Can you tell me about Ortega? St. Nicholas? (Jacksonville, Springfield: homes, neighborhoods)

[Maisy Jacob]

Greetings:

My family will be moving to Jacksonville this summer. We are looking at both the historic districts and the beaches. As far as the historic districts go, I feel I've got a handle on Avondale and San Marco but I'm a little confused about Ortega and St. Nicholas.

SOooooooooo many homes come up when I do a search in the Ortega zip on the MLS. Is there a sweet spot within Ortega that I should be looking for? (I'm looking for a really clean, nice, safe, walkable area if possible and like homes with charm.) Also, is it a pain living there? Is it actually an island? Do the bridges ever wash out or become unsafe in heavy rain seasons? Anything else I should know about it?

As for St. Nicholas, is it a more transitional neighborhood? Is it similar to Springfield? Are there parts that are as nice as San Marco and Avondale? If so, can you give me some streets to use as my parameters? I'm guessing from the prices that it is not as well established as Avondale or San Marco but looking at the homes or the "street views" on zip realty, it looks very similar.

Thanks for your help!

[mawipafl]

The part of Ortega that I adore (and can't afford :-) is the peninsula skirted by McGirts and Ortega Blvds with Grand Avenue cutting through the middle.
grand avenue, jacksonville fl - Google Maps

[Joe 4520832257]

I think all of Ortega is pretty nice, although none of it is really "walkable" as compared to the other neighborhoods you're looking at. The peninsula part is the nicest and most expensive. Your best bet is probably just to wait until you can visit and do a drive by to narrow down which parts you like. Although I would ignore listings from "Ortega Farms" if that comes up, since it's a different area and more suburban.

St. Nicholas is tougher to figure out. Over the years, it's been really cut up by all the freeways. I-95 cuts it off from San Marco and Downtown, while some of those "mini expressways" to the Hart Bridge kind of cut it off from other parts of the Southside. So it's not really walkable anymore. Some areas are quite nice, while other areas are not. I would be cautious if a listing is actually in Spring Park, and is closer to Phillips and Emerson, which is still a rough area for now.

[LA-VA-FL]

I'm not really familiar with Ortega either. I know most of it is beautiful, but I was wondering if there are any parts of Ortega that are kinda "funky" being so close to the Naval base. Just wondering if the surrounding area has the "Mayport" syndrome