Fernandina Beach/Yulee (Palatka, Christmas: middle-class, rent, HOA)

[BlueWillowPlate]

This just in:
My bro-in-law, a realtor himself, is probably moving here.
He's met with school officials, spoken with parents of students.
He's putting his kid in Fernandina schools.

BTW:
This is absolutely false:

2) Outside of the tourist trap of Centre Street much of FB is dilapitated and run down.

I haven't seen this to be true yet. But I have only been here a year.

4) FB properties, (and vehicles) because of the proximity of the ocean are subject to higher maintenance costs.

[CDCUser]

Originally Posted by BlueWillowPlate

This just in:
My bro-in-law, a realtor himself, is probably moving here.
He's met with school officials, spoken with parents of students.
He's putting his kid in Fernandina schools.

BTW:
This is absolutely false:

I haven't seen this to be true yet. But I have only been here a year.

As you drive into FB along A1A look at the empty shops and commercial premises. Go on foot and look at the properties behind Centre Street - boarded up doors, peeling paint, blocked gutters/downpipes for a start. But all things are relative and what is dilapidated to me may well be pristine to you and I did say that it was my opinion.

[BlueWillowPlate]

I go on foot there quite a bit, walking is my preferred mode of transportation when downtown.
I actually think that both FB and Yulee have a bright future, and I think you offer a lot of good advice, CDCuser.
Sure there are empty shops etc along A1A, but to say that "much of FB is dilapidated and run-down" is, IMHO, an exaggeration.

[CDCUser]

Originally Posted by BlueWillowPlate

I go on foot there quite a bit, walking is my preferred mode of transportation when downtown.
I actually think that both FB and Yulee have a bright future, and I think you offer a lot of good advice, CDCuser.
Sure there are empty shops etc along A1A, but to say that "much of FB is dilapidated and run-down" is, IMHO, an exaggeration.

Well thank you for the upgrade from "absolutely false" to "exaggeration." :-) May I suggest that you take another look with a more jaundiced eye. Many years ago I went to look at some property in Pensacola and as the realtor was driving me around I remarked that a lot of it looked run down. He said, now you come to mention it, there really are some areas like that. He then supposed that familarity had dulled his perception and it had become the norm.

Not putting this out as an absolute you understand - just a thought. I'm much too old to be certain about anything anymore - sigh!

[BlueWillowPlate]

Originally Posted by CDCUser

May I suggest that you take another look with a more jaundiced eye. He then supposed that familarity had dulled his perception and it had become the norm.

Not putting this out as an absolute you understand - just a thought. I'm much too old to be certain about anything anymore - sigh!

Well, I'd say my eye can be plenty jaundiced. But my perspective might be coming from another direction.

I understand what you say about familiarity dulling perception, and perhaps the novelty is still there for me after 2 and a half years in north Florida. However, one person's "run-down" (like that funky pet shop at 8th and Beech) might be another person's opinion of character and authenticity. Brand, spanking new (but blah) beige stucco cookie-cutter front-loaded garage homes might be the favored replacement for what some call "dilapidated" and "run-down."
Downtown FB is still looking plenty good to me, without any spiffy stuccos.

[ShakenStirred]

I'm not sure if you are looking to build or buy a home in this area, but here are some good quality builders in that area that you may want to look into:

1. Donna Lynne Custom Homes - she builds on your lot in Nassau County
2. Woodside Homes - they have a community called Amelia Walk under development that has some outstanding values right now
3. Plantation Housing Corporation - an Arthur Rutenberg franchise, they have top notch quality and may have some spec homes, but these are typically higher priced homes. They are also currently building some spectacular townhomes on the island that may be of interest to someone.
4. If you are looking for a more value oriented type home, KB Homes has a couple of communities in the Yulee area and even though they are entry level homes, they do still produce a home of quality vs. some of the other builders in that category.

I'm sure there are some others I'm missing, but these are ones that I know for sure would give you a good product.

[CDCUser]

Originally Posted by BlueWillowPlate

Well, I'd say my eye can be plenty jaundiced. But my perspective might be coming from another direction.

I understand what you say about familiarity dulling perception, and perhaps the novelty is still there for me after 2 and a half years in north Florida. However, one person's "run-down" (like that funky pet shop at 8th and Beech) might be another person's opinion of character and authenticity. Brand, spanking new (but blah) beige stucco cookie-cutter front-loaded garage homes might be the favored replacement for what some call "dilapidated" and "run-down."
Downtown FB is still looking plenty good to me, without any spiffy stuccos.

No doubt you saw the article in the June 13th, 2008 issue of the "News Leader" entitled "City urged to support downtown businesses."?

It's an article about local downtown business owners expressing their concern about, among other things, the number of empty buildings on Centre Street.

In case you missed it, here's the link:

Fernandina Beach, FL, News-Leader newspaper. The local news source for Amelia Island and Fernandina Beach, FL

Regards,

CDUser

[Ollie1946]

CDC,

What is a "raised" septic system?

I concur with you that there is no shortage of rundown buildings on the island. I don't live there but have visited Amelia for the past 60 years. There is a LOT for sale and I cannot find out why so I am guessing it is a combination of insurance prices, taxes and people simply being priced out of the place. But I have to say that where I live in Georgia, we have much the same problem with areas that are rundown and no one coming to the rescue. The upside for Amelia Island is that boomers who have some money are likely to move in, buy up the properties in need of repair and go from there.

[CDCUser]

Originally Posted by Ollie1946

CDC,

What is a "raised" septic system?

I concur with you that there is no shortage of rundown buildings on the island. I don't live there but have visited Amelia for the past 60 years. There is a LOT for sale and I cannot find out why so I am guessing it is a combination of insurance prices, taxes and people simply being priced out of the place. But I have to say that where I live in Georgia, we have much the same problem with areas that are rundown and no one coming to the rescue. The upside for Amelia Island is that boomers who have some money are likely to move in, buy up the properties in need of repair and go from there.

Hi Ollie,

I'm not sure how much detail do you want about raised septic systems? Do you need a brief primer (to know why it's raised) on septic systems and or just an explanation of what a raised system is and looks like? No problem either way, just let me know.

CDUser

[CDCUser]

Originally Posted by Ollie1946

CDC,

What is a "raised" septic system?

I concur with you that there is no shortage of rundown buildings on the island. I don't live there but have visited Amelia for the past 60 years. There is a LOT for sale and I cannot find out why so I am guessing it is a combination of insurance prices, taxes and people simply being priced out of the place. But I have to say that where I live in Georgia, we have much the same problem with areas that are rundown and no one coming to the rescue. The upside for Amelia Island is that boomers who have some money are likely to move in, buy up the properties in need of repair and go from there.

P.S. One of the problems with the boomers buying up the area is that the natives are being forced out because they can't afford to live there anymore. During the season some of the local hostelries have to rent rooms in off island motels for their seasonal staff.