Stefan Schmid recalls some of his best memories floating around in the water with his co-workers at a company retreat to Gilchrist Blue Springs State Park.
Schmid, a 28-year-old UF alumnus, is one of more than about 1,000 people who visited the North Central Florida springs over the past year.
“For a few dollars, you can hang out all day, grill some food, take a swim, play sports on land or in the water,” Schmid said.
A study, which was funded by the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture, investigated how much visitors are willing to pay per person to restore the North Central Florida parks, said Xian Bi, a 40-year-old UF assistant professor of environmental and resource economics, consumer economics and marketing.
Florida has over 1,000 springs, and an average visitor spends $20 to $43 per trip, excluding travel expenses, Bi said.
The study proved the springs were used frequently enough to be economically viable.
Ninety-four percent of the study’s respondents were Florida residents. The remaining 6 percent of visitors reside in Georgia, Texas, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee.
Residents enjoy visiting the Florida springs and are willing to drive an average of 80 miles to get there, Bi said.
The number of visitors to the springs has stayed the same in recent years, Bi said.
Schmid argues that the springs bring a one-of-a-kind quality to Florida. People visit the springs to go diving, swimming or snorkeling.
“People who are new to Florida are attracted to the springs because they’re very unique,” Bi said. “You don’t see them in other parts of the country.”
