4004 Cordova Ave.
Jacksonville, FL 32207

Why we love 4004 Cordova Ave and why you will as well!

“In 1991, our family relocated back to our hometown, Jacksonville, from New England with a 2 year old and 6 month old in tow.   Our young family moved in with my parents who lived on Rio Lindo (2 blocks away from Cordova), where they still reside today.  

Our realtor took me to all the “new” neighborhoods in Jacksonville, Jacksonville Golf and Country Club, Mandarin, and the then up and coming St. Johns County, where all the “young” families were moving.    Home after home, what I saw in comparison to the well built homes that had stood the test of time (and I mean turn of the century time), was “throw it up construction”, no unique characteristics, homes right of the movie, Revolutionary Road.    They were all developer built homes, large, cheaply built, lot of faux appointments and many with a back yard pool.   Not to mention that Jacksonville had been experiencing a rainy summer and many of the homes in Mandarin and Julington Creek had yards that literally looked like a dirty retention pond.

Nothing resonated.   I most certainly did not want a home with a built in pool with young children – that is what a YMCA or country club is for.   As a careful mother, the thought of the responsibility of managing to keep my young children, much less my neighbors children, out of a pool that I as the homeowner had to manage was simply out of the question.    I realize that this is not a popular thought, but really at the time, it meant a lot to me to not walk out my door to see a child face down in a pool……my pool.

Then one day, while strolling my children around my parent’s neighborhood, which included Granada, there sat 4004 Cordova Avenue for sale.   That was it!   From the curb, I knew 4004 Cordova was our new home, rich with beautifully detailed brick construction, corner lot, close to a park and NO pool.     4004 (referred to as “the Acosta” home for about 15 years we purchased it from the Acosta family), has had only three owners since 1937, with our family being the third.  The home is within a stone’s throw of a nationally ranked public elementary school and Newsweek worthy magnet public middle and high schools.   Not to mention, Jacksonville’s most elite private schools, Bolles and Episcopal.  

The home simply spoke to me, this is where you raise a family, in spite of at that time, Granada being an aging neighborhood.   Although thrilled with us being only one block away, my parents thought we were nuts to move into an “older” neighborhood.   Since then, my husband I have become the “elders” with the neighborhood having experienced a renaissance, brimming with young, growing families.   One block away, the city park, Granada Park, has had extensive renovations to its playground, it is filled every day with families.   The park hosts all sorts of celebrations, including the grass roots Spring Granada Fest, year round. Our young family enjoyed many years as members of DuPont YMCA, eventually being able to afford a membership it Epping Forest Yacht Club.   During these years, we spent many hours at the pool under the watchful eye of other parents and……a life guard.   I walked our children to Hendricks Elementary school.   Eventually, the children were old enough to ride their bikes to school, the side walk along San Jose is full of children bicycling or walking to Hendricks.   Remember those days, when children rode their bikes to school – talk about walkable neighborhoods – Granada is the original.

Our two children graduated high school from Stanton Prep and Douglas Anderson with full bright scholarships to FSU and UCF.   Both found gainful employment upon their college graduation, both within 4 years, both with bachelor’s degrees and both “off my payroll”, during one of the deepest recessions our country has experienced since the depression.    As parents of two well rounded young adults, with lifelong friendships from their neighborhood, well employed, and very important in this day and age, “free of college debt”, raising those children in Granada, in a stately home, full of character and having hosted many large family events……..4004 Cordova Avenue is the best investment we’ve ever made……EVER!”