ThirdOfFive |
10-17-2021 08:11 AM |
Quote:
Originally Posted by wlasowicz
(Post 2018283)
First off what's the classification of a snowbird? Someone that's a full time resident but goes north for the summer because they may have a lake house or a snowbird is a person who is just a renter whether seasonally or full time? For those of you who just drive around in a golf cart and just stay in the TV you need to get in a car drive around Fl. during the winter months because the snowbird issue is just not a problem in the TV. but all of of Fl. Its crowded in all of Fl. during the winter months. I'm sure many of you were renters before buying into the villages. For those of you who say the snow birder don't follow the rules or bad that applies to the full timers also It all depends on the character of the person. Love them or hate them they bring a a lot of tourist money into Fl. and I'm sure that's one of the reason there is no state income tax
|
Of course I cannot say for sure, but I have a hunch that "snowbirds" were being vilified when the current "historic" sections of The Villages were shiny and new.
It is a pretty common phenomenon and is certainly not limited to The Villages, Florida, etc. As an example my sister and her family live in Las Vegas. Some years back Las Vegas suffered the beginnings of an inundation of Californians which continues to this day. There seems to be a mindset among them, that somehow Las Vegas now belongs to them. Bumper stickers saying "You've seen Las Vegas--now go HOME" are prevalent. People moving to Las Vegas from anywhere BUT California certainly do not seem to be welcomed by the current crop of transplanted Californians living there.
It is not much different here, really. Just judging from the posts here there seems to be a pretty significant number of current Villages residents who see snowbirds (as well as other people moving to The Villages) as somehow raining on their little piece of heaven. Which in my opinion is precisely the WRONG attitude, if for no other reason than the kind of people The Villages attracts. Villagers as a rule are more highly-educated, significantly more well-off and far less apt to be living off any kind of government largesse than are people moving to other parts of the country. I come from such an area: the population of Minnesota, numbers-wise, is relatively stable, but that fact merely obscures that the people moving FROM Minnesota are taking their jobs (or retirement income), their taxpaying abilities, purchasing power and respect for law and order with them when they move to places like The Villages, while those moving TO Minnesota in large part are people for whom devouring tax dollars as a career. It is an untenable situation not just for Minnesota but for numerous other areas of the country as well. It got so bad that some years back, the then-Governor of Florida (I forget who) joked that he was going to send a thank-you card to the then-Governor of Minnesota, to express his appreciation for implementing the policies in Minnesota that were driving so many people with money to his state.
To use an overworked phrase, The Villages, precisely because of the people who call it home, attracts the best and the brightest. We should welcome the new (and seasonally returning) additions to our ranks, because they continue to make The Villages a better place to live for all of us.
|