The
Community of Duck Key
Community
Spirit and the Homeowners' Association
There
are many elements necessary in the making of a good
community. Duck Key seems to have all the ingredients. A
prime factor in making Duck Key a pleasant community to
live in is its people. The citizens of Duck Key are a
friendly and active lot. Newcomers are welcomed to the
community with open arms. Greetings and news is exchange
between dog walkers each morning and when visiting the
marina store for the newspapers and coffee. People who
come to live on the island find the friendliness of the
residents remarkable.
Much
of the communal spirit has to do with the activities and
good doings of the Duck Key Property Owner's Association.
The Association offers a variety of social functions for
its members each year. The social season starts off each
November with a Welcome Back Snowbird Party. Since many
island residents travel north for the summer and return
in the fall, the Snowbird party is always well attended
as everyone wants to see one another and renew
friendships. Some other social functions are a Dinner
Dance each January, women's luncheons, a fishing
tournament, and a Senior Olympics centering around tennis
competition. Over the summer months a July fourth party
takes place.
Other
social activity centers around tennis play, fishing
outings, and the Women's book reading club.
Duck
Key residents take pride in their community. Through the
Duck Key Property Owners' Association residents pay a fee
to have the road right of ways and plant areas by the
islands' bridges maintained. They also maintain the
islands' unique street signs and bridge
ornamentation.
UNIQUE
FEATURES OF THE ISLAND
Duck
Key has a number of unique community features.
Leaving
US 1 visitors pass through the landscaped stone
entranceway off the Overseas Highway. This entrance has
changed and been widened over the years but at one time
was identical to the old Spanish gateway leading into the
city of St. Augustine. Also unique to Duck Key in the
Keys are the island's marvelous arched bridges with their
ballusters and urns. The first arched bridge one crosses
is named after President Truman who vacationed on Duck
Key in the 1960s. Flowing under the bridges are the
island's canals which are free flowing and cleansed with
the change of tides.
The
residential islands are surrounded with a moat like canal
separating the private residences from the public resort.
And protecting the island homes and vessels from the
violence of a fickle sea is a 60 to 70 foot wide waterway
behind a rock revetment or low breakwater. This man-made
bracelet of coral boulders not only provides a channel
for boats, but its double rip rap construction provides
added safety against ocean storms.
Another
remarkable feature is the islands' architecture.The
original buildings, i.e., hotel. administration building,
and residences are all influenced by West Indian
architecture.
More
Detailed Information
CLICK
ON THE LINKS BELOW for information on Duck Key's
architecture, its Venetian style bridges, trees, growth,
efforts at beautification, and resort influences.
