Thinking of moving to the Oakleaf area. (Orange Park, Springfield: section 8, for sale)

[Magic84]

From my understanding it seems that the Oakleaf area is divided into two sections. Is one section better than the other?

[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.

[oakleaf32]

Oakleaf was once a really nice place, but due to the changing demographics, things seem to be going down hil fastl. Personally, I have seen these changes first hand. I have lost many of my really good neighbors over the past few years, and in their place, I have seen many undesirable people move in. Some of these new residents are doing nothing to keep up their homes. Their yards look like crap. They're driving old junky cars, throwing trash out their car windows, and letting their kids run wild in the streets. Crime in the area is way up and we seem to be constantly dealing with car break ins, vandalism, and just this week, one of these new residents was arrested for murder.

[thatguydownsouth]

"Mixed community." The real issue is Oakleaf was build a bit TOO far from everything. Initially it was a good idea to try to isolate a community away from the hustle and bustle but once the traffic picked up it became an absolute nightmare. Same with Fleming Island. These "get away from it all" developments sound fine in theory until they develop and it takes you 1.5 hours to get to work....Fleming Island was the worst thing to happen to Highway 17.

[jwolfer]

Originally Posted by thatguydownsouth

"Mixed community." The real issue is Oakleaf was build a bit TOO far from everything. Initially it was a good idea to try to isolate a community away from the hustle and bustle but once the traffic picked up it became an absolute nightmare. Same with Fleming Island. These "get away from it all" developments sound fine in theory until they develop and it takes you 1.5 hours to get to work....Fleming Island was the worst thing to happen to Highway 17.

I agree with the assessment of 17. The inner suburbs like Avondale and Springfield were once the middle of nowhere

[oakleafknightrider]

I have been an Oakleaf home owner since 2005. Oakleaf was supposed to be a really great community. When we bought, we were told that there would be an upscale retail development....we basically got a big strip of cheap big box stores. We were told that there would be a library built in phase 1 with a grand lawn....we have an empty lot. We drove by signs that said there was a large office park coming....still no office jobs in Oakleaf. We were supposed to have a 24 hour fitness center in phase 1....they built one that isn't open 24 hours a day. We were shown are beautifully landscaped neighborhood park...it's no longer maintained and we have vandalism and people selling drugs there on a regular basis. We were shown pictures of more retail by the clock tower....all we got is a lot of parking lots, but only one building having a little used medical center. We had a nice Bealle's department store...it closed. We were supposed to get a Walmart in Oakleaf....the coming soon sign was taken down and Walmart built far down the new toll road and building another on Collins next to I-295. We had nice lighted neighborhood signs....they get graffitied on a regular bases and the lights are vandalized and not working. We were told we would have security at the amenity centers....we got the laziest security guards who just sit in their car and don't make their rounds like they are supposed to. Phase 1 was landscaped nicely with St Augustine grass along the main streets.....Phase 2 has no St Augustine grass, just weeds and seasonal rye grass. We were supposed to have quality homes....we got a lot of really cheap built homes here. Most stucco homes have huge cracks. We were told that Oakleaf was going to be a great family friendly development....we are getting lots of crime. We were told that they were building luxury condos...the luxury condos turned into section 8 apartments. Even with almost 30,000 people living in Oakleaf, there still is really only one church. Our ammentity center is being rented to people who don't live in Oakleaf. I was shocked to learn that they are letting people have some pretty ghetto dances there and those kids did a lot of damage. The club house at the golf course is now being used as a comedy club. We were supposed to have nice schools. The schools were overcrowded right from the start and now kids go to school in portable classroom trailers. We have tons of homes that are unoccupied now. We have homes owned by foreign investors who don't maintain homes. Homes are renting cheap and now we have lots of lower class people moving into Oakleaf. I live on a street with fifteen houses. We are the only house on the street with the original owner in it. All the others have changed ownership several times. When we moved in, there was only one black family on our street and everybody on our street owned their home. Now, only three of the homes have white families in them. The rest are black families. Only five of the families on are street own their home, the rest are now renters. The homes that were once very nice with well maintained lawns are now a big mess, and thanks to our communities management company not enforcing the rules and regulations, our neighborhood no longer looks nice.

[thatguydownsouth]

This is EXACTLY what happens when you buy in new areas on the whims of a salesman/woman. Remember these realtors/developers are first and foremost sales people. In any other industry you dont buy until you know something for sure, them telling you all these grand features that will come in due time is just hot air until it happens...if it happens. I have a feeling that the same will happen with Noccattee. All of these homes are being sold at exorbitant prices with promises of this and that. We will see in a few years what happens...

Some of my friends teased me for buying in an older more established area on the Southside, but I knew exactly what I was getting for my money.

[oakleafknightrider]

What really concerns me is how fast Oakleaf is changing. Just five years ago, it was still a very nice neighborhood, and I would highly recommend it for families thinking about locating here. No so, anymore. I hear horror stories from a couple of my friends who are teachers at OHS. They tell me that the kids that really want to learn, are being held back because so many of the new students coming into the high school only have elementary level reading, writing, and match skills. I'm told that there is a huge problem with theft in the school. Cell phones and other electronic items get stolen on almost a daily basis. Disciplining kids have become a real problem. Frankly, many of the teachers are scared of some of these students, one, because they are so big, and two, because so many of the kids claim that you're racist if you try to discipline them. Racial tension runs very high at OHS, and they fear the day when some massive fight breaks out like it did at the Orange Park AMC and the teachers won't be able to control the students.


Personally, I have walked down the sidewalk along side students when school is getting out. I can't believe the kind of things that come out of these kid's mouths. The black students seem to use the "N" word often. They all refer to each other and greet each other with the "N" word. Some of these students are dressed so inappropriate. Some of the girls look like hookers, and the boys with their pants and shorts hanging off their rear end and with their dreadlocks hanging in their face look pretty rough, no wonder teachers are scared. I am guessing that most of these students will end up living of the system because they will never be taught how to take pride in their appearances. No body is going to want to hire these people.

[thatguydownsouth]

217 Royal Lake Dr, Ponte Vedra, FL 32081 - Home For Sale and Real Estate Listing - realtor.com®

This is exactly what Im talking about with Nocattee and the potential to become another Oakleaf. These homes are $4-500k and youre ONLY paying for the location. They almost look to be the same builder as in Oakleaf. This home anywhere else would be 2-300k. The problem with buying in that area is one section 8 development and your house drops 50% in value.

[EricBoyd]

But, that's a David Weekley home. I don't recall seeing Weekley building in Oakleaf. Just a bunch of national builders.