Home/Education/UF Removes McCarty Woods From Development Plans, But Activists Push On
Students protested the possible development of McCarty Woods at the corner of University Avenue and 13th Street on March 2. This was one of the many events organized by the Save McCarty Woods Campaign in the span of a month. (Alexa Sauvagere/WUFT News)
UF Removes McCarty Woods From Development Plans, But Activists Push On
By Alexa Sauvagere
March 17, 2021
The past three months consisted of heated discussion on whether a patch of woods on the east side of the University of Florida campus should serve as land for possible development.
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Over 160 years ago, on private land owned by a state politician, the University of Florida had its beginnings. Flushed with trees and natural wildlife that surrounded a wooden school hall, the acres were verdant and lush. But with ever more students and buildings, that green space has shrunk to a handful of pockets scattered throughout campus.
McCarty Woods is a 2.9-acre forest in the heart of Gainesville s main University of Florida campus. It has been open for community recreational use for over 40 years, and since at least 2000, has been designated conservation land, protected from development through rounds of university growth plans.