[bellasmom]

Hi Everyone:

My husband and I have been searching for a nice place to raise our family and move out of South Florida. We are fed up with the extrememly high cost of living here. We had our hearts set on Portland, Maine but have recently begun to explore other options. We just returned from Charlottesville, VA and have decided we needed to be closer to the ocean.

What is Amelia Island like? How are the schools? Are there many families with young children? FYI we are both 39, professionals with a 2 year old and a 4 year old.

Any insight/tips/suggestions is very much appreciated!!!!

[daedalo]

Ok, about 1/2 of AI is the town of Fernandina Beach. Back in the late thirties two large pulp-paper mills were constructed on the west-central coast and the northwest edge of the Island. About the same time a state park was established on the extreme northern tip of the island at the site of Fort Clinch. In the early 1970's a massive tract of the south end of the island was purchased and the first ecologically planned ultra high-end resort community was constructed-Amelia Island Plantation. (See Ian McHarg's classic "Design with Nature"). The main street of Fernandina- Centre St. runs E-W across the island. On the east terminus is the beachfront while on the west is the extensive marina and docks for shrimpers. When you walk down Centre street you are clearly in the late 19th century, with brick storefronts squeezed together with a series of 1, 2, and 3 storey structures. Everything is nearly perfectly restored now in Fernandina with fine examples of victorian houses converted to B+B's or professional offices. The entertainment centerpiece of the town is The Palace Saloon, the oldest Pub in Florida, with a richly carved bar of ornate caryatids. In "old Town" the original town just south of the state park land there is a tight grid of streets and tiny lots with some very tiny houses parked on them. Remember Pippi Longstockings? It was filmed here in Old Town.

I am not exaggerating to say that Fernandina is by far the best old small town in Florida. St. Augustine is a bona fide resort but has been restored to such an extent that the restored areas are not lived in- becoming something akin to Disneyworld stage-sets. Only Key West matches it in quaintness. But Fernandina is far less densely populated. In size the old neighborhoods and center of Fernandina remind me of Edgartown on Martha's Vineyard--restored to the nines- but there is more, much more bustle in Fernandina. Fernandina has no higher educational institutions, just K-12. But the population that is beyond school age (25+) sports a remarkable 30% with 4 yrs or more of college. This is one of the highest percentages in the state, with Gainesville and Tallahassee leading in this category with major universities. The wide sidewalks, bookshops, coffee shops, ice-cream parlors,and various galleries, restaurants and specialty stores make the town very popular for families and the romantically inclined. It is not a site for spring break however, probably too small and too expensive for the college crowd. There is a rapidly shrinking poorer segment of the island in its center but even here due to sky-rocketing real estate values here even these are being restored and cleaned up. To the south of AI connected by A1A are a series of pristine coastal barrier islands (Big Talbot, Little Talbot, and Ft. George Islands) now preserved in natural perpetuity by the State. To the north of Amelia, accessible by a short boat ride is the vast and mystery and history laden Cumberland Island, a National Wilderness seashore park operated by the US Park Service. To the west, also by boat one can wind along the St. Mary's river which is still mostly a tidal wilderness, leading to the western hinterland of Nassau county, and a gateway to Georgia, Waycross, and the vast Okefenokee swamp-the source of the Suwanee River.

[bellasmom]

Thanks daedalo for all of your information. More specifically, do you think there is a comunnity of families with young children there? Also, after checking out some properties online, do you think we could be in a nice neighborhood on the island for around 425-450K? What is Yulee like? Do you think the majority of professionals commute to Jax? And, lastly, what about schools? Are they okay?
I appreciate your info. We are going there to check it out on Aug. 4-6.
Believe it or not, the postings on this forum (city-data) actually changed my mind about moving to Maine so I appreciate everyone's candor immensely!

[pioneer8]

Wow, I have a faint memory of Amelia Island Plantation... Not quite 30 yrs ago, my parents took us kids there for a vacation. I can't remember details... I think my Mother won it??? Anyway, From a child's perspective, I remember it to be very uppity. The older kids went horseback riding on the beach (Dreamy)... Sorry to say, I know nothing about it now. The memories are not wonderful, just there. I think, as a child, I'd have had a better time in DISNEY!

[daedalo]

Fernandina Beach is growing, it is a community of families mostly. When you walk down Centre Street it is filled with families and their kids. But it is also a retirement destination mainly at AIP but elsewhere also. It is a great town to raise a family. I don't have any stats on the schools but like the rest of Florida they can always be improved. That said FBHS is, as far as I know a good high school but still not as good as most any similarly sized town in New England. You should have many choices for houses in the FB area on and off island (mainly off) in that price range. Yulee is not really a town, its unincorporated. Anything off island is pretty much unincorporated Nassau County. On A1A between US17 and the bridge onto Amelia Island there are several intersecting roads that lead into pretty good sized settlements-many are new subdivisions. Starting at the bridge moving west on A1A (SR 200)you will encounter Nassau Lakes on the left, Piney Island on the right, Nassauville Rd on the left, Barnwell Rd. on the right, then Blackrock Rd. on the right, then Northampton on the left, and down to Miner Rd. on the left. Each of these roads has houses and subdivisions. Some upscale some moderate. Barnwell is one of the nicest with a good mix of moderate in "Spanish Oaks" and Upscale in Oyster Bay" and the new "Grande Oaks"(start in the upper 400's). The kids in this area attend Yulee Middle and Yulee HS. I would go to the school departments website to obtain info about these facilities and their programs. I really know nothing about how they stack up. My sense is that if you can get a house on-island that would be the best all around. I believe FBHS/MS has better ed programs than Yulee (I heard this from a neighbor).

[Coffeecake]

If you can't live or don't want to live on Amelia Island, Yulee is an excellent choice. Although, for your particular housing price range of $400-$450, you could certainly find something on the Island or really anywhere. However, for that same price range, the house you choose would likely be larger in Yulee. The Blackrock Road area in Yulee is very up & coming. They have very large homes that sit on a gorgeous marsh starting at around $400. All the locations mentioned in the previous post are very, very nice areas as well. Particularly North Hampton and Nassauville area. Loads of land leftover in Nassauville with very pretty marsh views. There are plenty of stores building in Yulee, that make life easier rather than driving over the bridge to the Island every time or worse into JAX. As far as schools, that's where the difficulty is. We moved up here from St. John's county which is about 40 minutes south of Fernandina Beach. St. John's County is considered one of the best counties for public education as well plenty of choices for private schools along with exceedingly easy access to JAX for even more choices. Amelia Island/Fernandina Beach is sorely lacking alternatives to public education if you're looking for that. Nassau County's public education although fine as far as standards go (better than some in Florida. Certainly better than Duval [JAX]) is not comparable to St. John's county's higher grade averages. Yulee H.S. hasn't even opened it's doors yet (will be opening on 8/7/06) so it's difficult to predict how they will do in comparison to Fernandina Beach High. I heard that Yulee's extra programs (music, drama) will be more than what is currently offered at F.H.S. As far as alternatives to public school, sadly they are limited. There are plenty of private schools offering preschool, but as far as classes for elementary and middle school, the pickings are slim. For High School, there is nothing in the area. There is a Montessori School on the Island that I heard was very good, but if I'm not mistaken, I think it only goes up to 5th or 6th grade. Faith Christian Academy, WAS offering classes from Pre-K to 12th grade, but due to a problem with the Zoning Department, has unfortunately scaled back and is no longer accepting students past the 8th grade. St. Michael's Catholic Academy offers classes from Pre-K to 8th grade. The education there is very good and wonderfully the class size is small and intimate. Blackrock Christian Academy has been around for 30 years. They offer classes from Pre-K to 12th, but unfortunately, I haven't heard many positive things from the locals about the education there. This year, they only had one senior graduate. For me, that sets off some red flags and is a of a concern. There is one other Christian School in Callahan that goes to 8th grade, but I don't remember their name. Otherwise, for a private education beyond 8th grade, Fernandina Beach/Yulee high schoolers are forced to drive into Jacksonville. During rush hour, that is not a commute many want to be doing,dragging kids down I-95 just to get to school. Some do it, but have to set up a network of carpools. From what I heard, those parents usually last about a year and then get so tired of the commute, they end up enroll their kids to the local public school. Homeschooling is very big in this area and fortunately, there is a strong network of people with a very, very active base.

[Nancy Lynne]

[with my 10 year old son


=bellasmom]Hi Everyone:

My husband and I have been searching for a nice place to raise our family and move out of South Florida. We are fed up with the extrememly high cost of living here. We had our hearts set on Portland, Maine but have recently begun to explore other options. We just returned from Charlottesville, VA and have decided we needed to be closer to the ocean.

What is Amelia Island like? How are the schools? Are there many families with young children? FYI we are both 39, professionals with a 2 year old and a 4 year old.

Any insight/tips/suggestions is very much appreciated!!!![/quote]

[lisa.home]

daedalo -

i love the picture you have painted of AI. I am thinking of moving me and my 2 young teen boys to Yulee from Jax. Do you have any info on Yulee?? and how far is it from AI? does Yulee have the same charm as you;ve described above?? thanks.

[MsV]

Daedalo, excellent overview and insight on AI/FB...hope you are a teacher, bec you portrayed the info in easy-to-undersand language. My husband and I are also planning a possible move from Central Jersey to AI. We've looked a couple times and find it to be underdeveloped (relatively so) and thus, still affordable. The Old Town is charming and intriguing, perfect for a stroll, shopping or a treat at one of the shops. When we were there last August, there was a group of motorcyclists parked and resting in the central square. Rather than being intimidating, we were impressed that the (tatooed) owners of the bikes were talking with the evening strollers, sharing what they knew about motorcycles. When we went on house-hunting trips, we saw plenty to entice us at a fraction of the cost we would have to spend in Central Jersey. Our only holdback is that I don't have a job in the area. We are mid-50's, semi-retired empty-nesters, but we would like to bring in an income for another 5-10 years. I am a licensed clinical social worker - do you know if the schools have counselors? Or is there a psychiatric facility anywhere around there? Maybe a veteran's hospital? My husband would keep his current job and just work from home. Again, many thanks for taking the time to share so much of your knowledge on AI/FB. I've printed it out to refer to when I go back down again. Good luck.

[jlee]

Ahhhh...Amelia Island! I am heading there Thursday night from the mountains of North Carolina ; where I have been for 25 years. My daughter moved to the island and I when I visited her for the first time I fell in love with it. We walked on the beach the night I arrived and when my feet hit the sand...my eyes saw the dark sky and brightly lit stars...felt the gentle breeze and heard the sound of the waves...my eyes welled up with tears at the beauty of it. My house here in the mountains is just up for sale and I will relocate as soon as it sells...I am not sure if it will be to Amelia Island or to South Carolina yet. I love this forum...it is so informative and this is my first time to post.