elementary school near nas jax (Plantation, St. Augustine: for sale, subletting, apartment)

[overseas76]

Hi I'd like honest opinions about areas near jax. We'll be going to jax from pakistan. Husband has 6 month training at nas jax. would like help in following:

1. if we stay on base, nas jax 32212 any idea which is a good ( A grade)elementary school for my 2 kids? any idea if school bus comes on base?

2. ive heard that John Stockton Elementary is good as is Montclaire...any comments on either? what are good neighbourhoods around those where i can find apartment to rent?

3. im a little hesitant to send kids on school bus, any possibilities of finding a rental 5 min walk from a good elementary school? in a safe neighbourhood with low crime rate and tolerance for ethnic diversity?

4. should i be looking into the possibility to sub let a home/apartment (promise to keep it good) for 6 months (that way i wont have to bother with renting out furniture etc) if so how do i go about that?

my priority is to be safe and near a good elementary school. ideally i 'd like to walk my kids to school...

any help is welcome.

thanks

a worried mom!

[wb3690]

My husband works at NAS and we bought out in Oakleaf Plantation. We just didn't want to live on base.......and the funny thing is that my husband knows about 5 people on our street due to being in the Navy...

anyway a girlfriend of mine sent her kids to Montclaire Elementary I believe......she liked the school alot

we have friends who live all over though from out here with us at Oakleaf allllll the way to St. Augustine.

I don't know too many people who actually live on base.

good luck!

[overseas76]

Thanks for the feedback. Since we're going to at nas jax for only 6 months ... we were contemplating staying at the tvq's but i dont know if the school bus comes on base? and whether my kids will be eligible to go to montclaire elementary from that district...any ideas or help would be appreciated. Ive also heard good things about montclaire so im keen on looking into that. If we live off base i'd really like to be close to school...coming from overseas and into a totally new system im anticipating some teething problems for my kids and i'd like to be nearby.

appreciate any help

[wb3690]

well I do know NAS Jax is in Duval County so Montclaire Elementary isn't an option if you live on base......the elementary school that services the base is Venetia Elementary. I don't know many people who actually live on base so I don't know if people are pleased with that school or not.

duval county public schools - our schools - school listings

[overseas76]

Thanks a lot for your feedback. I really appreciate your help. I did try to search over the net about venetia and it doesnt appeal to me AS much...however, maybe people who actually send their kids there are happy with the system.
So i suppose my other option is to try to locate something close to montclaire...im not at all familiar with the layout so im not sure if something can be found around there which is a short walk from montclaire....or i suppose even a short bus ride is ok....just want to cut short commute for kids.
by the way would you know of any naval family who might be interested in subletting their place for 6 months? thats another angle im trying to sort out....any suggestions?

[wb3690]

I would contact a realtor and say you are interesting in renting in the Montclair Elementary area..........or do a search on Trulia.com and use the advanced options and you can search for homes available for sale by schools......I'd probably use a realtor to help though.

Honestly though if it is for 6 months would you be eligible to live on base? I can't remember the regulations, but when we lived here in 2000-2001 we weren't eligible for base housing. Maybe even the housing office can help you find a rental....i believe most housing offices help with that service.

also look at militarybyowner.com or on ahrn.com........they have rentals/purchases on there...but I think you might have a hard time finding a 6 month rental.

[overseas76]

Thanks for your feedback and i will most certainly keep those points in mind. It may seem very basic to you but coming from overseas and a different set up sometimes the very obvious isnt so clear!
Since we are from the Pakistan Navy and detailed to do a 6 month training at vp30 we may be allowed on base at the tvq's...2yrs back the crew that went for training was allowed to stay on base. our efforts to contact the tvq's over the email have failed, so im just trying to iron out as many details as possible pre departure.

thanks for your help.