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I grew up in Baton Rouge, home to LSU. It doesn't feel like a college town to me because LSU doesn't dwarf the metro area. Of course lots of entertainment and events involve or are held at LSU campus but many are held elsewhere. College towns to me are far smaller so my experience is pretty different.
Lafayette for instance is a few hundred thousand people smaller and UL takes over it. Most of downtown bars and clubs seem to be UL students.
I live in Statesboro, a town of roughly 30,000 that has a school with over 20,000 students.
I think it personally gives us lots of benefits that most other small cities of similar size do not have. There is a lot of community involvement here. In addition, we get guest speakers every now and then, the kind of things you'd expect in larger cities. As a non-student, I think it's great! Because of the large institution, there's also more job opportunities when compared to other small cities.
I live in a definite college town. I would say the political climate is definitely affected and the cost of living is slightly higher than a similar place without a college. The job market is tighter if you aren't a college student I've noticed. If you don't live in close proximity to the university though I don't really think it makes all that much of a difference in the long run.
I grew up in Baton Rouge, home to LSU. It doesn't feel like a college town to me because LSU doesn't dwarf the metro area. Of course lots of entertainment and events involve or are held at LSU campus but many are held elsewhere. College towns to me are far smaller so my experience is pretty different.
Lafayette for instance is a few hundred thousand people smaller and UL takes over it. Most of downtown bars and clubs seem to be UL students.
IMO, yes it can be a unique experience depending on the town and/or school.
Both the ratio of residents vs. student plays a huge part in the "feel" of a college town. As does the university or college's influence.
Alamosa, CO, for example is town with a population of 7,500 with a college population of 2,000. That has a "college town" feel to it because of the size ratios. They actually prepare the town for the return of students in the fall.
Larger towns/cities with more prestigious/influential schools, such as Boulder, Ft Collins, Madison, Ann Arbor, Bloomington, etc, are more in line with the the traditional, large influence "college feel" places.
Then you have places such as the major cities, which are home to many colleges both at the state and private levels. There may be a "feel" close to campus, but not in town.
I've never understood the appeal of Austin. I personally have always found it to be the most boring city in Texas and yes, I lived in Texas. Somebody deserves the money they got for marketing the city.
I think I live in a quintessential college town. Tucson is completely obsessed with the U of A. Lots of businesses market to college students here and all of the nightlife is college students.
Even though U of A is only 40,000 or so students versus 1 mil of Tucson U of A is the biggest employer in the city.
Generally, college towns are more politically liberal towns, even in conservative states. They provide a fresh supply of young people from many different parts of the country and/or the world, which keeps the area current. Usually there are interesting stores, music venues, and unique restaurants to serve such a diverse population. For students who work, they will usually do it cheaply, if you need some added labor (babysitting, snow shoveling). Since most professors live locally, that adds to the general intellectual composition of the town.
As a UNT student in Denton, I pretty much agree to everything you said.
Also, maybe it's just in Denton but the police don't seem to be there to serve and protect the 50,000+ college students in the town (counting TWU). They look to take advantage of students and just want to make a quick buck. But, that's just my two cents.
Chapel Hill is interesting in the sense that it's close enough to two larger cities in Durham and Raleigh (I believe parts of the city extend into Durham County FWIW) that it doesn't feel really out there with nothing around it like say Auburn or Clemson or Oxford, but it also doesn't "blend in" with its bigger-city neighbors like say Tempe or Evanston. The city very much has its own identity and vibe.
For a town (suburb) smack in the heart of Chicagoland, Evanston still maintains its sense of identity and sense of place as the college town it is. The impact of Norhwestern pervades the city.
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