Davis Shores

Value Living on the Island in St. Augustine

Davis Shores is the cheapest place for single family homes to live on Anastasia Island and it is very close to the Old Town.  It is totally diverse. A lot of alternative people live here and work in the restaurant and pub business downtown, you see them riding their hipster bikes over the Bridge of the Lions or walking.  School teachers and Yoga instructors to millionaire Artist on inter-coastal. Think of it like a Greenwich village of St. Augustine.  Think Portlandia of the East Coast. I like it.

Davis Shores Cons

If you want to buy a house cheap on the Island this would be the first place I would look.  The problem in my evaluation is many of the cheap homes are close to A1A and you hear the motorcycles buzzing through as well as normal traffic. Some guy on a chopper and a black leather jacket will disrupt your peace if you are walking around there. It seems to be a stop over for bikers going to their Daytona pilgrimage.  Besides noise pollution and motels that look like their are from the 1970s, there are many homes in need of updates in odd shaped lots. The odd shaped lots I can not do anything about. However, a fixer upper is brilliant if you are looking for a value play and you can create a house from scratch. I personally have almost bought several homes here just for that reason. And I am not a rich man but would buy for living rather than speculative investing.

• Tip: Always check the flood zone map particularly on the Intracoastal waterway side. You can pay a fortune in flood insurance.

Davis Shores Pros

• Cheap
• Few HOA homes
• Walk to the Old Town
• Close to Flagler College
• Investment growth potential
• Best view of fireworks in St. Augustine
• Right near Anastasia State Park and near the water
• Great views and peaceful living (if you are back from A1a)
• You can have a garden in your yard (yes a real backyard on the Island).
• Alternative medicine Mecca from Acupuncture to Chiropractors like Dr. Monahan.
• Cool things to do, Gypsy Cab Co restaurant, O’Steen’s restuarant as well as Bikram yoga, Dianne’s health foods and Stewart’s Produce for local groceries.

St. Augustine, Florida is a small coastal community in Northern Florida, near Jacksonville in St. Johns County.  St. Augustine has the added bonus of having beaches, inlets and river access to the Matanzas River.  Florida is a state the strongly believes in conservation so much of the coastal marshes and lush wooded areas are left alone, to be enjoyed by residents and tourists alike to live in and visit historic St. Augustine.

Price range

Being right by the bridge and the intra-coastal waterways of the river, as well as the Atlantic to the East, it is a popular spot to live in because access to and from the Island is so easy.  Residents have their choice between the beaches of Anastasia Island and the beaches of St. Augustine and historic downtown St. Augustine is just a very short drive across the bridge.  Although some of the waterfront houses can cost millions, Davis Shores has a lot of very affordable houses and cottages that are in the $150,000 to $250,000 range. I have seen decent homes with big lots run-down for 100k. You have brick townhouses like Salt Run  for 100k or apartments like Florida Club for like 70k.

Way back machine history of the Island

St. Augustine is actually the oldest European settlement that has been continuously inhabited in the continental United States, dating back to 1565, when it was first founded by a Spanish Admiral. The Spanish used the city of St. Augustine as their capital for the Florida territory for the next two hundred years, until it passed over to the British.

Prior to the Spanish settling here, Florida was of interest to the Spanish and the French, and the region was explored by both, however, the Spanish, despite their constant battles with the French and the Native Americans, took control of the area of St. Augustine, while the French went further north to colonize.  This gives the area a long, rich history with ties to the Spanish because of the easy access to the coastal waters and the Matanzas River.

St. Augustine was attacked and rebuilt more than once, due to the French, the Native Americans and even the British; English privateers had a fondness for attacking the town of St. Augustine prior to the British taking control of the area at the end of the Seven Year’s War in 1763 when Britain exchanged Havana for St. Augustine and Florida.
In yet another flip-flop of ownership, the Treaty of Paris, signed in 1783, gave Florida back to the Spanish, which lasted until 1821 when Florida became part of the United States.  Naturally, St. Augustine is a melting pot of different cultures but the Spanish influence is still very strong and the area is steeped in the history of our nation.  Is it any wonder that the schools in the area are so highly rated, being among such a historical place?
The barrier island of Anastasia Island was naturally part of the history, as it is located between the river and the Atlantic Ocean.  The first lighthouse in the United States was built on Anastasia Island; however, the original wood beacon has been replaced with a more traditional lighthouse, which is still there. The Castillo de San Marcos, a historic building, made from the coquina, a unique compressed shell material, still stands on the island.

Real History starts with D.P. Davis
Davis Shores is one of the oldest communities on Anastasia Island, it was developed in the 1920’s by D.P. Davis, and it is at the Northern end of the Island, by the Bridge of Lions.  The community of Davis Shores actually built the bridge around 1926-27 and to this day; it is the only way to get to Anastasia Island from St. Augustine unless you travel by water.  Davis shores was planned to be an exclusive community including canals and hotel and casino however, development stalled in the 1920s and it was not until after WWII that the area of Davis Shores started to see new growth.  There are very few of the original properties from the 1920s left but Davis Shores does have great waterfront properties and properties closer to the interior of the island.

You can find waterfront housing along Inlet Drive, Dolphin Drive and Avista Circle just to name a few streets, but you will find homes with great views on the other streets in Davis Shores, including Miruela Ave, N. St. Augustine Blvd., Alcazar Street, Arpieka Ave, Miruela Ave., Oglethorpe Blvd. and others.

Another bikable area on Anastasia Island

Davis Shores is large community, and a very friendly one at that; it is common to see people walking or biking around the community or playing in the many community parks (they even has a free bouncy castle in-front of the Ice cream store). Its more bike-able than walkable because of the the through traffic.

Davis Shores has the best of both worlds, being near downtown St. Augustine and being on Anastasia Island and all that it has to offer.  Many of the houses are affordable and if you are looking for value, you will be hard pressed to beat what you can find in Davis Shores.