[sillyquiet]

I can't speak to Boston, but in the couple college towns I've lived in, it really depends on where you go... there were certainly plenty of places where so-called townies frequented way more than the students, even in towns were the seasonal student population dwarfs the local one.

And before anybody jumps on you, I fully agree with the sentiment, college students in party mode can be extremely annoying to deal with if you aren't in the same mindset.

6th Street in Austin is a really good example of this phenomenon.

[ghaff]

It seems weird to me to call Boston a college "town" but, yeah, you probably don't want to buy a place next to a frat. In Ithaca, I'm not going to live in Collegetown (where there's a lot of student housing and hangouts). But in my experience, it's generally pretty easy to get away from maximum student disruption.

[StandardFuture]

Yes, Boston is far too large of a city to be classified as a "College Town".

And the GP commenter asked a completely valid question. The answer is clearly that most families with remote working parents and most mature couples that can remote work are not likely to prioritize a college town as a place to enjoy their years or raise a family.

Young single people who remote work seem to be the target of these efforts. And that is great because there are an increasing number of them.

This could help stimulate the socialization and dating scene for young single adults as well. Instead of relying on moving where the jobs are and doing online dating with random strangers.

Time will tell.

[ghaff]

>not likely to prioritize a college town as a place to enjoy their years or raise a family.

Maybe. I'd probably argue that, if you want to live in/near a smallish town/city that isn't on the outskirts of a large city, you may find ones with colleges often better than those without. Leave aside the students, there is a significant group of professionals (and alumni visiting from time to time) that can make those towns more interesting than a random small town out in the country someplace.

Of course, tourist towns can have similar although that comes with its own set of problems.

[StandardFuture]

> if you want to live in/near a smallish town/city that isn't on the outskirts of a large city, you may find ones with colleges often better than those without.

Right the tradeoff is how much value your adult personality derives out of the "collegiate" side of the town over the "students" side of the town.

[j1vms]

Ian Faith: The Boston gig has been cancelled...

David St. Hubbins: What?

Ian: Yeah. I wouldn't worry about it though, it's not a big college town.

- This Is Spinal Tap