[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.