Overview: The Gainesville Area

     Gainesville, Fla., is located in north central 
Florida roughly halfway between Atlanta and Miami in 
an area plentiful with freshwater lakes and close to the 
Ocklawaha, Santa Fe and Suwannee Rivers. U.S. Highway 
441 runs through the center of town on a north-south 
route, while Fla. State Route 26 disects the city as an 
east-west corridor, and Interstate 75 is located on the 
western fringe of the city limits.

Gainesvile Chamber of Commerce:               334-7100
300 E. University Ave.
		(LINK)

Gainesville and Alachua County vital statistics:
 
     -"Tree City USA" - a designation from Arborist 
	Magazine for cities with over 50% tree cover from 
	an ariel view.

     -"Hogtown" - originally from the hog farms in early 
	19th Century Alachua County, then adopted as a 
	label for ‘bull gators’ that lay around area lakes.

     -"1995 Best City To Live In" - (Money Magazine).

Area Code:                              352
Gaines ville Zip Codes:                 32601-32611, 32614
Percent of Population over 65:          9.3%
Alachua County population               181,596
Gainesville population                  84,770
Average student population              35,000 - 40,000				
Median Housing Price:                   $85,000
Gainesville:                            45.52 square miles
Alachua County:                         965 square miles
Altitude:                               65-180 feet above sea level
Total Labor Force:                      ~114,346
Annual average unemployment:            4.3%

Alachua County: Important Phone Numbers

        All Emergencies                 911
        Courthouse                      372-3659
        Crisis Center                   372-3659
        Health Department               955-2364
        Information and Referral        375-4636
        Library                         334-3900 
        School Board                    955-7300
        Sheriff                         955-2500
        Tag Office                      374-5263
        U.S. Postal Office              334-1863
        Florida Highway Patrol          955-2150

Gainesville: Important Phone Numbers

        All Emergencies                 911
        Crisis Center                   374-2590
        Fire Administration             374-2411
        Police                          374-2411
        Public Utilities                334-3434
        Poison Control                  395-0333
        Poison Information              395-0000

Government 

Gainesville: City Manager form of government w/ City Commission 
 - 5 members, 3 year staggered terms.

Alachua County: Commission- Five-member elected commission 4-year 
terms.

Government Revenue: Sales and property taxes and a large annual 
utility transfer from the city owned electric and gas utitlity.

Marriage licenses

Marriage Licenses (both need to be present with driver’s 
license or other ID. Cost: $88.50)
       
        Alachua County Courthouse               374-3623
        201 E University Ave.

Property Tax Collections-

        County Admistration Building            374-5236
        12 SE 1st Street

Voter Registration (Social Security Card, driver’s license 
and rent or utility reciept)

        Supervisor of Elections                 374-5252
        County Admistration Building
        12 SE 1st Street

Auto Registration (valid Insurance ID card, current odometer 
reading, local check or money order - no cash)

        Alachua County Tag Agency               374-5263
        5801 NW 34th Street

Hunting, Fishing and Boating License
		
        Auto Tag Agency                         374-3623
        5801 NW 34th Street

Driver’s License
				
        5830 NW 34th Street                     955-2111
						
        4316 SW 13th Street                     955-2127

Pet Registration

    Animal Control                          955-2333
    Licenses:

    - all animals require proof of rabies vaccination for 
    license. 
    - neutered/spayed dogs under one year cost $6 annually; 
    neutered/spayed cats under one year $3 annually.
    - intact dogs under one year cost $6 annually; intact 
    cats under one year cost $3 annually.
    - costs increase as the animals age increases.

    Pet Emergencies                         373-4444
    Humane Society                          373-5855

    * Pet licenses are required and obtained from veternarians 
    after rabies inoculations are administered. Both cats and 
    dogs must be licensed in Gainesville and Alachua County.

Post Offices:

     Dowtown Station
       401 SE 1st Ave                           371-7009
       (32601, 32602, 32641)
       Mon.-Fri.  8am-5:30pm
       Sat. 8am-12pm
	
     Main Street Annex
       1401 N. Main Street                      375-5665
       (32605, 32606, 32609, 32653)
       Mon.-Fri.  8:30am-5pm
       Sat. 8:30am-10:30am

     General Mail Facility                      
       4600 SW 34th Street                      334-1863
       (32606, 32608, 32614)
       Mon.-Fri.  8:30am-6pm
       Sat. 8:30am-2:30pm
	
     University Station                         
       1603 NW 1st Ave.                         377-2993 
       (32603, 32604)						
       Mon.-Fri.  8am-5pm
       Sat. 9am-12pm

Bulk Mail                                       334-1876

Post Office box rentals from each site begin at $20 per six months 
for a small box. A full year rental for the small box is $40.

Passport Information                        371-7009

Recycling & Trash Information

Pick ups are coordinated on a weekly basis, schedules for each 
area of the city can be obtained by telephoning the following 
offices.

City of Gainesville Information:                334-2230

Alachua County has a county-wide recycling program including; 
curbside recycling, recycling center, as well as business and 
apartment recycling programs.

What to Recycle:
	
   Plastic -- milk jugs, soda bottles, or other clear or 
   translucent containers marked with a recycling code 1 or 2.

   Magazines/Catalogues -- bag them separately from newspapers.

   Corrugated Cardboard -- Flatten boxes. No pasteboard such as 
   pizza cereal or shoeboxes.

   Metal Cans/Spray Cans -- Empty aerosal cans. Aluminum cans. 
   Steel cans, such as soup, vegetable and pet food cans.

   Newspaper/Brown Paper Bags -- Clean, dry, newspaper and brown 
   bags only. On rainy days, place in a plastic bag. Advertising 
   inserts are OK.

   Glass -- All clear, green, brown bottle and jars.
  
   Household Batteris -- Put batteries in a small unsealed bag. 
   No car batteries.

   Telephone Books -- Old telephone books can be recycled when 
   new directories are distributed. Containers are placed at 
   various drop-off locations around the city and phone books 
   are collected in "Big Blue" curbside programs. 

Utilities

Gainesville Regional Utilities                  334-3434
     (natural gas, electricity, water, refuse pick-up)

Southern Bell                                   780-2355

Clay Electric Cooperative, Inc.                 372-8543
     (serves rural Alachua County)

Florida Power Corporation                       376-6344
     (serves rural Alachua County)