Alachua County invests millions in East Gainesville projects and launches Forward Focus
Press release from Alachua County
ALACHUA COUNTY, Fla. – 2024 was a very productive year for the County’s efforts to invest in East Gainesville and the eastern portion of the county.
A cornerstone of this effort is transforming the site of the old fairgrounds near the airport into the U.S. Army Reserve equipment concentration site.
The fairground relocation was a strategic step to boost economic development and create quality jobs for our community. It’s also a key part of the County’s ongoing efforts to revitalize East Gainesville through thoughtful investments and partnerships. The main event at the fairgrounds is the annual Youth Fair, which highlights the achievements of our future farmers and ranchers. Relocating it to a more rural setting, close to the County’s Agricultural Cooperative Extension/IFAS building, just made sense.
The U.S. Army Reserve equipment concentration site project brings:
- A $36 million federal investment: The project will create over 60 high-paying jobs with great benefits and an estimated $3 million annual payroll. The construction and operation of this facility will also generate significant local economic activity.
- Workforce training opportunities: Partnering with Santa Fe College, we’re launching a heavy diesel mechanics program in Fall 2025 to train residents for high-demand, high-paying careers tied to this facility.
The fairgrounds move is just one part of a bigger picture for East Gainesville. Other major efforts include:
- The Gainesville Community Reinvestment Area (GCRA): While the City of Gainesville administers the GCRA and does a good job publicizing its projects, many don’t know that Alachua County is the largest contributor to this $70.7 million, 10-year initiative whose goal is to bring transformative projects and development to East Gainesville.
- UF Health Urgent Care Center – Eastside: In an innovative partnership with UF and the City of Gainesville, Alachua County contributed $2.25 million to support the development of this state-of-the-art healthcare facility, significantly improving access to quality medical care for East Gainesville residents.
- The East Gainesville Legacy Project: The County is devoting millions of dollars to developing housing in Northeast Gainesville to address critical needs.
- Forward Focus: Eastern Alachua County: This initiative, currently in the community engagement phase, is designed to address longstanding disparities and unlock the region’s economic potential.
These projects demonstrate the County’s dedication to attracting investment, creating jobs, and supporting sustainable growth in East Gainesville and eastern Alachua County.
So is there any data the taxes generated by the Eastside vs the Westside to justify the expenditures ? Please exclued any Math from County Commisioners that dont know where they live.
It’s not always about taxes it about the county as a whole.
The 2sides of t h e county….
Think about it shad.
In building 👷♀️ for need want a desire for east of main street
Your side.
Thief side .
Was the past.
As county as a whole.
Happy new year 2025
Catp.shad
Is it just me or does the opening appear to “justify and make an excuse” for moving the fairgrounds to the Equestrian Center in Newberry?
I also haven’t seen “significant” local economic activity. I believe the jobs created are federal, not locally created but will cause a trickle down of lower wage supporting employment opportunities.
Adding that a cornerstone is
Normally refer to right angles 📐.
Perhaps the unbalanced east n west Gainesville 🤔 has cause challenges for change.
What if east begin to look like newer?
Even an emergency hospital 🏥….
I dream alot .
Thank God 😊 🙏🏼 is on my side.
Keep an open mind .
They did not move the fairgrounds to Newberry. They only moved the youth ag portion of what was combined as part of the AC Fair. There was not enough room to host the entire fair and the new fairgrounds project has not even “gotten off the ground”!
Slow news cycle over the holidays, so again we’re entertained with a Pravda-style “Press release from Alachua County.”
If the infrastructure of the eastside of Gainesville and the county isn’t improved. Then that hurts the whole county and city. For years the eastside of Gainesville has been ignored which has created a economic imbalance that continues to hurt the city. The tax dollars that have been paid by residents of the Eastside hasn’t never been invested back into those communities. That lack economic development on the Eastside hurts education, roads, and housing.
I remember the Walmart on Waldo road investment. 400 locals arrested for theft in the first year.
Actually it was 400 employees arrested for theft. Good job easrsiders
Eastside was initially harmed by I-75, the Mall, then Butler Plaza, and always by lawyers, and ACLUSPLCDNC 💩👺👹👿🤡
And that’s the solution if they really want to expand the east side: development always arises around the largest transportation “pipe” of the time. You can easily see this by following development near the railway, then Main Street, then 441, and then I-75. You want to expand the east side, you need to build a multi-lan connector from I-75 towards 301. The rest happens automatically.
Too much water. Soil unstable for major 🛣 highway. More pollution more crime escape routes.
Farming maybe
enclosure farming or
a 🐟 fishfarm 🚜 🤔
Right again
Eastside rise up
Believe it when I see it.
Well try to look now 2025.
Ignored? Hardly.
Right Chris
Is what he said correct .
Amen I say .
Turning the page on was done to what will happen…
Moving forward ✨️ 😌 in time
Baby steps
Walking
Running
Not so fast
To workout
I look great cause I work-out
To ✌🏻 peace
Making right .
District 1 Sanitarium (to replace GRACE)…. where and when is that?
PS: the Army Reserve airport center, isn’t that just moving from current 8th Avenue site, or really an additional employer? I’m glad they’re there, regardless. Ditto with moving the fairgrounds to Newberry, another necessity. Citizens Field definitely needs rebuilt, too.
No to citizen field historical n ancient. Actually.
Expansion to east Gainesville build a new one .
There’s empty land eastern
Everyone here seems to forget that East GAINESVILLE is the responsibility of Gainesville Democrat politicians, NOT the county. The county is responsible for unincorporated Alachua County, including the ROADS.
County Minister of Propaganda Alan, who is too chickenczit to use his real name and hides behind the fake “Alachua County” nic, is great at finding clip art to “beautify” his ‘Goebbels approved’ propaganda, but is a third grade level at doing adult stuff.
Case in point. The map in this article. Wrong map. The green shaded area is East Alachua County, NOT East Gainesville. East Gainesville and East OF Gainesville are different things. East Gainesville is the term for the high poverty and high crime ara between Waldo Road and Newnans Lake. It is NOT in the green shaded area of this map.
It gets worse. Alan brags about the Federal truck parking lot planned south of the Gainesville airport. It is NOT in the green shaded area of this map he is using to brag about how swell the County is doing spending money.
The new UF Urgent Care Center is NOT in the green shaded area of this map. Should not be included in this article as an accomplishment.
The Minister of Propaganda is paid $150,000 a year by county taxpayers, and cannot produce a map better than a third grader. And for God’s sake, put some pants on, Alan. Oh the humanity!
Well done
150,000.00 dollars 💸 a year.🥴
52weeks
Nearly 3,000.00 a week.
OleyMoley
Drug test him .
And their neglect of east Gainesville has been noticed.
No idea sweep it under a rug make it go away is how the democrats deal with anything.
Your fired democrats.
You could move everyone from the Eastside to Haile Plantation and everyone from Haile to the Eastside. It would be only a matter of time that the Eastside would prosper, and Haile would be trashed. It’s the people and local Politician’s. Good people live on the Eastside but are terrorized by criminals that politicians cuddle. Oh yea, the County news release didn’t include the Dis-Grace Center.
Anyone interested in investing in their business in a crime infested area? Makes perfect sense to a liberal who doesn’t have any skin in the game…right?
More crime invested than the Tower Road Triangle?
Section 8 has a massive way of spreading crime, doesn’t it?
That’s not correct
Working to earn a livable wages is about employment that is achieved.
Real education food shelter sleep no drugs it really is that simple.
Crime occurs because of Satan.
I always said that and still do…
Too sir with love , sure a movie 🎬. But was a real place .!
I was born and raised in the Gainesville area actually lived by the lake and still have relatives there. The east side was always the poorest part of Alachua County. The county and city officials always promised to fix that side of Gainesville and never followed through.
Gainesville and Alachua County has always been ran by the democrats and will never change.
Democrats were fired u didn’t get the press release. Bummer.
2025 not 1950.
That’s was 75 years ago.
Walk tall and carry the truth.
You can put up more buildings, fix roads, spend millions of dollars and the Eastside will continue to be a crime infested blight on Alachua County. It’s the people who make it what it is, not the buildings or the roads.
Conditional learning
Makes people
do out of training…
Or expectations.
No concussion
Bummer really all this negative outlook.
…and Citizens Field is still a dump with no real plan to fix it. Thanks Harvey!
It’s old east Gainesville needs a new one built.
Fixing Citizens Field where students can participate in a safe sporting event is probably more productive than providing steak dinners for some of the East Gainesville residents to “talk” about gun violence.
Until you get rid of the city politicians that run Gainesville you know the same ones that have been there for over 40 to 50 years nothing’s going to change it’s just as simple as that you may get a new building here spruced up or a new building there spruced up but my God they are terrible as long as the Democratic same wing of people run this town you get what you get
Familiar with the same organizer of crime. (Mafias)
Time ticks n busted all the crime organizers go to prison.
What that’s called is justice.
Justice ⚖️ 👨⚖️
Let freedom ring
I’ve been saying for years since the article in the Gainesville Sun in 1992 Does Gainesville need an east west connector the answer is yes!!! Gainesville roads and infrastructure sucks!! The east and west are segregated…Like other REAL cities they have expressways that connect and take you around the city!!! Come on Gainesville and Alachua commissioners stop blowing smoke up our you know what!! Stop wasting millions and millions of unnecessary money and get with FDOT and make it happen!!!
No
For years this city has collect taxes from the eastside yet the taxes that was paid by the eastside hasn’t be distributed back to equally.. The historical redlining has contributed to neglect. It’s as simple as in 1970s two high-school was open same basic structure yet fundedyet differently. Lol four hundred employees caught with theft is hilarious. I don’t believe they had many employees in a year but I can prove that that five employees from archer road Walmart was arrested.
So far (past 30 or 40 years) nothing has helped. Seems like a total, that would be complete, waste of money to me.
All those millions, but I haven’t read ANYTHING about housing for homelessness. Be for real.
The BOCC canceled a workforce housing project because “the community” didn’t want it.
Eastside voted with their feet, by moving to the Westside. The ones who wanted to be closer to jobs, shopping and hospitals.
There’s pluses to NOT living in the Westside, such as less traffic, more trees etc in the eastern county, east of Newnan’s Lake. Many there prefer the peace and quiet, but others want more industry and jobs there. It’d compete with UF and the medical industries for employees and force them all to pay higher wages.
Pick your choice and move accordingly.