I am getting transferred to our Lake Mary office and was wondering if any other members live in Oviedo or Hunters Creek. I am very interested in HC but would like to know how the neighborhood is for kids. Also for those that live in Orlando, how often do you find yourself going to the parks or Disney Springs (we go 2-3 weeks a year at our Bonnett Creek condo). I am wondering what the best APs to buy would be.
I've actually lived in Hunters Creek for the last 12 years and while I don't have kids I can likely answer many/most questions you might have about the area.
The number of times a month you have to get to Lake Mary should indeed be a determining factor in choosing the location you move to. I used to work up in Maitland and made the commute up and down I4 every day for 5 years. From south to north you're going a little against the grain so it wasn't normally horrible. However, as others have noted I4 is entering a long cycle of very extensive construction for a complete redesign and history has taught us that will cause major league headaches for a long time to come, especially in rush hour right after the afternoon rain has hit.
Many people don't have a good solid picture of the Orlando area and where everything is relative to something else. It's much more spread out than most people realize if their only perspective is the tourist areas. Spend some time taking a look at a good map of the region to give yourself a chance to understand where things are, how far apart they are, etc.. as you're making your selection.
As for Hunters Creek; it's not for everyone but I really like it. It's a master planned community of over 4,000 single family homes and countless multi-family properties built over the course of about 25 years. There is a really aggressive and active HOA that can feel extremely confining if you're not used to that sort of thing. For example, I just did a landscaping project that included removing an overgrown tree and new beds and sod. I had to submit the entire project for approval by the Architectural Review Committee before I could even start the work. Want to paint the house, you need to choose from their approved colors and get advance approval for the painting, same with putting on a new roof. It runs like a small town with lots and lots of rules.
The flip side of all of those rules and the enforcement of them results in a really fantastic community where even all of the public streets are fully manicured and maintained. There are countless parks and other outdoor recreation facilities from tennis courts, to soccer fields, baseball diamonds, lighted basketball courts and much much more.
Having said all that I could not think of living anywhere else in central Florida. I'm 20 minutes from most all of the theme parks; I can be on MSUSA in less than 30 minutes from pressing the button to close my garage. But in my day-to-day life of going to grocery store, putting gas in the car or any other sort of normal life activity the tourist economy is completely invisible (except when you hear the fireworks in the distance at night). I also travel a lot for work so the easy access to the airport is a big plus for me.
Hope that helps but if you've got more specific questions don't hesitate to ask.
