Thinking of moving to the Oakleaf area.

[susaninoakleaf]

Originally Posted by kokonutty

I don't know why you'd even include the bolded part in your rant. Obviously the kind of church you're looking for is not important enough to enough people to make it viable. Everybody needs schools and shopping, police and fire services, but the same is not true for churches and is certainly not the responsibility of a developer.

Who said anything about this being the responsibility of the the developer when it comes to churches? I was only stating that it's disappointing that after all these years, Oakleaf still only has one church. I believe churches, just like schools, help create a sense of community. It's just another way of getting to know the people that live around you. With over 25,000 people living in Oakleaf, it's just hard to believe there's only one church.

Anyway, part of the school over crowding problem might be solved. They are now going to start sending a lot of of the elementary kids living in Oakleaf over to Argyle Elementary. That really sucks for the people who built a house in Oakleaf hoping to be close to the elementary school for their kids to attend, and now they have to go to school miles away. I bet within a year or two, they are going to decide to send our middle school and high school kids to schools outside of Oakleaf too. That certainly is not going to help our property values. When they start sending our kids to schools outside of Oakleaf, you will see a ton of homes go up for sale.

[NeoSoulBrotha]

Originally Posted by NeoSoulBrotha

I moved to Oakleaf about five months ago and really enjoy it. Nice community and friendly neighbors, the community is very family-oriented. The shopping center, which is centrally located, is a plus. You can get most of your essentials without dealing with the heavy traffic on Blanding Blvd. Schools and child care are also very convenient.

The Phase II rec center is slightly larger than Phase I, although there isn't a significant difference in quality or accessibility between the two. No noticeable difference in neighborhood or home quality between the two, and both phases have homes at all price points.

After a year in Oakleaf, here's my unbiased opinion:


The good:

A solid suburban community for young families looking for a less expensive alternative St. Johns. Not "ghetto" or "redneck" by any means, although there's a variety of families from different income levels (more so than Nocatee, JCP, etc.). Neighbors are, for the most part, pretty friendly. As with most communities, there's a chance you'll occasionally get a lousy neighbor that doesn't keep up his property, or a vacant rental. The HOA is pretty aggressive about that and has an inspector that patrols weekly.

School quality is good. I've had a great experience with my son's elementary school, teachers are engaged and professional.

Basic shopping is convenient - Target, Publix, Home Depot, and takeout places are within 5 minutes of anywhere in Oakleaf. If you've tried getting anywhere in OP via Blanding (or need to get to shopping from Middleburg) you appreciate the importance of this. The same goes for child care.

Home quality varies. Some builders' houses are well-constructed, while others were quick, shoddy construction. Homes are available at a variety of price points from $100k condos on the low end to $400kish 4-5br SFH on the high end. You can get, relatively speaking, a lot of house for your money.

Very family friendly. Lots of parks/green space and amenity centers are convenient for fun with the kids.

Crime is low. The biggest issue is petty theft from unlocked cars, etc.

Public spaces are maintained well.


The bad:

Oakleaf schools are overcrowded, so the Oakleaf schools are using portable trailers and outbuildings. Traffic around the schools is heavy at peak times of day.

Some of the newer developments in Oakleaf are being zoned for Argyle and other schools outside of Oakleaf, which are lower rated. They are also not included in the Oakleaf CDD and don't include access to the amenities. If you're moving, shop accordingly.

Decent shopping requires a drive to St. Johns Town Center, which is 45 minutes away.

Not too much going on, entertainment wise, in OP. If you are looking for higher end restaurants, cultural events, young professionals' social scene, date nights etc. you'll need to go the downtown neighborhoods or to the beaches.

295 and the main thoroughfares in OP are a parking lot at rush hour. Lots of construction which slows things down even more.

Lots of turnover - some are military relocations, but there many foreclosures in Oakleaf. Many homes are being bought by investors and leased out as rentals. Over time, I could see this having an impact on the quality of residents.

Occasionally rowdy kids, which is to be expected from any neighborhood with lots of families - older kids with too much time on their hands.

Commercial development seems to be slowing down. I don't see much more in the way of shopping/business in Oakleaf than what's already here. The undeveloped areas that were originally zoned for retail have been rezoned for residential homes.


All things considered, I'm very comfortable here. We're planning to upgrade to a larger home soon, we'd prefer to stay in Oakleaf (for convenience and to avoid changing our kids' schools) however Fleming/Nocatee are also in consideration (nice areas that are closer to work).

[Robyn55]

Very nice summary IMO. Note that there is petty theft from unlocked cars just about everywhere in the metro area. When Sheriff Shoar speaks to people in SJC - he always tells them to remove valuables from their cars and to lock the car doors. Robyn