NJ to Nocatee. If not Nocatee, then where? (Miami, Orlando: rent, skatepark)

[bloomfieldmom]

Hi everyone. I've been combing the forums for a while, and it's a lot of good information. My husband, two kids (one pre-k, one 2nd grade) have been considering a move to this area of Florida from NJ. We're hoping to find friendlier neighbors, spend more time outside, and have more amenities (our town doesn't offer much). Here are my questions:

1. Nocatee sounds great because of the golf carts, lots of kids, swimming area, food trucks, etc. If not Nocatee, then what other areas offer that AND the great school system?
2. I've seen on here that the Valley Ridge Academy has issues. What are these issues, and what elementary/middle schools would be better and why?
3. Are folks as friendly as we're hoping they would be? Is there diversity and at least an open minded attitude towards anyone who may be "different" (skaters, artsy kids, non-sports starts, etc.)?
4. We'd be looking for a house that has 4+ bedrooms with at least one bedroom on the lower level for my handicapped Mom (including full bath). What areas would have layouts that accommodate this? We're not looking for new construction necessarily.
5. Will we find other families like ours that move down there with no connection to the state? My main concern is meeting new people and forming a "new family" with our new community, since our family (besides my parents) will be a plane ride away...

[kyle19125]

[quote=bloomfieldmom;51352822
1. Nocatee sounds great because of the golf carts, lots of kids, swimming area, food trucks, etc. If not Nocatee, then what other areas offer that AND the great school system?
[/QUOTE]

I would urge you to take a look at Viera as well.

Viera, FL - Top 25 Master Planned Community | Florida's Space Coast

[Thundarr457]

I agree that Nocatee has a lot to offer but being the 3rd fastest growing community comes overcrowding of the public facilities. At full build-out, Nocatee is expected to have 13,000 homes. There are already issues with overcrowding. The traffic will also be a concern as well. I have visited it many times and my MD is there. We considered buying a home in Nocatee but as with most new developments the land is clear cut and trees are few and far between. The houses are too close together for me as well. For a family its a good choice.

[Gromicide]

There are more people from NJ in Nocatee than there are people from Florida.

[bloomfieldmom]

I've also seen Julington Creek mentioned on these boards. I like the fact that they have a skatepark for kids. When we reached out to Nocatee, they said none was planned for that development. It's not a deal breaker, but just thought that was interesting.

Can anyone give me honest insight into the schools? Are Julington and Nocatee schools really as good as the ratings say? I would love a grammar school with enrichment like coding, rec sports, robotics or Legos after school. Do any of the schools offer programs like that?

Also, can anyone give me a feel for diversity in the area? Our town in NJ is not diverse at all, and I would like my kids to grow up knowing kids from other backgrounds and races.

[843904]

Originally Posted by bloomfieldmom

Our town in NJ is not diverse at all, and I would like my kids to grow up knowing kids from other backgrounds and races.

To be fair, if that's what you want, you'll need to consider a more "urban" area, as most suburbs are full of "white flight" types, including Nocatee. Suburbs are not known for "diversity".

[kmarc]

Good Lord, you don't have to move all the way to Florida if you want your kids to experience diversity. It's all right there, in your own back yard. Camden, Newark, Union City, Paterson, Trenton. Now, if it is the taxes and weather you're moving to Florida for, and you want some real diversity, there's Orlando and Miami.

If you want diversity, urban is the way to go.

[sunlover23]

The areas you are looking at in SJC are not diverse...economically, culturally, politically. Suburbia at its finest.

[kotaemail]

We moved from Michigan and renting in Durbin crossing. We have been looking various communities (DC, Celestina, St.Johns Forest, Shearwater, Nocatee, Rivertown etc). Nocatee is looking good, I felt highly marketed. Small lots, next to each other and no tennis courts and can be easily 50K-100K expensive compared to other communities and most of these communities have high CDD fees. Julington Creek plantation is ok, but homes are old (10-20 years)

And careful not all communities in Nocatee comes under Saint Johns county schools. We like mainly 20 mile area.

I think it mainly depends what you need for your kids and your commute, lifestyle and your price range. If possible rent for a while and Visit each area few times. If kids are small, not huge issue.

But if kids are bigger, close to middle school, think about their activities like athletics/schools. Do you really want them to send proper middle school or k-8 school ok? All middle schools and high schools are not ranked same within saint johns county. We visited all the high schools during academy nights and learnt quite bit.

For example Shearwater does not have BasketBall and Nocatee does not have Tennis courts, St.johns forest has high HOA (gated) and high CDD and Celestina has lot of Asians and Shearwater/Rivertown has lot of good amenities for the CDD they charge. Coming to high schools, Nease has IB and other high schools have different career academies.

1. Rivertown -> very good amenities but too far from everything.

2. Shearwater -> should visit, good amenities huge pool, lazy river and amazing gym,sold 150 homes last year. facilities not crowded but no Basketball. But middle and high schools are 6 miles away.

3. Durbin Crossing -> Elementary and middle school (POA) with in subdivision and very bike friendly. overall good with 9b coming and new Town center, will be close to lot of things. High CDD, facilities becoming crowded with lots of new town homes. But they have two pools, basketball, 6 lighted tennis courts. Swim teams, Middle school tennis/Basketball tournaments happens with in schools amenity center, so convenient.

4. Celestina By Cal atlantic (bought by Lennar recently)-> Expensive as more asians are able to afford, Gated (at least in the night now), decent amenities, will be close to lot of things. But right on Racetrack rd which will get busy in next few years. So if u r buying, buy deep inside away from road noise.