Why You Should Consider Living in Brevard County, FL

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Located just 45 minutes east of Orlando lays 72 miles of impressive coastlines, great shopping, terrific sporting outlets and some of the best priced Real Estate on Florida’s East Coast.  Brevard County offers the young professional, the growing family and the retiree urban style living with an easy-going personality.  With just over 540,000 people located throughout the county, Brevard has something to offer every age without the headache and stress of traffic and congestion.

Brevard County’s Booming Economy
Through the creation of Kennedy Space Center in 1969, Brevard County not only underwent a significant economic transformation, but also obtained its nickname, The Space Coast.  Now almost 40 years later, the Space Center is still contributing to the county’s economic growth with 15,000 employees and is also joined by agriculture, citrus production and the manufacturing of scientific and electronic equipment. With approximately 1.2 million visitors a year, tourism is also a large contributor to the economy.  Through a combination of these attributes, Brevard ranks among the top Ten Florida Counties in terms of:

• Small Business Establishments

• Total Employment

• Labor force growth

• Total prime working age (18-44)

• Taxable sales

Aside for the Space Center, other excellent employment opportunities exist and are offered by top employers such as:

• Brevard County School Board – 8,222 employees

• United Space Alliance – 6,400 employees

• Health First – 5,958 employees

• Patrick Air Force Base – 5,900 employees

• Harris Corporation – 5,000 employees

• Space Gateway Support – 3,000 employees

• Along with a multitude of Defense Contractors & Technology Companies

The Space Coast Amenities
With Orlando only an hour and a half away, you can have the booming experience of a metropolis with Disney, major sporting events, shows, etc. and then come back to the serenity of a small town feel in Brevard County.  Don’t be mistaken though!  The Space Coast also has some terrific amenities …   

Shopping
Like to shop?  Brevard County has 2 major indoor Shopping Malls, 1 Outdoor Lifestyle Shopping Center and multiple Downtown areas filled with boutiques, antiques and fine dining.  Shopping not for you?  How about Sports?

Sports
With its consistent climate, Brevard County has the ability to offer outdoor recreation nearly year-round.  With more golf courses than any other place in the world, Florida is a well-known, popular destination for golfers.  Being one of the best places to golf in Florida, Brevard County boasts 24 various private & public courses from the North to the South of the county.  In fact, golf in Brevard is so popular that many home builders develop communities around golf courses to attract residents.

Brevard County, specifically Cocoa Beach is a well-known Mecca when it comes to surfing.  Surfing pros and international champions such as Kelly Slater, C.J. Hobgood and Damien Hobgood are among those who grew up surfing the waters in the county.  With the abundance of surf shops, camps and rental facilities located throughout the county, it’s no surprise that surfing is one of the Space Coast’s most popular sports.  For daily surf updates and to view a live surf cam, visit www.SurfGuru.com. 

With 35% of the county being made up of water, if surfing doesn’t intrigue your interest, there are many other water activities available on the Space Coast.  Between Brevard’s major waterway, The Atlantic Intercoastal and the 72 miles of beaches available, this is a fisherman and boaters paradise.  Don’t have a boat?  No worries.  Boat charters are accessible and very popular in the Port Canaveral area.  Deep-sea fishing is among the most popular charters available and are typically run on a weekly basis (weather permitting).  Other great water activities include sailing, kayaking, windsurfing, wakeboarding, water skiing and jet skiing.  Rentals are also available for each of these activities.

Recreational activities are also offered for all ages through the Brevard County Park & Rec department.  For more information on these programs and the wonderful parks located throughout the county, please visit www.brevardparks.com.

Various Events
On a monthly basis, Brevard County offers a various number of specials events, concerts, sports gatherings and other festive activities.  Some of the more popular festivities include the Grant Seafood Festival (in February), Melbourne Art Festival (in April), the Titusville TICO Warbird Air show (in March), the Indian Harbor Beach Turtle Splash & Family Bash (in May) and several monthly downtown area fests.  Many of these festivities include live entertainment, food, drinks & games. 

The Space Coast is also home to the Manatees, a Minor League Baseball Team, the Blue Ducks, an USBL Basketball team and is host to the Washington Nationals during their Spring Grab the kids and check out the action!

National acts can be found on stage at several of the county’s performing art centers.  One of the most notorious, a state-of-the-art multi-use facility called The Maxwell C King Center. Since it’s opening in 1998, it has brought popular musical artists, operas, contemporary dance and ballet, touring Broadway shows, and family-oriented events to the Space Coast.  Great acts include Bill Cosby, Jerry Seinfeld, Rent, River dance, Chicago the Musical, Liza Minnelli and many more.  For more information on the King Center, please visit www.kingcenter.com.

Education is Important in Brevard
Brevard County ranks among the best in the state when it comes to education.  Here are just a few reasons why the county is so highly ranked: 

• In 2005 Brevard students had higher SAT scores than any other School District in Florida

• Within the 10 largest districts, Brevard has ranked first in the number of “A” rated schools

• In 2006 & 2007 students in Brevard won almost a third of the state science fair prizes, including the most first prize awards

• Selected by his peers, the superintendent of Brevard schools was selected best in state.

• According to the Florida Dept. of Education, 5 of the top 10 Elementary Schools lye in the District.

• At the 2007 Robotics World Championships, a team consisting of Brevard County high school students took second place. 

• Cocoa Beach High School’s International Baccalaureate program ranked among Newsweek’s top 100 US High Schools in 2005 & 2006

• Brevard high schools lead the state in the number of students dual enrolled in secondary and college courses.

The Space Coast not only has wonderful “A” ranked elementary and secondary schools, it also contains the highest number of college graduates than any other county.  Two and four year degrees, along with other specialty programs are offered through Brevard Community College, Florida Institute of Technology, University of Central Florida, Keiser College, Webster College and FMU. 

Please visit the Brevard Public School’s website at www.brevard.k12.fl.us to find out additional information or to see where your child will be attending school.

http://www.brevardcounty.us/ is the official county government website.