Moving here was not my best idea...
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4/5/2014
Moved here in June of 2012 from Berks County, PA, to escape the rampant unemployment and ridiculously high housing costs. I was assured by my mother and realtor that there were jobs here. They must have thought I said "mobs", not "jobs"! While housing is much lower than in southeastern PA, as well as a few other things, Palm Bay is a bedroom community with NO downtown to anchor it, only stores, restaurants, and undeveloped land as far as the eye can see.
The focus in Florida is ECOLOGY, rather than ECONOMY. I applaud the passion of Floridians to protect and preserve nature, but the time has come to focus on the citizens. The governor refused an unemployment compensation extension based on the number of people receiving it, rather than the reality that most people are no longer eligible to collect. There's something really wrong when 150 people apply for an administrative assistant position at F.I.T. that pays only $12.00/hour for full-time. And,by the way, shame on one of the most prestigious universities in the country for paying such a miserable wage.
The local beaches are indeed dirty, especially Indiatlantic. Beaches are also small in the tri-city area (Melbourne/W.Melbourne/Palm Bay).
There are plenty of sole proprietorships and very small, family-owned businesses, but large companies such as you'll find in the Northern U.S. are basically non-existent in Southern and Mid-Brevard County. Brevard is dragging it's feet when it comes to entering the current century, just as it was when I graduated from high school in 1979. The largest employer is still Harris Corporation--thirty years after I left the area. This is primarily a government/military/contract/medical business area. Practically nothing else as far as even medium-sized businesses.
The climate seems to have worsened since I lived here (grew up in Melbourne); yes, too much sun and heat for about 8-10 months of the year. The area of Palm Bay where I am currently living usually has a temperate to cool breeze, but in the middle of summer, it's crazy hot. I have to practically simonize myself in sunscreen to be able to go outside without frying my skin and hair. The air conditioner running most of the time is irritating and overdries everything.
This immediate area is also about half undeveloped lots, and the wildlife is too plentiful for my comfort. During the hotter months, it seems every living creature that crawls, hops, walks, or flies is determined to enter the house each time I open the door, even a crack. I have chased out ENORMOUS wolf spiders, frogs, toads, and anoles (a type of lizard that changes it's skin color to match it's surroundings). I can't walk in the evenings after 7pm in the summer due to mosquitos. I can't take my cats outside into the yard to play because of the fleas. It costs about $100 to have the yard treated, and it must be treated monthly or every other month. I stopped after two treatments because it was just a waste of money and it kills all of the beneficial insects also.
Grass, weeds, vines, and plants I can't begin to identify are CONSTANTLY growing, especially in the warmer months. Be prepared to pay someone every week to come and mow, or buy a mower and other yard tools and do yard battle in your spare time.
Also, the number of homeless cats is appalling, and people continue to abandon them in the plentiful undeveloped lots and areas of Brevard County. Currently, I'm feeding (and vetting) 3 of them and fostering another (I fostered one last year, and it did get adopted), in addition to my own two cats, because I believe it's wrong to let them starve. They are friendly, very affectionate,playful animals who were somebody's pets at some point in their young lives. The local shelter is a kill-shelter with a bad reputation. There are several active rescue groups, however.
The diversity here is great, the people are very friendly and nice, but unless you have a stockpile of money or a guaranteed job that is permanent, choose someplace else to move to. I've been volunteering at the local utility company just to keep up my office skills and be eligible to apply for internal job postings, but nothing has surfaced yet. The local office of CareerSourceBrevard does a great job of offering free classes to help people prepare for employment; they also have a weekly support meeting for those who have or want to start their own business. Employers often use CareerSource to find employees, but the numbers of people seeking full-time and even part-time work seem to outnumber the employers willing or able to hire.
At this point, I must either receive a miracle or make the difficult decision to move again before my savings is wiped out. I hope this information helps people before they make the same mistake I did.
Dawn | Palm Bay, FL