Oak Hammock at the University of Florida

Oak Hammock is a wonderful place to live … and a smart plan for the future. Our residents love living here so much that it’s hard for them to keep quiet about it! In fact, they produced, directed and starred in these videos so that others could experience a little of what Oak Hammock has to offer. For many years, retired faculty, alumni and friends encouraged the University of Florida to consider sponsoring a retirement community in Gainesville. Professor Gordon Streib from the Department of Sociology, a proponent of the concept, had researched the benefits of living in such a community. He and others were convinced that an affiliation with the University of Florida would further enhance the sociological and health advantages of the people who lived there. In 1997, Dr. Streib and Dr. Ray Coward, the Director of the University of Florida Institute of Gerontology, arranged for President John Lombardi and a key group of University and Foundation staff residents to attend a presentation regarding the development of a University-sponsored Continuing Care Retirement Community (CCRC). The outcome of that meeting was the formation of an ad hoc committee to consider such a project for the University of Florida and to visit other CCRCs. A not-for-profit corporation was formed to separate the financial and legal obligations of the CCRC from the University. Formal incorporation of Oak Hammock at the University of Florida, Inc. occurred in early 1999. PRAXEIS, LLC and FORCE Financial, LLC were selected to lead the development team. And the rest, as they say, is history. The landmark community opened its doors to residents in the spring of 2004.