[JayGatsby]

Originally Posted by kyle19125

Actually the Tampa Bay metro is twice the size of the Orlando metro, so subsequently there's a great deal more healthcare opportunity as hospitals are a necessary infrastructure relative to population and to suggest Orlando falls equal in terms of diversity of facilities wouldn't be a rational statement. All in all Orlando is mostly a two horse town in terms of hospitals with Florida Hospital and Orlando Health controlling nearly all of the facilities in the area.

The Tampa Bay metro area is not twice the size of Orlando. Wikipedia puts Tampa at 2.9M vs Orlando at 2.3M.

[gypsychic]

Originally Posted by JayGatsby

The Tampa Bay metro area is not twice the size of Orlando. Wikipedia puts Tampa at 2.9M vs Orlando at 2.3M.

Kyle is right -Tampa Bay metro is Tampa, St. Pete & Clearwater with population 4,500,000 thereabouts....

Tampa Bay Area - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[MAniacTHW]

Originally Posted by JayGatsby

The Tampa Bay metro area is not twice the size of Orlando. Wikipedia puts Tampa at 2.9M vs Orlando at 2.3M.

But it gets significantly larger when you count everything between Spring Hill and Sarasota in there. And then go as far east as Lakeland and it's suddenly MUCH bigger than Orlando.

[JayGatsby]

Originally Posted by gypsychic

Kyle is right -Tampa Bay metro is Tampa, St. Pete & Clearwater with population 4,500,000 thereabouts....

Tampa Bay Area - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

It says the Tampa MSA is ~2.8M... To be fair, there is a conflicting statistic mentioned here:

"A 2012 estimate of the Tampa Bay Area shows a population of about 4,310,524 people."

The problem is there is more than 1 definition of what exactly Tampa Bay consists of. I've always maintained the 4.3m statistic is misleading because it includes way too much. If that were right it would put Tampa closer in size to Miami than Orlando which is just getting ridiculous.

[JayGatsby]

Originally Posted by MAniacTHW

But it gets significantly larger when you count everything between Spring Hill and Sarasota in there. And then go as far east as Lakeland and it's suddenly MUCH bigger than Orlando.

If Sarasota counts for Tampa then Daytona and the better part of Brevard county should count for Orlando... Lakeland might as well be counted for both.

The way I see it, Tampa Bay should include Hillsborough, Pinellas, Pasco, and Hernando counties against Orlando's Orange, Seminole, Osceola, and Lake counties. Viewed this way, Tampa isn't even close to twice the size of Orlando.

[kyle19125]

Originally Posted by JayGatsby

If Sarasota counts for Tampa then Daytona and the better part of Brevard county should count for Orlando... Lakeland might as well be counted for both.

The way I see it, Tampa Bay should include Hillsborough, Pinellas, Pasco, and Hernando counties against Orlando's Orange, Seminole, Osceola, and Lake counties. Viewed this way, Tampa isn't even close to twice the size of Orlando.

The Orlando–Kissimmee–Sanford MSA has a population of 2,321,418 and covers 4,012 square miles which includes the supposedly dependent far-flung cities of Palm Coast and Daytona Beach.

The U.S. Census Bureau defines the Tampa–St. Petersburg–Clearwater Metropolitan Statistical Area as comprising Hillsborough, Pinellas, Pasco, and Hernando counties has a population of 2,783,423 and covers 2,554 square miles.

The Tampa Bay area which would have more equal footing with the Orlando MSA's disproportionately larger geographic size has a population of 4,310,524.

[Absent Minded]

I hear Denver is nice

[retired11]

Before you move to Florida...do yourself a favor and see if you can afford it. Car insurance and homeowner's insurance are higher than up North. Doctors and Dentists will hit you over the head for medical care payments. Food is somehow higher by about 20 percent. If you need work done by plumbers, appliance repair, mechanics or pool work get ready for a price shock. Salaries are terrible and employment is very limited unless you have a skill. HOA fees are wacky.

Good side is roads are great. There is not a traffic control device every block and the speed limits are much higher. Weather is wonderful. Crime; I haven't seen much in comparison to up North. The Police and Troopers here do spend an inordinate amount of time doing radar enforcement though. Sales tax is slightly lower. Property taxes inland are about one-half, while a county that borders the water is almost on par. Purchasing a new car was a decent experience here. Buying a home has slightly less closing costs than up North as it goes through a title company and not attorneys.

The people are the same as up North until you question them about a price or a bill. Oh, and anyone that complains about Florida is supposed to go back where they came from as Florida is the best.

[retired11]

Tampa is a terrible commute...my wife spends about an hour (and 15 more or less) commuting from Palm Harbor every day.

[MAniacTHW]

Originally Posted by retired11

Tampa is a terrible commute...my wife spends about an hour (and 15 more or less) commuting from Palm Harbor every day.

Palm Harbor isn't Tampa. It's not even Hillsborough County. Not really fair to base the commute time of Tampa on a city that, well, isn't Tampa.