Possible Transfer to Orange Park...Where to Live? (Tampa, Plantation: gated, budget)

[drgler]

There is a possibility that I will be transfered from Tampa to an office in Orange Park. I'm trying to figure out the best places to look for a place to live. I don't mind commuting a little bit, but would like to avoide major traffic hassles. We are looking for a young, active, family-safe area. Low crime and top schools a must, laid-back night life a plus. Any suggestions as to which areas offer what? Any help is appreciated. Thanks.

[titaniummd]

Where will your office be?

I looked at the following places when I was looking (golf course community):
Eagle Harbor
Fleming Island Plantation
Pace Island
Eagle Landing
and would have looked at Orange Park Country Club if I knew about its existence

I ended up at Fleming Island Plantation. The schools rated better there to me.

All the great shopping and restaurants; however, are on the other side of the water (St John's, Mandarin)

[Karla with a K]

I have to 2nd titaniummd
all of the places he listed are very nice .

[drgler]

My office is close to Orange Park Mall. I would like to be close to shops/restaurants/places to go out, wouldn't mind commuting a little bit to be in a nice area, just not sure about where the bad traffic areas are. 2 miles on the map could be an hour in the car, I know it's that way over here in Tampa. Is the Buckman Bridge a nightmare to cross at peak times? How rough would it be to live on the other side of the water? Is the St. John's/Mandarin area not a safe/quality place to live?

[floridagal123]

Fleming Island...how much do you plan on spending on a home? That might help determine your commute.

[floridagal123]

I did live in St Johns county and it is great!! Commute not too bad..That was 4 years ago. Good Luck!!

[Karla with a K]

Originally Posted by drgler

My office is close to Orange Park Mall. I would like to be close to shops/restaurants/places to go out, wouldn't mind commuting a little bit to be in a nice area, just not sure about where the bad traffic areas are. 2 miles on the map could be an hour in the car, I know it's that way over here in Tampa. Is the Buckman Bridge a nightmare to cross at peak times? How rough would it be to live on the other side of the water? Is the St. John's/Mandarin area not a safe/quality place to live?

Will you be north or south of the mall ? Weird question I know, but it does make a difference in traffic. The traffic right around the mall and argyle area is very heavy. In the mornings rt 17 and blanding blvd, the 2 roads form OP to 295 is heavy with folks heading either to the NAS naval station or to go over the buckman to head downtown.
Coming from the st john/mandarin even the southside are you will be going against traffic.
The one thing I would highly recommend in come on down and drive from the different areas. I can make if from the Southside to the mall area in 20 mins in the mornings.

karla

[titaniummd]

Originally Posted by drgler

My office is close to Orange Park Mall. I would like to be close to shops/restaurants/places to go out, wouldn't mind commuting a little bit to be in a nice area, just not sure about where the bad traffic areas are. 2 miles on the map could be an hour in the car, I know it's that way over here in Tampa. Is the Buckman Bridge a nightmare to cross at peak times? How rough would it be to live on the other side of the water? Is the St. John's/Mandarin area not a safe/quality place to live?

You can ask Riveree about St. John's/Mandarin about safety. I go there just to eat and head back.

By the way, what is your specialty? Are you admitting people to the major hospitals? Are you strictly outpatient? Do you have to go to other satellite locations?

Depending upon the time of day, if you're in going across the Buckman westbound, it's going against the major traffic (not with it). However, if there is an accident which I have experienced, it is extremely painful.

I personally find that I am not eating out or shopping daily to feel the need to live near it. I like my neighborhood because it's quiet. My streets are wide, the houses aren't bunched together, and very few park in the street (if they do, it's not for long). It has two pool centers, tennis, volleyball, basketall and a golf club.

I don't know your budget for a place and I don't know how old your children are but there's a house (?4500 Sq ft) for about $699k and a few in the 500s near the front of my neighborhood (gated community).

[mawipafl]

IMHO, the worst congestion in Orange Park is by the mall - Blanding (Rt 21), Youngerman, Argyl Forest, Wells. At different times of day the traffic backups radiate south on Blanding as far as Kingsley.

To give an example: the worst traffic backup I've experienced was about 4 pm on a weekday as I was traveling north on Blanding just before Kingsley. Ahead of me was a sea of red brake lights all the way to I-295. But it only took me 15 minutes to get through it (it's about a 2-mile stretch of roadway I think). For some, "only 15 minutes" might seem like a nightmare, but I've lived with worse. But it wasn't as if I was faced with the congestion for miles and miles and miles.

I've found the same with Rt 17. From I-295 to Kingsley, the traffic can be thick. But once you break through it, travel is a breeze.

As others have suggested, the best scenario is to visit here and drive from your potential office near the Mall to Oakleaf/Eagle Landing, Fleming Island, St Johns County. In that way you'd experience the commuter traffic and discover what is do-able for you.

[riveree]

Originally Posted by drgler

My office is close to Orange Park Mall. I would like to be close to shops/restaurants/places to go out, wouldn't mind commuting a little bit to be in a nice area, just not sure about where the bad traffic areas are. 2 miles on the map could be an hour in the car, I know it's that way over here in Tampa. Is the Buckman Bridge a nightmare to cross at peak times? How rough would it be to live on the other side of the water? Is the St. John's/Mandarin area not a safe/quality place to live?

The areas in Clay county mentioned are nice and are worth a look - it would at least keep you on the side of the river where you'll be working.

But as mentioned, you could certainly live across the river an commute in to OP - a reverse commute of sorts, but still can get busy at times (more on that below).

The Buckman Bridge/I295 can get really busy since it's the only way to get across the river for quite a distance, so LOTS of people use it. For a brief period, I did the reverse commute (lived on the Southside region of Jax and commuted over to OP a few days a week). I found the bigger problem to be coming back OUT of OP.....even though I left a little ahead of the normal "rush hour", I could get stuck sitting on 17/Park Avenue for quite some time just to get onto I295/Buckman.....I really hated it and ended the job after a short period .

On to your question about St. John's and Mandarin: Mandarin is actually in Duval county/Jax - it is a large neighborhood/region at the southernmost portion of the county. Mandarin is definitely a quality place to live. It is solid suburbia, family friendly, has some of Duval's better schools, and lots of old oak trees shading the old neighborhoods . It is worth considering, especially if you want to be closer to shopping, restaurants, etc. Mandarin can have its' own traffic woes, but no worse than OP/Fleming Island.

St. John's county/St. Augustine is directly to the south of Duval county. I imagine you're considering the new developments in the North end of St. John's county. These are very nice-looking, but you want to keep in mind that you'd be further away from the shopping and restaurants you're looking for, your commute would be longer than any of your other considered areas (not so much in physical miles, but in traffic ), and there is little BUT brand new development there, so the prices have been affected more than in other areas (they've dropped considerably....who's to say when they'll start going back up or even level off?).

All that in mind, any of the areas - OP, Mandarin, or St. John's are nice, safe, good areas to live - I'd at least give them all a once-over on your visit down here.

Good luck !