A nice, traffic-congested drive down Archer Road will reveal to you a beautiful new apartment complex called The Bartram, which boasts lavish, "green" living.
On the corner of 20th Avenue and 62nd Boulevard is another new complex, The Woodlands. It seems their hook is a fancy clubhouse and "upscale amenities."
I could go on and give you directions to every new apartment in town, but I won't. Just drive around - odds are you will pass one.
While it's nice to see that Gainesville is growing to accommodate its several thousand students, I can't help but wonder how many people can actually afford or are willing to pay to live in such luxury.
Don't get me wrong, our quaint little college town does offer affordable housing - if you want to live in a 25-year-old building with linoleum floors, stained carpets and cobwebs draped from your ceiling.
I realize that some people will take what they can get and not complain, while others will dish out as much as possible to have granite countertops and a "sparkling pool."
But my main concern is this: Why are all these new living facilities charging such ridiculous prices? Where are the new, average-style apartments with affordable rent rates?
I don't know about you, but I don't have the guts to ask my parents to float me a loan so I can live in a place with a complimentary tanning bed. It would be nice, but it's just not practical.
The new buildings going up around town are charging anywhere from $1,200 to $2,000 a month for just a two-bedroom, two-bathroom unit. One-bedroom prices are even more outrageous.
Part of being a college student is the experience of scraping by. Ironically, if you live like you're on a parent-subsidized resort vacation every day, you're missing out on an important life lesson: independence.
This frustrates me, and I'm not even searching for an apartment. Rather, I am looking for someone to take over my lease from May until August while I am gone for the summer.
Don't even get me started on how hard it's going to be to find someone to rent my place with all this competition. It seems as if a new building is erected every month.
I think the epitome of my argument here is the new Wildflower Apartments complex. I can't imagine who would pay $1,095 a month for a 737-square-foot one-bedroom apartment. Are 9-foot vaulted ceilings and 2-inch plantation-style blinds really necessary?
Maybe this is all part of Gainesville's plan to keep college-aged people from moving away after they graduate. For as long as I have seen it, the trend has been to get out as soon as you grab your diploma.
I understand their efforts, but let's be practical. A 22-year-old, fresh off campus and preparing for the first bill of student loan payments, will most likely be seeking rent prices around $350 per bedroom. Because of course, that doesn't include utilities, high-speed Internet and what's that other necessity?
Ah, yes, food.
Maybe before bringing in another Woodlands or Bartram, developers should instead worry about finishing construction on University Corners or Stadium Club first.
And if the city really cared about our needs, they would be attempting to accommodate the average college student and graduate in town.
Instead of constructing another unaffordable mass of luxury living, the city should provide incentives to bring in new housing that makes sense for our lifestyles and our wallets.
Rebecca Ganzak is a journalism senior. Her column appears on Thursdays.
