75 replies to this topic

[Fruit Cove's friend]

I perfer Jacksonville!!!

[Urban_Legend]

This is getting way out of hand.  Honestly, does it really matter that much?!  Props to you, for obsessing over the Orlando Sentinel article and taking it a step further by starting a poll thread.  BTW, I voted "Both", even though I was born in Jacksonville and know more about it, I believe that you can't compare these two cities.

[wolfdawg54]

I voted for both. I cannot compare the two cities because they are special in their own right.

[prahaboheme]

I voted both, in hopes that an administrator will delete this thread.  This is so stupid.

[Fruit Cove]

the poll is taking it a little far man.

[Melissa]

Hey Fruit Coves Friend!  We were looking for a great place to live, and Jacksonville looks like the perfect place! The pictures are so beautiful! We were wondering if you could tell us a bit more about the area. What do people do for fun? How is the cost of living? Are job opportunities pretty good? Thank you for any information you are able to give us. B)
P.S. -we voted for Jacksonville in the poll

Melissa

[Fruit Cove]

he's 15 and has no idea.  ask lakelander he is the most knowledgeable about the jacksonville area.  or you can always go to coj.net or jacksonvillesuperbowl.com.   they have the answers to what youre asking.  cost of living is relatively low but can get very high in certain areas.  going to the beach is the funnest thing you can do in my opinion.  NW st.johns county is growing rapidly and the schools are much better than duval if yoiu plan raising a family.  plus, the area is closer to st.augustine and Julington Creek Plantation(where i live) is less then a mile south of the duval county line.  so look in to NW st.johns county if youre serious about moving here. its awesome.

[bobliocatt]

^Check out the pics of Jax thread.  I posted links to several photo threads that I took of the Jacksonville region this past summer.  They include

Downtown Jacksonville
Jacksonville Beach
Five Points/ Riverside/ Avondale
San Marco
St. Augustine

Here's a little information some areas around town:

Downtown
Its basically a big construction zone right now and the coming out party will be the Super Bowl in Feb. 2005.  New projects due to open around that time imclude Bay Street Town Center (entertainment district), New Main Library (includes bookstore & coffee bar), The Carlington (100 unit apartment tower), Lerner Shops Lofts, & the Northbank Riverwalk extension (from the Landing to Riverside).

Jacksonville Beach
This is the spot to be seen in the city.  Several condo towers are going up and there's a lot of pedestrians on the street and in the restaurants and bars.  Atlantic Beach Town Center, just up AIA is another nice spot to hang out.

Riverside/ Avondale
This is the largest historic district in the city and Florida.  Its also the most vibrant neighborhood in the city.  Its also the home to the Five Points District (a Gen-X hangout spot), Shoppes of St. Johns (upscale boutiques and dining) and Park & King (another highly concentrated spot of retail and restaurant options.  The best thing is every thing here is pedestrian oriented.

Ortega
This is one of the city's most upscale historical neighborhoods.  You can also get a nice view of the Skyline from the Ortega River Bridge.  Ortega is just south of Avondale.

San Marco
Located on the Southbank of downtown, just east of the river, this popular area is home to several large homes, urban apartments and the well known San Marco Square shopping district.

Springfield
Located just north of downtown, and once one of the cities most dangerous neighborhoods, this area is well on its way to becoming the city's leading arts district.  It also has a pretty impressive stock of densely packed Victorian homes.

Other areas worth exploring include Murry Hill, Panama Park, and Durkeeville.

[Melissa]

Thank you so much for the information! We will be moving to Jacksonville from Salt Lake City, Utah. . . I am looking forward to the change.  (However, we are waiting until we are finished with school)  I have heard that Jacksonville is hardly impacted by hurricaines (just high winds), is this true? We've also heard that it rains every day (I wouldn't mind, because at least it doesn't snow in the winter) but am curious if this is correct.  How are the employment rates there? Is it hard to find a job? (Where we live, most people work in call centers)
I was also very curious, can you explain a little about the rivalry between Jacksonville and Orlando? I know this may be a touchy issue, but do you think most people there are Democrat or Republican?
Thank you again!  If all the people in Jacksonville are as nice and helpful as you both are I know we are going to love it there.

Melissa  

[vicupstate]

Welcome to the forum, Melissa

I will let Lakelander respond to your comments, but I offer a few tidbits...

   Jacksonville is indeed fortunate to have relatively little hurricane activity.  Since 1900, Jacksonville (a.k.a. Jax) has taken only one direct hit from a category 3 or higher hurricane. That one time was 1964, and it was Hurricane Dora.

No, it does not rain every day, or even close.  I am told Tampa gets rain almost daily, but it is usually a brief one, and actually cools things off. The one time I visited Tampa, it did rain pretty much every day around 3:00pm.  But each time, it was over in about 30 minutes or less.  It is not uncommon for Jax to go weeks without any rain.  

I don't recall the exact unemployment rate in Jax currently, but it is around 4-4.5%.  It stays pretty low, even during the last recession.  There are  quite a few call centers in Jax as well, but the economy is pretty broad based.  The Navy has a significant presence, the medical sector is large also.  Banking and insurance have long been pillars of the economy, but less so now, than in previous decades.
There are three Fortune 500 companies headquartered in Jax.  

Jacksonville is more Republican than Democrat, but it is somewhat competitive between to two parties, but much less so than in the past.  Like most of the South, Republicans have been in ascendency since the late 70's and early '80s.

I have been planning a move to Jax myself for some time, and plan to start my job search in earnest next month.  I will be moving from South Carolina.  Good luck to both of us as we start our new journey to the great city of Jacksonville.

P.S.  All of Lakelander's comments on the various areas of Jax are dead-on.  You will have plenty of great neighborhoods to chose from.

[Urban_Legend]

Hi, Melissa and welcome to the forums!  There really isn't a rivalry between Jacksonville and Orlando.  Some people are going nuts on the message boards on this site, making a whole contest out of it.  Not once in my 12 years of living there did I ever hear of any rivalry, lol.

[F-L-A]

He'll probably try to start one.

[Fruit Cove]

uh whos he?

[wolfdawg54]

F-L-A, on Sep 22 2004, 10:53 PM, said:

He'll probably try to start one.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Be the bigger man and end it. Ignore what he says.

[Fruit Cove]

wolfdawg check your pm

[Fruit Cove's friend]

Welcome to the boards Mellisa. I may only be 15 but I do know a little about Jax. I know for a fact that LakeLander will be of a lot more assistance to you but I thought I would tell you, this. I lived in the cold and the very warm and out of the places i've lived (Nebraska, Belize CA, Chicago) this is a very cool place to be. And to answer your question if it rains all the time it doesn't. It just rains once and awhile, and when it does it only rains for like an hour.

[Melissa]

Thanks again for all the help everyone! I have a few more questions. Are there a lot of alligators in Jacksonville? What about sharks? Are the beaches pretty safe? Also are there a lot of snakes and spiders? Do alligators or snakes ever get in your yard? Do most people live in houses, apartments or trailers? If there are snakes, are many of them poisonous? What do you guys think of Salt Lake City?    

Thank you again for all of the assistance and for being so friendly.

Melissa

[bobliocatt]

Melissa, on Sep 24 2004, 12:37 PM, said:

Thanks again for all the help everyone! I have a few more questions. Are there a lot of alligators in Jacksonville? What about sharks? Are the beaches pretty safe? Also are there a lot of snakes and spiders? Do alligators or snakes ever get in your yard? Do most people live in houses, apartments or trailers? If there are snakes, are many of them poisonous? What do you guys think of Salt Lake City?   

Thank you again for all of the assistance and for being so friendly.

Melissa

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

There's alligators all over the state of Florida.  However, you rarely come in contact with them unless you like going and doing things where they are. (ex. swamps, marshes, fresh water lakes).

The beaches are safe, sharks stay pretty far out from the beach.  The southeast is a pretty wooded region with warm humid weather, so there are a lot of bugs around.  However, as long as you have a pest control service spray your residence once a month, you'll rarely see any.

The housing mix in the city is pretty diversified.  The majority of mobile homes are located in the rural areas and semi-rural areas on the westside of town.  The inner city consists mostly of pre-war housing.  This includes bungalows, victorians, brick apartment buildings & duplexes.  Riverside, San Marco, and Springfield all have these housing types ranging from large mansions to small apartments and condos.  Arlington is mostly 1960's-70's era suburban housing and the Southside is mostly new apartment complexes and modern tract home subdivisions.  

As far as Salt Lake City goes, it seems to be like a underrated city with a lot of potential.  Its metro is a little larger than Jacksonville's and its new light rail system is something we could really use here.  However, two things I don't like about it is, its nowhere near the beach and its a very isolated city location-wise.

[Fruit Cove]

melissa you only need to post something once in one thread and itll get read because active forums have bright images so theyll get seen by all.

[Fruit Cove's friend]

Mellisa,
Replying to the snake comment, there is some snakes but it depends on where you live. I live next to a wooded area(In a Subdivison) and i've had some snakes come up to my house. The worst snake i've had was a rattler. But, they only come up once and awhile. The most of a kind that I have seen are Gardners. And bugs, well you get your fare share of them. Like snakes it depends on where you live. Mostly Mosquitos, Dragonflys, Nats, and Spiders(small ones).