Amelia's Pristine Beaches, North-end
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Who hasn’t fantasized, at one time or another, about living on an island? (Or being stranded, and with whom...) For people who love the coast, want a year-round mild climate, desire a more laid-back, small-town lifestyle (but with big city “perks” close by), Amelia Island is an excellent choice of seaside community in which to put down roots.
Thinking about a possible move to Amelia Island (or the purchase of a vacation/second home)? Or perhaps you're dreaming about a quick getaway for some needed rest and relaxation to recharge your internal battery?
Amelia Island Light House, Egan's Creek
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THE PEOPLE OF AMELIA
With a mixture of full-time and seasonal residents, plus tourists around town, Amelia Island has an interesting diversity of people mulling about. People are friendly, and you’ll feel welcome. This small southern island community extends its hospitality to both tourists and new residents.
Of course, many of the residents you’ll meet are, in fact, “transplants” from elsewhere, probably true of most parts of Florida. But you’ll also meet native locals, born and raised here, who will greet you with a smile and kind word. Residents and visitors originate from all over the US, but many are from Amelia Island's closest neighbor, the state of Georgia.
If you’re serious about turning your island dreams into Amelia Island living, there’s so much to consider in making a move, especially if you’re making a major geographical relocation. Even more so, if you are also making a cultural change from big city to small town (the “culture shock” factor). Let’s face it, as far as life’s most stressful events, moving ranks up there near divorce and death on the “stress” Richter scale. This article touches on various aspects of local living and local assets attracting new residents (as well as tourists) to our island.
THE SETTING -- HISTORIC PRESERVATION, SMALL-TOWN LIVING
Victorian-Era Courthouse, Centre Street
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More recently, in 2002, Fernandina Beach was named one of the top 12 vacation destinations in the United States for historic preservation. Fernandina Beach was selected as one of the best preserved communities in the United States by the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
Historic Centre St., Fernandina
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AMELIA ISLAND TOURISM: BEACH & GOLF GETAWAY
Besides the historical setting, Amelia Island has earned the reputation as a fabulous golf and beach resort island. Amelia Island has a thriving tourism industry, with luxury resorts -- the Amelia Island Plantation, Summer Beach, and the Ritz-Carlton -- all three resorts have helped to put Amelia Island on the map. In addition to Amelia's lovely beaches laced with sea oats, golfer's can enjoy a choice of four resort golf courses (at the Plantation and Summer Beach), as well as two other courses the public can play (Fernandina Beach and Royal Amelia) -- plus the North Hampton golf course, just off the island).
With 13 miles of beaches, marshlands, tidal creeks, majestic oaks dripping with Spanish moss, Fort Clinch State Park, and several marinas, Amelia Island is a maritime playground and nature lover’s paradise.
TOP ANNUAL TOURIST EVENTS
Amelia Island Ritz-Carlton
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LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION!
Amelia Island is a scenic barrier island, located at the northern tip of Florida’s east coast, bordering Georgia. With its close geographic location to Georgia, Amelia has long been a favorite beach getaway of Georgians. The big city folk of Atlanta love to visit Amelia, about a 5-and-a-half hour drive away.
Shrimp Boat, Fernandina Beach Harbor
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WHAT EXACTLY IS A "BARRIER" ISLAND?
A barrier island is a long, relatively narrow, sandy island, lying parallel to the mainland. Barrier islands were created by wave action, currents and winds, and serve to protect the coastline from erosion by surf and tidal surges.
This part of northeast Florida is referred to locally as “First Coast Florida,” and includes Nassau County (Amelia Island), Duval County (Jacksonville), and St. Johns County (St. Augustine).
PROXIMITY TO MAJOR METROPOLITAN AREA -- JACKSONVILLE
Since Amelia Island is only 30 miles north of downtown Jacksonville, Florida, Amelia Island residents experience small town community life, but also have the advantage of close proximity to large metropolitan-area cultural amenities, such as Jacksonville’s Symphony Orchestra. Other Jacksonville attractions close to Amelia Island include the Cummer Museum of Art & Gardens, the Florida Theatre, the Alhambra Dinner Theatre, the Times Union Center for Performing Arts, the Jacksonville Museum of Science and History, the Alexander Brest Planetarium, as well as the Jacksonville Zoo and the National Football League (the Jacksonville Jaguars). Jacksonville will be in the spotlight when it hosts the 2005 Superbowl and Amelia Island's lodging industry should be booked to capacity for the event.
LOCATED NEAR JACKSONVILLE INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
For those who love to travel (or need to travel for work), the convenience of the Jacksonville International airport near Amelia Island is another factor drawing people to the area. Located only 30 minutes from Amelia Island, the Jacksonville airport is about as low-stress as you can get for a sizeable airport offering domestic and international routes. There’s always parking nearby, it’s never really crowded, and traffic is not an issue at the airport -– it’s pretty low-key.
NASSAU COUNTY, FLORIDA DEMOGRAPHICS
Nassau County is one of the most rural areas of Florida, based on the number of people per square mile. Land area in Nassau County (which includes Amelia Island), is 650 square miles, with approximately 88 people per square mile (well below the state of Florida’s average of 296 people per square mile) as of the 2000 U.S. Census. By comparison, Duval County (containing the nearby city of Jacksonville), with a land area of 774 square miles and a population of around 779,000 in 2000, had a population density of about 1,006 people per square mile.
"THEY'RE COMING..." FUTURE GROWTH PROJECTIONS, NASSAU COUNTY
Nassau County’s population is estimated at 61,261 for the year 2002. According to statistics published on the Nassau County Economic Development Board’s web site, the county is projected to grow at a rate of somewhere between 35% to 50% for the decade 2000 through 2010 (see their web site at www.nassaucountyfla.com for further information). Thus, the estimated future population of Nassau County, Florida at a 35% growth rate is 77,845 by 2010, or could reach up to 86,494 population by 2010, at a 50% growth rate.
CHARMING, HISTORIC CENTRE STREET, FERNANDINA
Amelia’s Fernandina Beach, a historic district with 50 blocks in the National Register of Historic Places, adds another dimension to local life, with its rich history, its charming late 19th-century architecture, quaint bed and breakfast inns, and downtown Centre St. corridor. It’s quite enjoyable to live in an area with an actual downtown business district which has been historically preserved and well maintained, where you can do the following:
1) Take a step back in time as you look at the Victorian-era courthouse with clock tower steeple, old-fashioned post office, and other historic downtown buildings and churches, including many well preserved private homes reflecting Victorian-era architecture.
2) Get a bite to eat at both fine dining restaurants as well as casual eateries.
3) Browse a variety of shops, including book stores, several antique shops, as well as art galleries. (Amelia Island has attracted its own artist colony.)
4) Get an ice cream cone or a gourmet coffee and take a leisurely stroll.
5) Walk to the marina to admire some of the fine sailing vessels moored there, including a fleet of shrimp boats. Witness a wonderful sunset over the Fernandina harbor.
6) Sit on a bench under the shade of a tree and “people watch.”
7) Visit the downtown library do to some research, check out a book, use computers, or take your children to “story time.”
8) Explore the local museum, or take a museum walking tour of the historic district.
9) Enjoy taking a walk or a bike ride to and from the historic district — Fernandina’s downtown is connected to central Amelia Island and north/south Fletcher Avenue (the beach), by miles and miles of sidewalks, another plus of this small community.
THE SEASON'S OF AMELIA...WEATHER
Many people move to Florida for the warmer climate, to escape the bitter cold and snow of other areas of the country. With many parts of the US experiencing a frigid deep freeze with minus zero temperatures as of this writing, no doubt many people are thinking right this very minute, that it’s time to head south for a vacation (or even move south permanently).
The weather on Amelia Island most of the year is truly delightful, with an average annual temperature of 69.9є. Of course, it does get quite hot and humid during the summer months — but this is the most northern tip of Florida. Thus, compared to central and south Florida, the summer heat is not as oppressive (avg. summertime highs are 90є in June and 91є in July and August).
My personal favorite time of the year on Amelia Island for weather are the months of April and October. These months tend to be extremely pleasant -- mild, blue-sky days with lower-humidity. Great months for outdoor activities like golf, boating, historic walking tours, biking, and even the beach (although the ocean water temps are cooler and may deter some from taking a plunge).
AMELIA ISLAND WINTERS ARE RELATIVELY MILD
Amelia Island and Nassau County actually experience seasonal cold weather. Again, “cold” is a relative term — cold in terms of Florida, but very mild winters in comparison to the northeast, for example. Winter temperatures average lows of 43є (avg. high 67є) in December, 41є (avg. high 64) in January, and 43є (avg. high 67) in February. The last time it snowed on Amelia Island, was an aberrant one-inch accumulation in 1989.
Each winter, there are freeze warnings, where the temps can drop into the 20s (and you have to cover or bring in certain varieties of plants that cannot withstand freezing temps). Often what happens locally is that inland areas do hit the freezing mark, while the beaches tend to stay a bit warmer and avoid the hard freezes. This current winter season, to date, has been quite mild, with one day even hitting the low-80s in January (unusually warm). This week, for example, the temperatures have been hitting the 60s during the day.
The rainiest months on Amelia Island, historically, have been August (avg. rainfall 7.9 inches) and September (avg. rainfall 7.1 inches).
AMELIA ISLAND AND HURRICANES
Now, you may be wondering about Florida and hurricane season, and how vulnerable this little barrier island would be if one swept through. Hurricanes reportedly strike Florida more frequently than any other state.
However, the local area has only had one big hit by a major hurricane in the past century, back in September 1964 when Hurricane Dora, with 110 mile winds, caused over $1.5 billion in damages to the Jacksonville greater metropolitan area. While there have been numerous hurricanes and northeasters, and the 1960s and November 1984 being the most intense in recent history, in general, hurricanes are not considered a great threat to this area of the state.
Amelia Island residents did have a close call, however, in 1999, when islanders experienced the inconvenience of a mandatory evacuation. Floyd, a category 3 hurricane, threatened the southeast coast of the U.S., and Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina issued mandatory evacuations of coastal areas. Nearly 2 million motorists fled inland causing chaos and paralysis on the roadways. All for naught, as Floyd never arrived in the evacuated areas, landing much farther up the coast in North Carolina.
Public officials and disaster preparedness planners have spent a lot of time re-evaluating local evacuation routes and procedures in the aftermath of Floyd, in case there is a next time. With the most recent hurricane season of 2003 now past, there were no close calls for Amelia Island. Let's hope it stays that way!
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If you're considering a move to Amelia Island or nearby, be sure to read other "Island Perspective" articles in Amelia Island Living e-magazine’s REAL ESTATE SECTION in the MOVER'S GUIDE.
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