Been gone for a few years, moved away for work in 2015. Looking at the area between the Apopka Chain and the Harris Chain in and around Belleview. It will be a second/vacation home until my oldest kids get through highschool. I lived in OP and Cooper City, unfamiliar with the area I mentioned other than passing through. Any info will be appreciated.
So what would you like to know? When was the last time you were in the area?
The entire area is booming, there are developments going up everywhere, the Villages’s are taking over.
Like any school districts to avoid (still will have a kid). Areas that look nice but aren’t. I assume the Harris and Apopka chain are close, what’s the closest beach? Just general info really. I lived in Florida for 17 years, left in 2015. Ive fished around that area and that’s about it….
Last edited by HawkDriver; 08-31-2021 at 10:27 PM.
Sorry Don’t know anything about the schools. You will be surprised how Central FLA has grown since 2015, but that’s going on everywhere.
The city parts of Ocala and Bellview would be a no go for me, there are some nicer looking areas outside the city limits.
Daytona is 1.5 hrs East and the gulf is about 1hr west. Harris is about 30-40 mins south and Apoka is about 30 min south. All the lakes lakes get hammered and as you know there are always big T’s from Feb to April, and every weekend lots of local T’s.
They do…if it makes anyone feel better they get hammered in Ky too….and you're fishing for 2-3 pounders.
Always thought that area south of Ocala looked pretty and not crowded. Iverness was another area we were looking at.
Last edited by HawkDriver; 09-02-2021 at 07:37 PM.
Ocala is booming rights now. New developments are popping up everywhere. The world equestrian center that opened recently is bringing in a lot of people. There are plans for new I-75 interchanges and a lot of road widening. Hell there is a new Publix being built on the SW side of town, when opened that will make 3 Publix's in a 3 mile square radius. The west and south west sides of Ocala is seeing the most growth. There are areas in Leesburg and Ocala I would avoid. Just Google where the Pawn Shops are located... Seriously, I used to work at one.
On a side note my wife and I are currently building a new home a little further out on the SW side of Ocala because the area we have been living in for the past 15 years is getting WAY to many new developments. The noise and traffic are getting to much.
Brad Krone
I'm trying to figure out how it would work to have a kid in school in two different places. Like, if the FL place is the vacation place, why would schools matter? In any event, we moved close to The Villages because my wife's family is relatively close and my parents were kind of thinking about moving to TV (and eventually did). Their charter school system is awesome, which is a big part of what she chose that job over others. The Villages and the county spend a TON of money on their schools. They're breaking ground on a new high school to the south of us, and they're supposedly adding equestrian facilities there for students so they won't have to go off campus to participate in that. Just do a satellite view on google maps of the The Villages Charter School, spanning from the early childhood learning center (our 4yr old goes to VPK there), elementary, middle, and high school. Another example of the kind of facility they have there is the high school has a functional TV studio for kids to learn A/V production.
I have no idea about their schools, but we kind of like the Tavares, Mt Dora, and Howey-In-The-Hills areas.
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"If God had intended us to drink beer, He would have given us stomachs."
-David Daye
2 older kids graduate highschool; still have a elementary age kid. While waiting for older kids to get through school, Florida home will be a vaca home. Once older kids are in college or otherwise out the house, FL home becomes primary home. Both the older kids were born and raised in FL, most likely they'll be back there as it is a consensus in our house that Ky in fact sucks.
That makes sense. But I wouldn’t say KY sucks that bad. It could be way worse…could be WVOriginally Posted by HawkDriver
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"If God had intended us to drink beer, He would have given us stomachs."
-David Daye
That’s true…I moved here from Texas when I was 14, hated it then…moved to Fl for college and aside from a few weird years, lived there until 2015. KY is over taxed with no visible benefits, fishing sucks, it’s freakin cold and freakin hot, and when the fishing is good for the 2-3 months out of the year….you get invaded by the Ohio Navy.
Told ya what we need to do. Come down solo and we can look for vacant property ( if there is any left). I know area's where the friggin snowbirds aint. After i get rid of this covid shit of course
Op was my tx partner till his x snacthed the kids to ky
Last edited by Manatee Mauler; 09-06-2021 at 08:12 AM.
Agree with HawkDriver. Ky is exactly as he says and even worse. Sad Place to live especially Lexington. Lived there many, many, years.
520 L TDY
Lexington is literally the worst place I have ever been...and that's saying something, I lived in Norfolk VA for a couple years. Picture a town made for about 80k ppl with 500k in it. I truely loath that place.
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