Nocatee /ˈnɒkət/ is an unincorporated planned community and census-designated place (CDP) located primarily in northern St. Johns County, Florida.[1] The population was 22,503 at the 2020 census,[2] up from 4,524 at the 2010 census,[3] an increase of nearly 400%. It is part of the Jacksonville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of 2020, the community consists of twenty-two neighborhoods, some of which are specialized for certain age groups.[4] The community blends a variety of neighborhoods with schools, parks, recreation, offices, shopping, and restaurants.[5] Part of the development lies within Jacksonville city limits in Duval County, although the CDP lies entirely within St. Johns County.[3] It is near Ponte Vedra Beach in Florida's First Coast region and sits on 13,323 acres (5,392 ha) of land. It was approved in 2001 as a Development of Regional Impact (DRI) under Section 380.06 of the Florida Statutes.[6][7]

Nocatee
Allen D. Nease High School in Nocatee CDP
Official seal of Nocatee
Motto: 
Live The Lifestyle
Map
Coordinates: 30°6′26″N 81°25′24″W / 30.10722°N 81.42333°W / 30.10722; -81.42333
Country United States
State Florida
County St. Johns
Area
 • Total
27.29 sq mi (70.68 km2)
 • Land26.40 sq mi (68.38 km2)
Population
 (2020)
 • Total
22,503
Time zoneUTC-5 (Eastern (EST))
 • Summer (DST)UTC-4 (EDT)
ZIP code
32081
Area code904
Websitewww.nocatee.com

In addition, Nocatee is near beaches, golf courses, business parks and major airports in downtown Jacksonville and St. Augustine.[5]

History

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In 2005, Nocatee's creator The PARC Group, broke ground on the construction of the township.[citation needed] The PARC Groups's Chairman and CEO, Roger O'Steen, founded the group in 1989 and was directly involved with the development of Nocatee and many other communities. Donna Lundgren, the manager for the Nocatee Welcome Center, states that Nocatee is "approximately 25 square miles, 14,000 acres with over 60% of remaining preserve for conservation and preservation." She also claims that the actual word "Nocatee" has roots in Timucuan Indian and translates to "peaceful river."[8] However, no such Timucua word is known; "river" is instead ibi while "peaceful" is afatimo.[9] An older town called Nocatee located in DeSoto County along the Peace River dates to the decades after the Third Seminole War, and its name is likely derived from Seminole Creek nakate "What is it?"[10][11]

Amenities

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Nocatee contains two large water parks, the Splash Park and Spray Park. Each has pools, slides, and kid-specific areas.[12] The pool areas host events throughout the year, such as Food Truck Friday, farmers' markets, holiday celebration, concerts, Easter egg hunts, and more community events.[13] The community contains other amenities like parks, neighborhood pools, fitness centers, dog parks, a kayak launch, a nature preserve and a series of nature trails.[14][15]

Demographics

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Historical population
CensusPop.Note
20104,524
202022,503397.4%
U.S. Decennial Census[16]

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 22,503 people, 7,641 households, and 6,532 families residing in the city. 3,629 households had children under the age of 18. 10.2% of the population were under 5 years old, 28.7% under 18 years old, and 20.4% were 65 years and over. The median age for Nocatee was 39.9 years old. 49.9% of the population were female.[17]

The racial makeup of the city is 91.1% White, 1.7% African American, 1.1% Native American, 7.8% Asian, 0.0% Pacific Islander, 5.2% from other races, and 7.0% from two or more races. 8.2% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.[17]

The median household income was $131,738. 3.5% of the population lived below the poverty threshold, including 0.8% of those under 18 and 2.4% of those over 65. 97.4% of the population 25 years and older had a high school degree or equivalent or higher and 65.9% of that same population had a bachelor's degree or higher. 8.4% of the population were veterans.[17]

Events

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Nocatee hosts a variety of events consisting of trivia, on-tap beer tastings, food truck Fridays, monthly farmer’s markets, as well as holiday-themed events such as Easter egg hunts & live music.[5][18]

Education

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Ponte Vedra High School, in the Nocatee CDP

St. Johns County School District is the school district of the St. Johns County portion, which includes the entire census-designated place.[19][20] The following elementary schools serve portions of the CDP: Palm Valley Academy, Pine Island Academy, and Valley Ridge Academy.[21] Three middle schools serve portions of the CDP: Palm Valley, Pine Island, and Valley Ridge.[22] Allen D. Nease High School serves the Nocatee CDP.[23]

The official subdivisions of the Nocatee development in St. Johns County are zoned to the Palm Valley, Pine Island, Valley Ridge K-8 schools, and Nease.[24] The portion in Duval County (not in the CDP) is zoned to Bartram Springs Elementary School, Twin Lakes Middle School, and Atlantic Coast High School.[24]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Nocatee CDP, Florida". census.gov. US Census Bureau. Retrieved March 14, 2023.
  2. ^ "Explore Census Data". data.census.gov. Retrieved May 16, 2024.
  3. ^ a b "Florida: 2010 - Population and Housing Unit Counts" https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/2010/cph-2/cph-2-11.pdf. U.S. Census Bureau. May 16, 2024.
  4. ^ "Nocatee Homes for Sale | Master-Planned Community | Florida". www.nocatee.com.
  5. ^ a b c Nocatee. "Master Planned Communities near Jacksonville FL | Nocatee". www.nocatee.com. Retrieved March 26, 2021.
  6. ^ [1] Florida's Statutes Official website
  7. ^ Andres, Shakaya: "Nocatee roadways near completion, about a decade early" Florida Times-Union, May 20, 2010
  8. ^ Jaxson, The. "Exploring Nocatee". www.thejaxsonmag.com. Retrieved October 30, 2023.
  9. ^ "Timucua Dictionary » Search Results » peace". Retrieved February 19, 2024.
  10. ^ "A provisional gazetteer of Florida place-names of Indian derivation, either obsolescent or retained, together with others of recent application ( FGS: Special publication 1 )". original-ufdc.uflib.ufl.edu. Retrieved February 19, 2024.
  11. ^ Morris, Allen (October 17, 2015). Florida Place Names: Alachua to Zolfo Springs. Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 978-1-56164-839-9.
  12. ^ "Spray Water Park in Ponte Vedra, FL | Nocatee". www.nocatee.com.
  13. ^ "Community Events and Activities | Nocatee". www.nocatee.com.
  14. ^ "Nocatee, FL | Data USA". datausa.io.
  15. ^ Nocatee. "Master Planned Communities near Jacksonville FL | Nocatee". nocatee.com. Retrieved March 26, 2021.
  16. ^ "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2016.
  17. ^ a b c "Explore Census Data". data.census.gov. Retrieved May 16, 2024.
  18. ^ "9 of the Friendliest Towns in Florida". WorldAtlas. May 21, 2023. Retrieved November 28, 2023.
  19. ^ "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: St. Johns County, FL" (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved August 1, 2022. - Text list - Shows Nocatee in the school district boundaries.
  20. ^ "2020 CENSUS - CENSUS BLOCK MAP (INDEX): Nocatee CDP, FL" (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved August 2, 2022. - Compare with school zone maps.
  21. ^ "St. Johns County Elementary School Attendance Zones 2022 - 2023" (PDF). St. Johns County School District. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 2, 2022. Retrieved August 1, 2022. - Ocean Palms ES detail map, Palm Valley ES detail map, Pine Island ES detail map, and Valley Ridge ES detail map - Maps from here
  22. ^ "St. Johns County Middle School Attendance Zones 2022 - 2023" (PDF). St. Johns County School District. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 2, 2022. Retrieved August 1, 2022. - Alice B. Landrum MS detail map, Palm Valley MS detail map, Pine Island MS detail map, and Valley Ridge MS detail map - Maps from here
  23. ^ "St. Johns County High School Attendance Zones 2022 - 2023" (PDF). St. Johns County School District. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 2, 2022. Retrieved August 1, 2022. - Nease HS detail map and Ponte Vedra HS detail map - Maps from here
  24. ^ a b "School Zoning for Nocatee Students". Nocatee. Retrieved August 2, 2022.
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  NODES
COMMUNITY 9
Note 2