The short list of areas that are good are the ones that are very expensive with very little supply compared to demand.  

It's called PEX not Plex.If you are totally replacing the water supply plumbing, unless local code prohibits it I would say to use PEX.

There's just too much supply, too little demand right now and the cellar dwellars are sucking up whatever business is out there. 

This supply constraint, coupled with steady demand, is expected to drive rent growth in the coming months.Capital Markets and Valuations: U.S. multifamily transaction volumes reached $38 billion in Q2, signaling a thaw in capital markets.

Plenty of areas of FL have seen record levels of new supply hit the market which has impacted rental rates, either making it flat for the past 1-2 years or even dropping some.

Does anyone have any successful STRs in college football/sports towns?

Rents will gradually increase as some landlords exit the market with high end condos seeing less rent increases due to excess supply from new construction.  

As far as you supplying the equipment and just having someone install it .

Stop hanging out with your deadbeat buddies who spend all day drinking, talking sports, and otherwise wasting away.

Two, he has a vested interest in not wanting other people to develop their own parks as there is a bit of supply and demand at play there.