It Has It's Benefits, But Is Not For Everyone...
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1/10/2007
Merritt Island is a small town bordered by the Indian & Banana Rivers. People are friendly. The attitude is laid back and slow. Weather is typical Florida...pretty warm/hot most of the year. The major employer is the Kennedy Space Center located on the northern tip of the Island. It is not easy to gain employment at the Space Center. There are many job openings in the area, yet they are primarily low-paying service/retail jobs. Cost of living is fairly high, mostly due to housing costs.
There is a mediocre mall with pretty marginal shopping. Common chain food restaurants are most of what you will find, but here and there you'll find a local gem; especially if you venture across the Indian River into Cocoa Village for dinner. Traffic is not bad compared to major metro areas, but the population is growing quickly and the roads are not adequate for the new growth. Crime is fairly high for such a small town, and is also increasing. Still, it's a pretty safe place to be. As a rule of thumb, if an area looks seedy, don't hang out there.
There is no night life. Trust me on this one. in 1992, as a twenty-something, I moved here from Washington DC and there was no night life. I moved away after 5 years and then returned here 6 years ago as a a married mother of three. There is STILL no night life!
The schools are pretty poor, although they rate quite high compared to the rest of the state of Florida. You're better off paying an arm and a couple of legs and sending your kids to one of the few private schools or homeschooling. Lots of homeschoolers in the area. There is not a great emphasis on education in this area. You will not see many highschool grads going away to college, nor will you find many parents who expect their kids to go to college. There are not very many positive influences for children or good role models. I would not say this is a very good place to raise children. Lots of surfers, beach bums, tattos and high percentage of obese people.
Housing costs are high, taxes very high and homeowners insurance might just make it impossible to purchase a home here. No exaggeration. We pay over $600 a month in homeowner's insurance for a basic 40 year old 1800 sq ft ranch house in a very average neighborhood. I believe there are only two companies that will write policies in Merritt Island. Totally the result of corrupt govt and insurance companies milking the system. See Florida Today Newspaper for details on the hot topic of insurance reform.
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Marie | Merritt Island, FL