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About
Gainesville, Florida USA
A favorite
in Money magazine's "Best Places to Live," Gainesville,
Florida is a city where residents can soak up sunshine, embrace
the arts, dive into watersports, or head back to school.
Nature lovers enjoy all that Gainesville offers outdoors, because
65 percent of the county's 969 square miles is wilderness, dotted
with scenic lakes and wetlands. The Gulf breezes make summer days
warm and nights comfortable and cool, while the winters are dry
and mild with temperatures ranging from the 20s to 50s.
The Sunshine State's original college town is home to Santa
Fe Community College and the University
of Florida. With 45,000 students and nearly 20 colleges, UF's
museums, stages (including the Center
for Performing Arts), and lecture halls are also popular destinations
for locals. The School
Board of Alachua County is responsible for 23 elementary, 6
middle, and 6 high schools. There are also more than a dozen private
schools and the P.
K. Yonge Developmental Research School (K-12), which operated
in association with the University's College of Education.
Travel to and from Gainesville is easy. The main highways are Interstate
75, U.S. 441, and U.S. 301. The Gainesville
Regional Airport is served by five airlines - Delta, USAir,
USAir Express, Comair, and Atlantic Southeast. There is an Amtrack
rail depot nearby, and bus service is provided by Greyhound. Within
the city, a 10-route, half-hourly Regional
Transit System bus service operates on weekdays, with hourly
service on Saturdays.
Because of its hospitals and the University, Gainesville is the
state's main center for medical research and treatment. It has four
hospitals: Shands Teaching
Hospital, the Veterans Administration Hospital, Alachua General
Hospital, and North
Florida Regional Medical Center, which is consistently ranked
among the nation's top 100.
Approximate
driving time from Gainesville, FL to nearby sights and cities:
Atlanta, Georgia—5 hrs.
Jacksonville—2 hrs.
Orlando/Disney World, Universal Studios—1.5 hrs.
Tampa/Busch Gardens, Adventure Island—2 hrs.
Miami—5.5 hrs.
Gulf Coast—1 hour
Atlantic Ocean—1.5 hrs.
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