In the last two weeks, The Ridge at Gainesville has been the scene of two deaths.
The new apartment complex, which opened in August, has endured the accidental death of a Santa Fe College freshman Feb. 4 and a murder inside one of its apartments Monday, according to Alligator archives.
In light of a trying time at the complex, some residents have talked about making T-shirts that read, “I survived The Ridge.”
Francesca Ratovich, a 20-year-old resident of The Ridge, said she was shocked after she found out about the recent deaths, so she and her friends tried to make light of the situation.
“It’s like a mechanism you use to not think about the tragedy,” the UF microbiology and cell science sophomore said.
She said she’s considered going to management and asking them to increase security.
“I guess this one kind of pushed it over the edge,” she said about the killing of Jose Ricardo Ortiz III. “At night, I do kind of watch my back because it is scary.”
When she first moved into the complex she said security would patrol all hours of the day and night. But security hasn’t been as active since.
“I have not seen one security guard since August,” she said.
It makes her nervous that people could look at The Ridge and think it’s a bad neighborhood — it’s not, she said.
“I don’t know what it is about all the incidents happening back to back,” she said.
Her mom asked if Ratovich would consider moving, but she said she already resigned her lease.
“The Ridge is so convenient for us that I don’t think we would leave,” she said.
Robert W. Bauer, The Ridge’s lawyer, asked for clarification when he found out what the residents planned to put on T-shirts.
“That is certainly an issue that we would be concerned about,” he said.
He called it inappropriate, considering the gravity of the crimes, and said this is not something the complex would support.
“We do not want to minimize anyone’s loss,” he said.
Tatiana Arce, 19, said when she called her dad to tell him about the murder, he laughed and gave her the idea for the addition to her wardrobe.
“He thought it was crazy, but he didn’t freak out,” said the UF nursing sophomore.
Her mom, on the other hand, was more concerned about the environment Arce is living in and questions whether it is safe.
Regardless, Arce has resigned a lease to live at the complex for an additional year. She said she feels safe there.
“The locks are good, and the people are nice,” she said. “It’s not as bad as people perceive it to be.”
Contact Catherine Dickson at cdickson@alligator.org and follow her on Twitter at @ced0624
