[Flyers999]

Deciding where to move to in The Villages, is the same as deciding where to move to anywhere you are in the country — you want to be next to the things that you do often. The OP mentioned a dog park and shopping center. Springdale (North of 466) has a nice dog park and is close to Mulberry Grove Plaza Shopping Center, which has a Publix. It’s a nice drive on the recreational trail past the dog park through golf courses to that shopping center. There’s also the surrounding Villages to Springdale: Woodbury and Briar Meadow.

When my wife and I decided to move here five years ago, we knew what we wanted because we visited a friend here every March/April for five years. We are avid tennis players, so we wanted to be next to the har-tru courts at Glenview and Lopez. No more har-tru courts will ever be built in The Villages(if anyone would care to wager on this, name your price). Har-tru tennis courts are easier on the knees and are less dangerous if you fall. Being close to the Savanah center was a bonus too, since we like the shows.

So, our list included: north of 466, less than a mile drive from either Morse Avenue or Buena Vista Blvd, a designer (3bed 2bath), somewhat backyard privacy and less than a 2-mile distance (as the bird flies) from the train tracks. The further north you go the closer The Villages gets to those tracks. At route 42 and 301, the train is required to stop and blow its damn whistle for several minutes — most times in the middle of the night. We found a wonderful place in Piedmont and have no plans to ever leave.

That said, if you don’t play golf, I can’t see why anyone would move here. You are going to pay for. What’s unique about The Villages is the entertainment at the squares and the “free” executive golf courses. The OP mentioned they want to use their golf cart to go shopping. I don’t believe one would save much money owning a golf cart over a small automobile. I know some people here drive a golf cart because they can’t pass the driver’s license test, which is another issue.

The Villages is great but if I were a non-golfer, I’d try somewhere else like Top Of The World. I haven’t been there. (Maybe someone reading this has and would like to share their experiences.) They claim to be like Villages in the sense that residents drive their golf carts everywhere. I believe they have a couple championship courses. They don’t have any “free” executive courses, so you won’t pay for that.

Be careful of the salespeople. I met one person on the tennis courts who had just moved to Fenney, which is a 40-minute commute. When I asked why they didn't move closer to the tennis, they said that the sales rep said because of the dangerous sink holes in the north.

Good luck.