Brevard
County Florida
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Brevard nightlife. We created a |
COMMUNITY PROFILES Click here to learn more about our major communities, and link directly to municipal websites. |
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Florida's SpaceCoast Flights to Orlando (45 minutes due West) Explore Brevard County FUN 4Brevard Relocation® Need Help? |
Click the following links to visit each city or area's official website.
Quiet and peaceful ocean-to-river Aquarina Country Club in Melbourne Beach - The South Beaches. Rich wildlife thrive on this barrier island, halfway between the SR192 and Wabasso causeways, and 30 minutes from the Melbourne and Vero malls. Play Aquarina Golf Course or fish the remote mangrove islands just 5 miles north of San Sebastian Inlet's ocean access. No other community offers these wide sandy beaches on the Atlantic ocean, plus a boat launch ramp on Indian River Lagoon! Close to major ecotourism sites. New condos offer pre-construction prices.
This famous rocketeer town on the barrier islands shares its name with the launch site jutting out on Florida's coastline. Bounded on the north by Port Canaveral, the world's second largest passenger port, and on the south by Cocoa Beach, this town prides itself as a safe, clean, residential beach-side community. Because it is closest to the launch complexes, it was settled in the 50's and 60's and is an emerging investment opportunity as older homes get refurbished to today's higher standards for homes near the ocean.
Residents and visitors enjoy the casual beach lifestyle in a thriving ocean-side community, with miles of white sandy beaches and river shoreline, Miles of finger canals provide many residents an opportunity to dock boats in their back yards. The high school houses an excellent International Baccalaureate program for the most challenging education in Brevard.
Quaint restored Cocoa downtown hosts boutiques, art dealers, antiques, and lots of sidewalk restaurants. One popular event is lunch-time concerts at the gazebo. Street parties and art & craft shows frequently draw visitors from everywhere. With our proximity to Disney and a pool of talented entertainers, treasured Historic Cocoa Village Playhouse hosts productions with amazing actors, costumes, sets, and orchestra.
Some of the friendliest people you’ll ever know! Get away from the cold weather and/or the zero-lot line life. Set in the beautiful natural settings of old Florida, a nature-lover’s paradise Grant-Valkaria is close to Melbourne and Vero, with a taste of Key West. Estate-size homes sit on acre-plus property located minutes from several championship golf courses, the Indian River, Atlantic Ocean, and great salt water and fresh water fishing as well as some of the best surfing found. Grant-Valkaria is also known for its commercial fishing, and crab and oyster houses that sit along U.S. Highway 1. See some lovely horse ranches and don’t be surprised to see a horse trotting down the road or some small deer wandering! Don’t forget the famous Grant Seafood Festival in February and the QFest (that’s short for BBQ) in August.
Upscale homes and condos share this island community with beachside hotel/motels. The boardwalk has an old time beach appeal, with restrooms,
changing areas and
This small upscale residential community on the beachside island consists of just two square miles and 8,100 people between Satellite Beach and Indialantic. It includes Lansing Island (below). This is such a well-run city, it has no debt.
A friendly "welcome home" from the guard at the Lansing Island security entrance foretells a gracious gated community containing the highest concentration of celebrities and luxury homes in Brevard. Tropical flowers, glorious fountains and palms landscape the central boulevard as you pass estate homes displaying tasteful architectural flair. Exclusive Lansing Island clubhouse provides the perfect setting to meet new friends at neighborhood parties. Outdoor swimming pool, tennis courts, basketball, and playground ensure you and your guests of secure recreation. Indoor game rooms, an exercise room, and meeting rooms serve all your needs. Yachtsmen and watersports enthusiasts enjoy deep access docks. Port Canaveral and Sebastian Inlet lead to the some of the most exciting ocean fishing grounds in the world. Prestigious Eau Gallie Yacht Club is less than one mile south.
Southern Brevard features two "old downtown" areas, each with specialty shops, great restaurants, and other attractions, and the county's largest mall, Melbourne Square. In the late 1800's, much of Melbourne's commercial activity was conducted in wooden buildings clustered along Front Street, located on Indian River Lagoon shoreline at Melbourne Harbor. While most of Melbourne's 71,000 people are located on the Florida mainland, a small portion is located on a barrier island. See also West Melbourne. Holmes Regional Medical Center heart catheter clinic id rated #1 in the state, #5 in the country.
Nasa's Shuttle landing and processing facilities, including the Vehicle Assembly Building and Kennedy Space Center, are here. The launch pads lie directly east. A new biotechnology research park will provide quick payload access to the shuttle. Technology and space age mix with scenic views and natural wonders. Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge and surrounding area hosts 22 endangered or threatened species. The Indian and Banana River Lagoons, the most diversified estuary in the country, cradle Merritt Island between the mainland and barrier islands. The most prestigious estates in Brevard $3.6M, some spanning from Indian River to Banana River on the south legs of the island, meld into beautiful moderately priced boating communities in the center, and a sometimes country atmosphere north of the cross-island barge canal at SR528. Boaters from the Intracoastal Waterway travel through that canal to the locks, the port, and the Atlantic, so this island is the ideal location for ocean fishermen. SR520 divides the 4 by 40 mile island with a 100-store shopping mall, independent stores and dozens of popular restaurants. Population 36k.
In the 1850's the first white settlers, also drawn by the bounty and beauty of the area, built homes along Turkey Creek. The town was later named after the palm tree bordered bay. In the 1940's a Naval air station provided an economic catalyst. In the 50's, General Development Corp platted and sold lots, mostly in the northeastern U.S., to people dreaming of retiring to Florida. This has resulted in an odd (for Brevard) pattern of development with new homes built next to homes 20 years old, and vacant lots, many with large trees, scattered about. The city continues to prosper and now more than 79,000 residents call it home, making it the biggest town in Brevard. At build-out, projections say the city will have more than 250,000 residents in this fast-growing, moderately priced, informal community. Stillwater is a new "lifestyle" subdivision featuring eighteen 1.2 acre lots on two 2,170 x 350 foot water skiing lakes.
This ancestral hub of Brevard was the spring break destination of the 1920's! Stately refurbished 1890's riverfront homes line Indian River's east shoreline alongside 6,000 sq ft contemporary homes. Today, new developments spring up along the south and western borders. The total is 22k homes and rising.
On the island two miles south of Patrick Air Force Base, this area is revered for its excellent high school. Housing is varied, with single and multi-family canal-front dwellings, beachside condominiums, and meticulously landscaped homes. Guard-gated Tortoise Island homes range from $700,000 to $2 million, most with deep-water docks.
Home of the newly refurbished and most affordable private member-owned country club in Florida, this master-planned development is built around two 18-hole champion golf courses, one designed by Arnold Palmer, just north of Melbourne Florida. With prices from the $150's to over $900,000, Suntree offers tree-lined boulevards and meticulously kept homeowner landscapes to about 8,000 people.
Here's a place where nature is in harmony with the everyday world. The Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge and the Canaveral National Seashore separate Titusville from the Atlantic Ocean. Preserving and maintaining the fragile ecosystem and the wildlife takes top priority.The largest sea turtle nesting area is located at Canaveral National Seashore. The economy of Titusville is based on the aerospace industry, tourism and construction. The space industry settled upon Titusville in the 1950's and continues to grow. Titusville shies away from big malls, making it a slower-paced community. Here's where to go and what to do in north Titusville & Mims. See Titusville Amenities. Titusville tax and water rates are the highest in Brevard.
Viera, which means faith, is a series of beautifully planned and landscaped communities with streets and neighborhoods strategically placed to provide picturesque vistas carved out of pasture land. This New Town includes Brevard's main government center, commercial enterprises, a regional shopping mall, major entertainment, and cultural facilities and Brevard Zoo. One village, Indian River Colony Club is a 55+ section of 786 homes providing full maintenance - even including appliances. Washington Nationals spring training and Brevard Manatees provide entertainment at SpaceCoast Stadium. |
showers located periodically along A1A. Shopping. dining,
commercial, professional, and multi-family areas cluster near
the major intersection on SR A1A at the eastern terminus of US
192, with single family residential homes in the remaining
areas. With just 5% vacant land, the town's approximately
one square mile is almost completely built out, and will likely
retain its low density residential nature. Brevard Planning
Department estimates 538 peak seasonal residents, and a resident
population of 3,035. Just 20 minutes from Melbourne
International Airport, this area is ideal for fly-in weekends at
your CondoTel where you enjoy the seashore whenever you like,
and the hotel leases your vacation home suite as an
income-producing investment! 
More
like a neighborhood than a city, we're just 600 acres on the
beachside island. The projected ultimate population,
based upon past growth trends and future projection
is 4,000 persons. We're already at 3,300 in a still-quiet
community. Single family home sales range from $300k condos, to
$1.25M on the canals. See Taxes
We will not tax you to death. You will also be happy to know that our constitution limits the real estate tax assessment on your homestead to 3% increase per year. There is no state income tax or death tax. People are flocking here from states burdened by high taxes, onerous budget deficits, and over-regulation.
Helping keep taxes low, Scripps Research Institute, industry leaders in biomedical research, expanded to Florida. That's 6,500 Scripps jobs, plus the ancillary effect of nearly 500 companies and 50,000 high paying jobs over 15 years. Then-Governor Jeb Bush said it rivals Disney and NASA in economic significance. Now we have even bigger news - watch the Orlando Medical City video below.
Here is a sampling of latest millage
rates (dollars per thousand valuation). Titusville 18.8, Satellite Beach
19.2, Rockledge 17.9, Melbourne 17.6, Cocoa 17.6, Viera 14.9, Cocoa
Beach 16.1, Port St John 15.7, Merritt Island 15.1, Palm Bay 17.9,
Indian Harbor Beach 17.1.
To estimate your tax, start with 90% of sales price, less
$50k exemption, times the millage rate. Example: (90% x $300k)-$50k = $220k
valuation x 15.1 millage = $3,322 tax.
Homestead Exemption confers special benefits to certain residents. In addition to the tax cap mentioned above your home is protected from some creditors and gets a $50k assessment-value reduction. To apply, contact me for a free form.
Insurance
Although Brevard has NEVER sustained a direct hit in recorded
history, the turmoil created by an unusually active hurricane season in
2004 drove some insurers out of Florida and created public demand for
more responsible insurance rules from the legislature. You can cut
insurance by HALF with an inspection that certifies your roof and
windows are protected. Southern
Home Inspections does the 4-point inspection immediately and
inexpensively. To get a no-obligation insurance quote on any home you
are considering, contact
Roster of all Property insurers in Florida.
FBIC list of good insurers that pay claims, and those who don't.
Economic Development
Fifteen years ago Brevard relied on tourism and launches (besides the Shuttle, we launched Titan, Delta, Atlas, and submarine-based rockets). NASA is preparing Constellation, the next manned launch system after Shuttle. Watch an overview of our next bold step into space. Soon Bill Sprague, CEO of AERA Corp will make us the focus of Space Tourism with the new Altairis spacecraft.
Recently, Melbourne's Northrop Grumman has been frantically searching for 400 engineers and high-tech people in Melbourne, paying an average $70-80k a year to build a new KC-45 tanker aircraft.
Port
Canaveral is the world's #2 passenger port (with 5 new cruise ships
in 2003 and the largest one due in 2010), and the world's only gateway
servicing road, rail, sea, air, and space.
As we diversified into a busy commercial seaport, free trade zone, and a beneficiary of space-related spin-offs, people who had previously worked on space missions returned permanently, bringing skills that attracted more high-tech businesses.
Jeb Bush and the legislature funded creation of a high-tech corridor stretching from Melbourne and Palm Bay, through the Space Center, and Titusville, and continuing on to the University of Central Florida Research Park, Orlando, and Tampa. A UCF high-tech incubator helps researchers, engineers, and businesses bring new ideas to market. With $100 million in research grants, patents developed at UCF are revolutionizing optical switching and throughput and turning this region into "Silicone Valley East".
The SpaceCoast Economic Development Commission publishes information helpful to moving your business here (like tax abatement incentives), and helpful to job seekers too. Their research includes demographic statistics and business resources. Real estate investors will appreciate their economic trends report showing why Brevard is in growth mode. Port Canaveral and Titusville Airport with its 8000' runway and low landing fees are part of Foreign Trade Zone 136. The city, state, and county have incentives for moving your business here. Contact 4Brevard.com for details.
Orlando Medical CityBiotech on the bleeding edge of discovery -- new 600 acre site with Burnham Institute, University of Central Florida’s new College of Medicine, M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, Nemours Children’s Hospital, Orlando Veterans Affairs Medical Center, University of Florida Academic and Research Center. More than $1.5 billion in biomedical-related construction is complete, under way, or funded, just outside our western border. This is our biggest economic boom since Disney. |
Retirement
Brevard is unique among retirement destinations because our job base also brings younger people here. This two-pronged growth will increase over the next decade. Baby boomers have dreamed of retiring to Florida for several decades. Now they are buying vacation and investment homes in the first wave of early retirement. Many former rocketeers with 20 years in the military return here as the best place they were stationed. They bring high-tech skills and an excellent work ethic. The VA Clinic in Viera is reputed to be the best around, well-run, excellent care, and no waiting.
Weather
We're due-east of Disney World and home to the space center. Both located here after scientific searches for near-perfect weather.
Brevard has never experienced a direct hit from a hurricane. Scientists say it is because hurricanes follow warm water and the cape pushes the warm Gulfstream out to sea.
Merritt Island's microclimate is influenced by the surrounding lagoon and the water running up its middle, features that act as a heat sink (warmer in winter, cooler in summer). In fact, we have the only agricultural zone-10 other than Miami-Dade County. We grow mangoes and avocados just like they do, and we're 200 miles north.
Employment
Whether considering a job offer or you're looking at possibilities for moving here, you probably want to know about the general employment climate. Your spouse and children may also want to know what's available for them. Since Brevard is Orlando's seaside suburb, many people commute to jobs in Orlando with a drive time of 40 to 60 minutes; so check Orlando jobs too!
For a complete listing of major Brevard Employers with hyperlinks directly to their careers pages see Brevard County Jobs.
Parts of Brevard cater to retired people. Therefore, there is a low average of only one worker per household, but with above-average household income of $51,000.
The local economy continues to diversify from its former
concentration on the launch industry. We have many early-retired
military rocketeers, in second careers, who created a 
hi-tech base of skills, making Brevard County the high technology
capital of the Southeast U.S. Total civilian labor force is growing
faster than the Florida average. Brevard employs more than 179,000
workers, and increased 30% (53,000 new jobs) between 1995 and 2005. This
long-term trend will drive real estate prices upward. Our 3-year jobs
growth is 7.1% versus the national average 2.4%.
Florida’s High Tech Corridor Named One of the World’s Top Seven Intelligent Communities Read article.
Florida dominates the simulation industry in the U.S. (video games and military), with most employees in Orange and Brevard Counties. Visit Florida High Tech to see some job opportunities in our fastest growth sector.
Education
Key to Brevard's success, education at all levels is the best in Florida. Rocket scientists expect a high level of math & science so kids will exceed their parents education, 24% of whom have a college degree, and another 9% earned an associates degree.
Just one hour commute, University of Central Florida in Orlando, is one of America's 10 largest universities (76 majors, 43,000 students) and $100 million in research grants. Center for Research and Education in Optics and Lasers (CREOL) patents anchor what is destined to become "Silicone Valley East". The thriving Central Florida Research Park incubator links technology to the business sector, fulfilling UCF's commitment to become the greatest partnering university in the world. Average incoming freshman GPA is 3.8 (1/3 have 4.0 or better), SAT 1187, ACT 26! The undergraduate Business School offers an innovative curriculum now copied nationwide. Several other programs also lead the nation: Modeling & Simulation, Hospitality, Film & Digital Media, Solar Energy. Check out the Brevard campus.
Florida Institute of Technology (Florida Tech) Florida's second largest private college appears in Peterson's guide under Top Colleges for Science. With campuses in Melbourne Florida, Kennedy Space Center, and Patrick AFB, it offers 120 degree programs to 4100 students in schools of Engineering, Science & Liberal Arts (with specialty in Physics and Space Sciences), Aeronautics, Management, Psychology, and Extended Graduate Studies.
Private schools and homeschooling associations offer the finest K-12 education, but Brevard's government-run schools do quite well, ranking #5 of 67 counties on the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT), behind some tiny counties near the Georgia border.
A complete discussion of Brevard County's FREE college tuition program, Florida's FREE homeschool, schools at all levels, and a selection guide with links to all their websites is just a click away at Brevard County Education.
Culture
Maxwell King Center for the Performing Arts books Broadway touring productions, all major contemporary artists, Gilbert & Sullivan troupes, jazz, classical and country music performances. The Henegar Center in downtown Melbourne attracts touring symphonies, operas and theatrical productions. Parrish Theater in Titusville, and especially historic Cocoa Village Playhouse hosts productions with amazing actors, costumes, sets, and orchestra. In fact, Brevard hosts five local theater groups and a number of museums and local musical groups to suit every taste. We are musically blessed, and as more professional musicians retire to this area will be enriched by Community Band of Brevard, SpaceCoast Pops, Indialantic Chamber Singers, Melbourne Chamber Music Society, Melbourne Community Orchestra, Melbourne Municipal Band, Central Florida Winds, Brevard Symphony Orchestra, Brevard Symphony Youth Orchestra, Space Coast Flute Choir, Brevard Chorale, Canaveral Barbershoppers, and Harbor City Harmonizers. Bookmark this page to check programs and schedules.
We also have 17 museums and other cultural resources catalogued by Brevard Cultural Alliance.
Restaurants
Our personal favorite restaurant in several categories is:
- Seafood - Grills or Fishlips at Port Canaveral
- Pizza - Anacapri in Cocoa Beach
- Mexican - El Toucan in Merritt Island
- BBQ - Charlie & Jakes micro-brewry in Suntree
- German - Heidleberg in Cocoa Beach
- Chinese - Yen Yen gourmet in Cocoa Beach
- Tai - Tai Paradise Cocoa Beach
- Cuban - Roberto's in Cocoa Beach
- Sushi - Siam Orchid in Cocoa Beach
- Fine Dining - Cafe Margeaux Cocoa Village
- Breakfast - Victorias in Merritt Island
Ecotourism
Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge encompasses 140,000 acres with over 1000 plant and 500 animal species, including 14 endangered species. It is one of the world's premier birding sites including pink spoonbills and bald eagles inside Kennedy Space Center.The adjacent Canaveral National Seashore traverses 24 miles of undeveloped Atlantic beach. Watch a sea turtle lay her eggs.
Titusville's Enchanted Forest Sanctuary hosts interpretive walking tours on boardwalks descending 15 to 20 feet from the desert-like Scrub on the ancient Atlantic Coastal Ridge into the shadowy, moist Mesic Hammock with its huge canopy.
Visit the Sea Turtle Preservation Society in Melbourne Beach, supporting the Archie Carr National Wildlife Refuge. The 20 mile section of coastline from Melbourne Beach to Wabasso Beach is the most important nesting beach for loggerhead sea turtles in the western hemisphere and the second most important in the world.
Sebastian Inlet State Recreation Area, Melbourne Beach. Three miles of beach considered one of the best fishing areas in the state of Florida. Take ranger-led boat tours to Pelican Island, America's first wildlife refuge.
Orlando's Seaside Suburb
Many folks work in Orlando and live here. That's why we're called Orlando's Seaside Suburb. Commuting is easy. It takes 45 minutes any time of day to get from Port Canaveral in east central Brevard to Disney in south Orlando, or Orlando Airport in central Orlando, or University of Central Florida in north Orlando.
Our biggest traffic flows at 3:15pm when the Cape workers leave, and schools dismiss. Not even that affects getting from Port Canaveral to Orlando in 45 minutes.
Air commuters save $10,000 per executive per year on low Orlando air
fares
versus other major airports. Consequently, we're home to hundreds of
consultants, salespeople, executives, and pilots based in northern
cities. Wouldn't you rather live on the SpaceCoast?
©2006-2009
Richard Webb, Top ProducerColdwell Banker Ed Schlitt Realtors
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