[supermomlol]

Originally Posted by JimKing

I do appreciate all the info. on Naples. We were leaning that way several weeks ago....the right teaching style tennis academy...Golden Gates Estates looked like nice sized lots, which we like.

But we are also into our dogs...not many dog friendly parks in Naples. Golden Gates Estates sounds like you could have nice house, right next to a mess of a house. And it does not sound like the most kid friendly area.

Anyway, Parkland/west Boca is looking like our choice.

I don't think there are any dog parks here now that you mention that. I could be wrong.
yes the estates is a hodge-podge of homes. One could have a beautiful million dollar home and next door there would be a shack.
When we first built our home, next to us was a vacant lot. The other side very nice neigbors. Now we live next to loud mouth, drunken, old McDonalds want to be hispanic farm.
good luck with what ever you decide.

[mrs1885]

I think the park off Immokalee road in N Naples has a dog park at it. Or at least when they were in the process of building it they'd planned on having one there. I think.

Thanks Supermomlol!

I agree about the estates. I remember when nothing out there was paved and many of the places were trailers. Heck, I remember having to cut through the back of people yards to get from Santa Barbara to Pine Ridge, before they put in the extension. And when Pine Ridge was a little 2 lane rock / dirt road.

I was about 7 years old when that gorgeous southern Colonial was built by the doctor at the corner of Pine Ridge and ....... Airport? I think it was. I was sooooo in love with that house. I decided some day I'd own it. Gorgeous 6 foot marble fireplaces. Beautiful staircase going upstairs. What a beautiful house. I tried so hard to contact the company that bought that place when they moved to see if they'd let me hire a moving company out of Ft Myers to move it to an estates lot to save it. They wouldn't even return my call. Passed by on my way to work one day and there was just part of an exterior wall left. Tore the whole thing down. I was so devastated. Thankfully my husband and I had stopped there a few months before and got pictures of it and the little guest house beside it. I've got a great one of me standing in front of those massive front doors.

Just kills me that people can tear something down like that. Why not donate it to a company to move it and put it on a lot so someone can enjoy it? We moved within a few months of that.

[NorthernIL815]

Our family moved to Naples a few months ago and found a nice house in a gated community that isnt "rich" by any means but seems to be occupied by hardworking families. Lots of Collier Co. Sheriffs cars and fire vehicles in driveways which makes us feel good. Its very similar to where we moved from minus the gates and palm tree's.
I have to say that in the very short time Ive lived here I agree with most of the postings. Money for us is a bit tighter now and Ive seconded guessed the move many times. But the area is beautiful and the 2 schools, we live within walking distance of, seem very nice. We made the move and will deal with the changes. I make it a point to not talk about "how we did it where I used to live" and briefed the kids on the same. I think we'll do fine here.
The reason Im posting this is because everything that is happening to Naples and Collier Co. is exactly what we moved away from. 1400 miles away. We lived in a college town west of Chicago. A sleepy little farm town at one time with very little traffic with nice mom and pop shops you could walk to with no worries. I remember the nice big old homes and 2 lane unpaved roads. Over the years the University grew as did the population of the town. People with kids at the University saw our town and liked the small town feel so they moved out to get away from the city and brought their money, problems, drugs, gangs. Chicago also closed their huge housing projects years ago and pushed thousands of their residents west...literally. The population boomed, people who lived in the nice townhomes/apartments moved out because of who was moving in and they turned into what we called Section 8 housing. Most of the mom and pop stores closed and were either torn down for chains or now have a spanish name above them. We had a whole blue collar section of town that is now populated by mostly hispanic families. The traffic went from bad to worse as did the crime. Shootings, domestics, getting into an accident and having everyone in the other car running away, loud music complaints,fights, basically I kept my kids in our neighborhood at night.
In our area the "richer" kids at the university had parents who bought them houses to live in for 4yrs instead of paying for dorms or apartments. They moved in with 5 friends and they had 2 friends and they had 2 friends and so on...Not a bad deal for the kids but its killing the nicer neighborhoods. Not unlike the poster from GG Estates who had troubles with all the people next door being loud and drinking and gawking at them when they were out.
The local schools also took a hit and mirror some of the problems I see here.
Oh yeah, we heard kids and parents complain there was "nuthing to do". ((there was a lot to do))
I guess the point Im trying to make is for those of you who grew up here, you are not alone. Cities that were once sleepy little fishing villages or farm towns are changing and unfortionatley its not always for the better. But it is hapening all over the U.S. If youve moved away and think illegals or sex offenders dont live anywhere near you, Im betting the illegals are working in the kitchens all day washing dishes and guess what, the sex offenders havent registered yet...or been caught yet. Good luck, but change is coming one way or another. Some of us are just seeing it quicker.

[mrs1885]

Originally Posted by NorthernIL815

Our family moved to Naples a few months ago and found a nice house in a gated community that isnt "rich" by any means but seems to be occupied by hardworking families. Lots of Collier Co. Sheriffs cars and fire vehicles in driveways which makes us feel good. Its very similar to where we moved from minus the gates and palm tree's.
I have to say that in the very short time Ive lived here I agree with most of the postings. Money for us is a bit tighter now and Ive seconded guessed the move many times. But the area is beautiful and the 2 schools, we live within walking distance of, seem very nice. We made the move and will deal with the changes. I make it a point to not talk about "how we did it where I used to live" and briefed the kids on the same. I think we'll do fine here.
The reason Im posting this is because everything that is happening to Naples and Collier Co. is exactly what we moved away from. 1400 miles away. We lived in a college town west of Chicago. A sleepy little farm town at one time with very little traffic with nice mom and pop shops you could walk to with no worries. I remember the nice big old homes and 2 lane unpaved roads. Over the years the University grew as did the population of the town. People with kids at the University saw our town and liked the small town feel so they moved out to get away from the city and brought their money, problems, drugs, gangs. Chicago also closed their huge housing projects years ago and pushed thousands of their residents west...literally. The population boomed, people who lived in the nice townhomes/apartments moved out because of who was moving in and they turned into what we called Section 8 housing. Most of the mom and pop stores closed and were either torn down for chains or now have a spanish name above them. We had a whole blue collar section of town that is now populated by mostly hispanic families. The traffic went from bad to worse as did the crime. Shootings, domestics, getting into an accident and having everyone in the other car running away, loud music complaints,fights, basically I kept my kids in our neighborhood at night.
In our area the "richer" kids at the university had parents who bought them houses to live in for 4yrs instead of paying for dorms or apartments. They moved in with 5 friends and they had 2 friends and they had 2 friends and so on...Not a bad deal for the kids but its killing the nicer neighborhoods. Not unlike the poster from GG Estates who had troubles with all the people next door being loud and drinking and gawking at them when they were out.
The local schools also took a hit and mirror some of the problems I see here.
Oh yeah, we heard kids and parents complain there was "nuthing to do". ((there was a lot to do))
I guess the point Im trying to make is for those of you who grew up here, you are not alone. Cities that were once sleepy little fishing villages or farm towns are changing and unfortionatley its not always for the better. But it is hapening all over the U.S. If youve moved away and think illegals or sex offenders dont live anywhere near you, Im betting the illegals are working in the kitchens all day washing dishes and guess what, the sex offenders havent registered yet...or been caught yet. Good luck, but change is coming one way or another. Some of us are just seeing it quicker.

Sounds like you're in Waterways or Orangetree. I know tons of the guys bought in those 2 divisions when they started going up. It was reasonably priced back then.

I agree that it's a trend for people to move to nice areas when they discover them which brings in more and more new residents. We're seeing it here - they are buying up farms outside of town and butchering them into small little gated communities. Luckily for us, we've not had it in our town.....yet. I think it's just the way things go. Makes you wonder what's going to happen when that last little town is all filled up, huh?

As for illegals and sex predators, we've checked the state's sex offender site - none are in our neighborhood. We've got a very conservative neighborhood and I have a feeling that as strongly as people feel, should one ever move in they'd be wise enough to move back out - quickly.

Yes, we have illegals. They work in the nurseries up here in the fields. But they are different. The ones here are clean, they speak English, and they are polite. While I was in Naples working for CCSO it was a daily occurance to have a Spanish or Haitian person chew you out in their native tongue because *gasp* you don't speak their language?? And GOd forbid you ask them for help when their at work - as if you just ruined their day.

Don't get me wrong - I'm sure there were plently that were hard workers and spoke English and took pride in what they had. I have no problem with them. And maybe growing up in and later joining the law enforcement community made me a bit jaded as all I ever saw of them was the bad side. But the fact that there are so many people on here complaining about the same thing - people that don't know each other - makes you wonder just how bad it is. Or at least it should.

My in-laws still live down there. They think they know all there is to know about Lee and Collier counties. They think it's paradise and there's no problem with sex offenders and the illegals are all just hard working, honest people with strong family bonds. They also live in Bonita Bay in a multi-million dollar home, shop in the very upscales store, dine in the best restaurants, and live there about 4 months a year. Sorry, but they have no clue what real life is like. Maybe if they trade in the brand new Mercedes and Jag for a Dodge Neon and a Chevy Cavalier and go live in the Estates for awhile and shop at Wal Mart and eat at Burger King their opinions would change greatly. Until that happens, anytime they mention how wonderful it is there I just roll my eyes.

Just noticed your post on the patrol cars and fire trucks in driveways. I'd be kinda wondering what's going on - unless it's a fire dept admin vehicle - as CCSO is the only agency that allows take home vehicles. Just a thought.

[supermomlol]

Yes, people who do not even know each other. Or do we, hum and not
know it LOL.
The other poster brought tears to my eyes. It is so so sad how things like this can happen. I am at a loss at what to do. It seems there is nothing we can do. Maybe live on a little island somewhere. Isn't that what Stockdale did?

[mrs1885]

Originally Posted by supermomlol

Yes, people who do not even know each other. Or do we, hum and not
know it LOL.
The other poster brought tears to my eyes. It is so so sad how things like this can happen. I am at a loss at what to do. It seems there is nothing we can do. Maybe live on a little island somewhere. Isn't that what Stockdale did?

You have no clue how ironic that is! Hubby and I were talking a few nights ago and I told him I want to win the lottery, buy an island, and the sucede from the union. And then a few minutes ago I found a website dedicated entirely to islands - buying, selling, renting, forums, the whole nine yards. One of the sections in the forums is about declaring your island as an independent nation. They are very against it for obvious reason, topping the list legal issues. But apparenly tons of people want to do this so they can 'boss other people around'. I always thought the idea of buying an island is so I can live totally secluded from any other annoying human being for the rest of my life.

Anyway - hey, how funny would it be if we'd been neighbors while I lived in Naples? I did live in the estates!! Off Desoto. If you tell me you're off Desoto too I'll start to worry!!

[supermomlol]

Originally Posted by mrs1885

You have no clue how ironic that is! Hubby and I were talking a few nights ago and I told him I want to win the lottery, buy an island, and the sucede from the union. And then a few minutes ago I found a website dedicated entirely to islands - buying, selling, renting, forums, the whole nine yards. One of the sections in the forums is about declaring your island as an independent nation. They are very against it for obvious reason, topping the list legal issues. But apparenly tons of people want to do this so they can 'boss other people around'. I always thought the idea of buying an island is so I can live totally secluded from any other annoying human being for the rest of my life.

Anyway - hey, how funny would it be if we'd been neighbors while I lived in Naples? I did live in the estates!! Off Desoto. If you tell me you're off Desoto too I'll start to worry!!

Ok you really had me laughing. But no we are closer in off white.
I thought about the island thing for awhile, but had no idea that they really sell islands. How cool would that be. I might need a cabana boy though.

[mrs1885]

Oh jeez - hang on a sec. I gotta find this one for you. It's .5 acre selling for $995k. Now you and I both know there's chuckle heads in Quail West that paid wwwaaaaayyyyyy more than that for a micro tiny lot with a McMansion, right?

Check this out:

2 homes - one is a Bahama style conch cabin. The other is a mainland home with dock. So, you come home to the mainland house, load the groceries in one of the boats that come with the homes, and head out to the conch house.

Deep water dock, 2 boats, etc etc etc.

Why would someone want to live in a stupid gated community instead? And they are renting it out for $2495 a week - it's a 2 bedroom main house and a conch cabin. It breaks down to $175 a night for a couple for a house instead of a cramped stuffy hotel room and you have 2 boats to choose from and a kitchen so you don't blow you're entire budget on food at restaurants.

I sent my parents an e-mail and told them it was at the top of my Christmas list so I only felt it fair to give them a few months to save up to buy it for me!!

Here:

The sales page:
Dolphin Jump Key, Florida, United States

The rental page:
Dolphin Jump Key, Florida, United States (broken link)

I'm soooo in love with this place! And it says an island manager will show you how to use the boats and all. I'm sure he won't mind us calling him a cabana boy!!

[supermomlol]

Originally Posted by mrs1885

Oh jeez - hang on a sec. I gotta find this one for you. It's .5 acre selling for $995k. Now you and I both know there's chuckle heads in Quail West that paid wwwaaaaayyyyyy more than that for a micro tiny lot with a McMansion, right?

Check this out:

2 homes - one is a Bahama style conch cabin. The other is a mainland home with dock. So, you come home to the mainland house, load the groceries in one of the boats that come with the homes, and head out to the conch house.

Deep water dock, 2 boats, etc etc etc.

Why would someone want to live in a stupid gated community instead? And they are renting it out for $2495 a week - it's a 2 bedroom main house and a conch cabin. It breaks down to $175 a night for a couple for a house instead of a cramped stuffy hotel room and you have 2 boats to choose from and a kitchen so you don't blow you're entire budget on food at restaurants.

I sent my parents an e-mail and told them it was at the top of my Christmas list so I only felt it fair to give them a few months to save up to buy it for me!!

Here:

The sales page:
Dolphin Jump Key, Florida, United States

The rental page:
Dolphin Jump Key, Florida, United States (broken link)

I'm soooo in love with this place! And it says an island manager will show you how to use the boats and all. I'm sure he won't mind us calling him a cabana boy!!

Oh my goodness. Now I really need to win the lottery. How beautiful! The rental on that is less then what I just paid for a 1 bdrm resort at Disney.
I just saved this on my favorites. A girl can dream. ahhhh

[mrs1885]

As I just told a friend a couple days ago, sometimes dreams are all we have that keep us going! Yep, I dream alot!!

I logged off and was thinking - I wonder how many times you and I drove past one another or bumped into each other in a grocery store and never knew..... creepy.....