Jacksonville area

[aleksandra33]

DayToday,

I was really interested in West side of Jacksonville, FL, but after the information about I-10 I really need to rethink.

I appreciate your comment that it's not THAT bad after all, however, if I live on West side, I will definately have to take I-10 all the way to work, and that's what scares me.

I really hate traffic, tho. I'm still not sure where I'm going to go. I hoping I'll get a chance to get down there at least once before I move so that I can check things out on my own.

Thanks.

[daedalo]

One thing to remember re: Jacksonville, is that nearly anywhere you move inside 295 you will be in heavy suburbia without any appreciable/definable sense of belonging to a particular community. The smaller outlying areas can provide this. Yulee has new schools and it has a heavy influx of professional families moving there. It isn't on the radar screen yet, but within the next 5 years the professional base of eastern Nassau County will control the politics there. That is already a fact on Amelia Island, and will soon enough be the case from I-95 eastward. This will mean more responsiveness to education and planning, which have a real impact on quality of life. For anyone doing an actual visit to the area, the SR 200 (A1A)corridor east to Amelia Island is the area I am talking about. As I have mentioned elsewhere, Fernandina Beach is one of the best if not the best small town in Florida, but expensive. Yulee offers an excellent compromise of belonging to the Fernandina environs without the expense.The commute into Jacksonville is the best there is.
Living out here I can't see any advantage, not one, to living in Jacksonville, and I know Jacksonville VERY well.

[FLPL75]

aleksandra33
with were you will be working you have a choice of either taking I-10 or 295s
so you either deal with the 10 back up or the buckman bridge backup. if you work the traditional 8-5. There allot of areas on the westside where you have to be careful. If you want to live on that side of the river I would reccomend Orange Park/Flemming Island. Without traffic I can make it from near where you will be working to OP in 25 to 30 mins.

daedalo - where in Jacksonville are you ?
karla

[aleksandra33]

Daedalo,

by that last sentence, did you mean: "it's better to live in suburbs of jax", or did you mean "get away from jax"? I didn't even want to live in Jax, i like suburbs, i don't like rush, and i like quietness.

myfask, i'll email you, so we can chat more about certain areas. So far, Orange Park sounds really good.

Thanks.

[daedalo]

I recommend well north of Jacksonville in central or eastern Nassau county. The commute from the north into Jacksonville is the least cogested. I live on a neck of land jutting out into the tidal marshes just off Amelia Island near a development (but not in) called Oyster Bay. We are on the marsh in an older area with 1.5AC lot. See the aerial photo here:

http://www.oysterbayharbour.com/location/images/aerialNorthSmall.jpg (broken link)

Relative to Orange Park, the Fernandina-Yulee area is much slower paced and significantly more peaceful. You must go to these areas in person to check them out, obviously. The swirl around I-295 near OP is some of the heaviest traffic in Jax. Also, there is nothing to compare with the experience in downtown Fernandina. This is small town life at its absolute best. If you have ever visited some of the smaller coastal towns in New England like Rockport, MA, or towns on the Cape.... These are a taste of what Fernandina is about. The geography of Fernandina keeps further development away except for the Yulee area. To the north of Amelia Island is Cumberland Island, probably the largest National Seashore Wilderness Park on the eastern seabord. Then to the south of Amelia is the huge state-owned coastal preserve of Big Talbot and Little Talbot Islands. These are beautiful, pristine, and undeveloped beach areas within minutes of Fernandina by boat (Cumberland) or by car (Talbot Is's).

[aleksandra33]

Fernandina sounds really good! That's sounds like something we're looking for. I don't like living in downtown, and like you say, small town living is what we prefer. I don't like rush, and I prefer suburbs.

Thanks for the info!!! It really helped.

[Northside904]

Basically you want people in your business. To each his/her own.