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Gainesville Florida Facts
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 Gainesville is the largest city and county seat of Alachua County. It serves as the cultural, educational and commercial center for the North Central Florida Region. The City provides a full range of municipal services, including police and fire protection; comprehensive land use planning and zoning services; code enforcement and neighborhood improvement; streets and drainage construction and maintenance; traffic engineering services; refuse and recycling services through a franchised operator; recreation and parks; cultural and nature services; and necessary administrative services to support these activities. Additionally, the City owns a regional transit system, a municipal airport, a 72-par championship golf course, and a utility.
Gainesville is home to Florida's largest and oldest university, and is one of the state's centers of education, medicine, cultural events and athletics. The University of Florida and Shands Hospital at UF are the leading employers in Gainesville and provide jobs for many residents of surrounding counties. Known for its preservation of historic buildings and the beauty of its natural surroundings, Gainesville's numerous parks, museums and lakes provide entertainment to thousands of visitors. Because of its beautiful landscape and urban "forest," Gainesville is one of the most attractive cities in Florida. |
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Gainesville Quick Facts |
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| Area: |
approximately 54 square miles |
| Climate: |
Mild winters, warm summers, 255-day growing season,
Average of 2,800 hours of sunshine annually
January average high temperature: 65 F
June average high temperature: 89 F
Average rainfall is 35 inches per year.
The area basks in Gulf breezes that make summer days warm and nights cool, and produce dry and mild winters.
The Weather Channel CNN Weather National Weather Service (Jacksonville) |
| Population: |
124,491 (252,388 Countywide) estimated as of April 2008 by the BEBR |
| Median Age: |
27 |
| Households: |
87,509 |
| Median Household Income: |
$31,426 |
| Taxes:* |
6.25% retail sales tax (food and medicine exempt)
Homestead Exemption - $25,000
No state personal income tax
No state inheritance tax
No franchise tax
No inventory tax |
| Industry: |
Variable from agricultural to manufacturing, academic research, health care, corporate infrastructure, many small/minority business enterprises |
| Location: |
On the I-75 corridor halfway between Atlanta and Miami |
| Cities: (within a 2-hour drive) |
Jacksonville, Ocala, Lake City, Orlando, Tallahassee, Tampa, St. Augustine, Cedar Key, Live Oak |
| Beaches: (within 75 miles) |
The Atlantic Ocean or Gulf of Mexico |
| Theme Parks: (within a 2-hour drive) |
Disney World, Universal Studios, and Busch Gardens |
| Home of: |
The University of Florida, The Gainesville Raceway and The Gatornationals (NHRA) |
| Famous Residents: (past and present) |
Bo Didley, Tom Petty, Don Felder, Bernie Leadon, River Phoenix, Malcolm Gets, Harry Crews, Marty Liquori, Gabriel Schwartzman, Peter Taylor, Mary McCauley, Joe Haldeman, Bob Vila, Maya Rudolph |
| Notable Firsts: |
Gatorade (first sports drink) |
| Typical Cuisine: |
Pizza, BBQ, seafood, chicken wings, vegetarian dishes, and many ethnic choices | | |
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State in the extreme SE United States. A long, low peninsula between the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico. Florida is bordered by Georgia and Alabama.
Area, 58,560 sq mi (151,670 sq km).
Pop. (2000) 15,982,378, a 23.5% increase since the 1990 census.
Capital, Tallahassee.
Largest city, Jacksonville.
Nickname, Sunshine State.
Motto, In God We Trust.
State bird, mockingbird.
State flower, orange blossom.
State tree, Sabal palmetto palm.
Tourism plays a primary role in the state's economy; in 1996 visitors to Florida spent over $48 billion. Walt Disney World, a massive cluster of theme parks near Orlando that is one of the world's leading tourist attractions; Universal Studios, a combination theme park and film and television production facility, also near Orlando; and other attractions draw millions yearly.
Famed beaches, such as those at Miami Beach , Daytona Beach , and Fort Lauderdale , attract hordes of vacationers. With more than 4,000 sq mi (10,360 sq km) of inland water and with the sea readily accessible from almost anywhere in the state, Florida is a fishing paradise. Other attractions include Everglades National Park, with its unusual plant and animal life; Palm Beach , with its palatial estates; and Sanibel Island's picturesque resorts.
Famous for its citrus fruits, Florida leads the nation in the production of oranges, grapefruits, tangerines, and market-ready corn and tomatoes. Other important crops include sugarcane and many varieties of winter vegetables. Cattle and dairy products are important, as is commercial fishing, with the catch including crabs, lobsters, and shrimp.
*Information from Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition
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