedy troupes and stand-up comedians.

In April 2003, Gainesville became known as the "Healthiest Community in America" when it won the only "Gold Well City" award given by the Wellness Councils of America (WELCOA). Headed up by Gainesville Health & Fitness Centers, and with the support of Shands HealthCare and the Gainesville Area Chamber of Commerce, 21 businesses comprising 60 percent of the city's workforce became involved in the "Gold Well City" effort. As of July 2011, Gainesville remained the only city in the country to win the award.

The counties surrounding Alachua County vote strongly Republican, while Alachua County votes strongly Democratic. In the 2008 election, there was a 22% gap in votes in Alachua County between Barack Obama and John McCain, while the other 11 candidates on the ballot and write-in votes received approximately 1.46% of the vote.

Homelessness The National Coalition for the Homeless cited Gainesville as the 5th meanest city in the United States for its criminalization of homelessness in the Coalition's two most recent reports (in 2004 and 2009), the latter time for its meal limit ordinance. Gainesville has a number of ordinances targeting the homeless, including an anti-panhandling measure and one prohibiting sleeping outdoors on public property. In 2005, the Alachua Board of County Commissioners and the Gainesville City Commission responded by issuing a written "Ten Year Plan to End Homelessness"; which was followed by the 2010 "A Needs Assessment of Unsheltered Homeless Individuals In Gainesville, Florida" presentation to a joint meeting of Gainesville and Alachua County Commissions. An indoor homeless shelter was built on the site of the former Gainesville Correctional Institution grounds, with surrounding area designated for tents.

Marijuana culture Gainesville is renowned in recreational drug culture for "Gainesville Green", a particularly potent strain of marijuana. Orange and Blue magazine published a feature article in 2003 about the history of Gainesville Green and the local marijuana culture in general. In the mid-1990s, several Gainesville Hemp Festivals took place outside the Alachua County courthouse.

Music scene Gainesville is well known for its music scene and has spawned a number of bands and musicians, including Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Stephen Stills, Don Felder and Bernie Leadon of The Eagles, The Motels, Against Me!, Charles Bradley, Less Than Jake, Hot Water Music, As Friends Rust, Bridget Kelly Band, John Vanderslice, Sister Hazel, Hundred Waters, and For Squirrels. It is also the location of independent labels No Idea Records and Elestial Sound, and the former home of Plan-It-X Records, which moved to Bloomington, Indiana. For two years, the Gainesville nonprofit Harvest of Hope Foundation hosted the Harvest of Hope Fest in St. Augustine. Gainesville is also the home of Florida Rocks, the founders of "Santa Jam", who hold concerts every December throughout North Florida as a toy fundraiser for sick, injured, and homeless children and a showcase for local musicians. Since 2011 they have distributed nearly 700 toys to hospitals, local churches, homeless charities, and needy families across the area.

No Idea Records puts on an annual three-day rock festival known as The Fest, typically during the last weekend in October, coinciding with the annual Florida-Georgia football game, played in Jacksonville to minimize tensions between the largely out of town music festival goers with the University of Florida students and alumni.

Between 1987 and 1998, Gainesville had a very active rock music scene, with Hollywood star River Phoenix having the local club Hardback Cafe as his main base. Phoenix's band Aleka's Attic was a constant feature of the rock scene. The Phoenix family is still a presence in Gainesville, with Rain Phoenix's band Papercranes and Liberty Phoenix's store, Indigo.

Gainesville is still known for its strong music community and was named "Best Place to Start a Band in the United States" by Blender magazine in March 2008. The article cited the large student population, cheap rent, and friendly venues.

Over the past decade, Gainesville has been home to a wide variety of bands, from the Latin/afrobeat sounds of Umoja Orchestra, to the rock of Morningbell, to ska staples The Know How.

Gainesville's reputation as an independent music mecca can be traced back to 1984 when a local music video station was brought on the air. The station was called TV-69, broadcast on UHF 69 and was owned by Cozzin Communications. The channel drew considerable media attention thanks to its promotion by Bill Cosby, who was part owner of the station when it started. TV-69 featured many videos by punk and indie-label bands and had several locally produced videos ("Clone Love" by a local parody band, and a Dinosaur Jr. song).

Sport The Florida Gators is the varsity team of the University of Florida, competing in the Southeastern Conference of the National Collegiate Athletic Association since 1933. It has been ranked in the top 10 in the NACDA ranking since the 1983–84 season. As of 2022, UF has won 45 national team championships, including two men's basketball titles, three football titles, one women's soccer title, one baseball title, four gymnastics titles, two softball titles, four men's golf titles, and seven women's tennis titles.

Opened in 1969, the Gainesville Raceway is a dragstrip that hosts the Gatornationals, one of the four NHRA major races.

Startup culture Roughly since the 2006 founding of Grooveshark, a Gainesville-based music streaming service, Gainesville has seen an increase in the number of technology-based startup companies founded and developed in the city, particularly the downtown area. Among them are Digital Brands, SharpSpring, Fracture, Optym, and Feathr. The city celebrates Josh Greenberg Day annually in April, in honor of the late founder of Grooveshark and his contributions to the community's startup culture.

Annual cultural events • The Spring Arts Festival, hosted each year, usually in early April, by Santa Fe College (formerly Santa Fe Community College), is one of the three largest annual events in Gainesville and known for its high-quality, unique artwork. • The nationally recognised Downtown Festival and Art Show, hosted each fall by the City of Gainesville, attracts award-winning artists and a crowd of more than 100,000. • The Hoggetowne Medieval Faire has attracted thousands of fairgoers for over 20 years. • The Fest, a multi-day, multiple-venue underground music festival held annually in Gainesville since 2002.

Media: Print Gainesville is served by The Gainesville Sun and The Independent Florida Alligator, the student newspaper for the University of Florida and Santa Fe College. In March 2022 two-year-old Mainstreet Daily News announced it would go into print weekly.

The New York Times Editing Center also resides in Gainesville.

Media: Radio Arbitron ranks the Gainesville-Ocala market as the nation's 83rd-largest. Thirteen radio stations are licensed to operate in the city of Gainesville—five AM stations, six commercial FM stations, and two low-power non-commercial FM stations. Three of the stations (WRUF, WRUF-FM, and WUFT-FM) are operated by broadcasting students at the University of Florida. WUFT-FM is the city's NPR member station, while the WRUF stations are operated as commercial stations. MARC Radio Group operates six stations in the market.

Media: Television Gainesville is the 162nd-largest television market in the nation, as measured by Nielsen Media Research. Broadcast television stations in the Gainesville market include WCJB, an ABC/CW affiliate in Gainesville; WGFL, a CBS/MyNetworkTV affiliate broadcasting from High Springs; WNBW, an NBC affiliate in Gainesville; WOGX, a Fox owned-and-operated station (O&O) from Ocala; and WUFT, the PBS station affiliated with the University of Florida in Gainesville.

Gainesville has one cable television station called Community 12TV, which is carried on area COX systems. Community 12TV presently airs local government meetings and other public affairs programming as well as content from The Florida Channel.

Points of interest • 34th Street Wall • Baughman Center • Ben Hill Griffin Stadium at Florida Field • Bivens Arm • Cade Museum for Creativity and Invention • Civic Media Center • Depot Park • Devil's Millhopper Geological State Park • Florida Museum of Natural History, including the Butterfly Rainforest exhibit • Gainesville-Hawthorne Trail State Park • Gainesville Raceway • Haile Homestead • Harn Museum of Art • Helyx Bridge • Hippodrome State Theatre • Ichetucknee Springs State Park • Kanapaha Botanical Gardens • Lake Alice • Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings Historic State Park • Morningside Nature Center • Newnan's Lake • The Oaks Mall • Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park • San Felasco Hammock Preserve State Park • Santa Fe College Teaching Zoo • Stephen C. O'Connell Center • William Reuben Thomas Center.