MELBOURNE, FLORIDA

'Melbourne' is a city in Brevard County, Florida, United States. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 71,382. As of 2005, the population estimated by the U.S. Census Bureau is 76,646.^[1]
It is the home of the Brevard County Manatees baseball club of the Florida State League and Washington Nationals spring training.^[2][3]

Contents

Government

Events

Geography

Climate

History

Transportation

Major Roads

Rail Lines

Economy

Demographics

Media

Television

Famous residents

Footnotes

External links

Government

Melbourne city officials created the Babcock Street Redevelopment District in 1998 to stimulate new development along Babcock Street from U.S. 1 south to U.S. 192. A 218-unit apartment complex being built is just the latest (2005) step in an effort to revitalize this area.
Melbourne is also attempting to revitalize the downtown Eau Gallie Riverfront district.
A $156 million budget has been proposed for the 2007-8 fiscal year.^[4]

Events

The annual Melbourne Independent Filmmakers' Festival, held in early November, provides a venue for new filmmaker talent.
The Melbourne Area Pilots Association hosts a General Aviation Day at Melbourne International Airport in September.
The Melbourne Arts Festival, held in April, drew about 70,000 visitors in 2006.^[5]

Geography

It is located approximately 60 miles southeast of Orlando on the Space Coast along Interstate 95. It is approximately midway between Jacksonville and Miami.

Climate

Monthly Normal and Record High and Low Temperatures
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Rec High °F	89	92	93	97	97	101	102	101	98	96	91	89
Norm High °F	72	73	77	81	85	89	91	90	88	83	78	63
Norm Low °F	50	51	55	60	66	71	72	73	72	67	60	53
Rec Low °F	17	27	25	35	47	55	60	60	58	41	30	21
Precip (in)	2.48	2.49	2.92	2.08	3.94	5.83	5.38	5.78	7.20	4.76	3.12	2.31
''Source: USTravelWeather.com[6]''

History

Melbourne, in South Brevard County, originally was a training area for Confederate soldiers during the American Civil War. Some soldiers, who were attracted to the river and the ocean, returned and bought land at 5 cents per acre. After the Civil War, pioneer families arrived and Melbourne was founded in the late 1860s by former slaves. The city was mistakenly named Melbourne, after what the locals believed to be the first postmaster's home city; he was really from New Zealand. The first school in Melbourne was built in 1883 and is now part of the Florida Tech campus. In late 1942 the Melbourne Naval Air Station was established as a site to train newly commissioned Navy and Marine pilots for WWII. The program ran until 1946, and the land that was used for that program makes up most of what is currently the Melbourne International Airport.^[7] In 1969, the cities of Eau Gallie and Melbourne voted to merge, forming modern day Melbourne.

Transportation

Major Roads

★ U.S. Route 1

★
★ Harbor City Boulevard is the local street name, and it runs parallel to the Indian River on the eastern side of the city. This road allows access to the beaches over 3 causeways: Pineda, Eau Gallie, and Melbourne.

★ U.S. Route 192

★
★ Locally named New Haven Avenue and Strawbridge Avenue (downtown), pass through commercial, entertainment, and retail areas of Melbourne. It serves as a route to Kissimmee and the tourist corridor of Orlando to the west, and the town of Indialantic to the east via the Melbourne Causeway.

★ Interstate 95

★
★ This 4 laned interstate passes through the city limits, with 3 exit ramps (192, Eau Gallie Blvd.^[8] (formerly Sarno Rd.), and Wickham Rd). It serves as a north-south route in the metropolitan area.

★ SR
A1A

★
★ This road runs along the beaches and provides access to other areas of Brevard County.

★ SR 507 - Babcock Street

★ SR 508 - NASA Boulevard

Rail Lines

The Union Cypress Company Railroad ran east to west through south Melbourne in the early 1900s. The mill town of Hopkins was near the present day streets of Mill Street and Main Street.
The Florida East Coast Railway runs through Melbourne, staying west of U.S. 1 through its entire run.

Economy

The Melbourne International Airport is located in the center of the city. Melbourne is one of the cities which makes up the Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville metro area. Its proximity to the Orlando area and access to the beach have helped to establish a tourism industry. It has the second largest population on the Space Coast.
The following corporations have a plant in Melbourne:

★ General Electric

★ Harris Corporation

★ Liberty Aerospace

★ Northrop Grumman

★ Rockwell Collins
In May 2005, the Melbourne-Titusville-Palm Bay area was among the top 20 in home price appreciation from 2003 to 2004.^[9] Melbourne is also home to the Florida Institute of Technology and houses a campus for the Brevard Community College (BCC).

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 71,382 people, 30,788 households, and 18,257 families residing in the city. A recent study shows the population to be around 74,600, with a metro population of about 510,000 people. The population density was 912.6/km² (2,363.9/mi²). There were 33,678 housing units at an average density of 430.6/km² (1,115.3/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 84.53% White, 9.33% African American, 0.34% Native American, 2.32% Asian, 0.07% Pacific Islander, 1.20% from other races, and 2.21% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race constitute 5.54% of the population.
There were 30,788 households out of which 24.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.0% were married couples living together, 11.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 40.7% were non-families. 32.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.22 and the average family size was 2.82.
In the city the population was spread out with 20.7% under the age of 18, 9.3% from 18 to 24, 28.4% from 25 to 44, 21.9% from 45 to 64, and 19.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 94.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.1 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $34,571, and the median income for a family was $42,760. Males had a median income of $32,242 versus $22,419 for females. The per capita income for the city was $19,175. In Melbourne, About 8.6% of families and 11.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.4% of those under age 18 and 8.5% of those age 65 or over.

Media

''Florida Today'' is a daily newspaper serving Melbourne, Brevard County and the Space Coast region of Florida. It is a venture of the media conglomerate Gannett.
Radio stations:^[10]

★ WFIT 89.5 FM (Jazz, National Public Radio)

★ WGRZ 93.1,100.7,
★ WGRV 107.9 FM The Groove (smooth Jazz)

★ WFHA 94.1 FM (Variety, smooth jazz, oldies)

★ WBVD 95.1 FM KISS 95.1 (Rap & R&B)

★ WSJZ 95.9 FM Pirate 95.9 (Rock)

★ WLRQ 99.3 FM (Adult Contemporary, Radio)

★ WGNX 99.7 FM Playing What We Want (Adult hits)(echo WJKD Vero)

★ WHKR 102.7 The Hitkicker (Country)

★ WTKS 104.1 Real Radio (Talk, Classic Alternative)

★ WAOA 107.1 FM A1A - The Coast's #1 Hit Music Station (Top-40, Radio)

★ WMEL 920 AM- Your Talk To Me Station (News Talk)

★ WMMB 1240 AM News Talk (Talk, Radio)

★ WINT 1560 AM- Music of Your Life (Nostalgia)

Television

Cable is provided by Bright House Networks.
Independent stations include:

★ Channel 43 WOTF-TV Univision Spanish Language

Famous residents

★ Darrell Hammond - Former home of comedian and actor

★ Cecil Fielder - Former baseball player. His son, Prince Fielder, also lived here and went to Eau Gallie High School.

★ Devon Hughes - Professional wrestler better known as Brother Devon from Total Nonstop Action Wrestling.

★ Jeff Lett - Birthplace of bass player of Cartel

★ Jim Morrison - Birthplace of singer, songwriter, writer, and poet

★ Reggie Nelson - Birthplace of University of Florida football star safety

★ Tom Rapp - Singer/songwriter. Leader of 60s/70s band Pearls Before Swine, lived here from childhood

★ Tim Wakefield - Birthplace of baseball player (Boston Red Sox)

★ Bobby Dall - Resident, Bass player for the band Poison

Footnotes

1. http://www.census.gov/popest/cities/tables/SUB-EST2005-04-12.xls
2. http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/index.jsp?sid=t503
3. http://www.stubhub.com/washington-nationals-spring-training-tickets/
4. http://www.floridatoday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070724/NEWS01/707240330/1006 retrieved July 24, 2007
5. Popular art festival to draw 70,000, Onorato, Lisa M., , , Hometown News, April 20, 2007,
6. Melbourne Weather at with Weather Channel
7. http://www.melbourneflorida.org/info/history.htm
8. 500 feet to the west of Melbourne in the county
9. "Home prices up 11% in fourth quarter" by Steve Kerch for MarketWatch
10. 'The Fact Book', Florida Today newspaper, February 24, 2007, page 128

External links

★ City of Melbourne's Geographic Information Systems official site

★ City of Melbourne, Police Department official