Brevard County lack of an major urban center. (Palm Bay, Melbourne: houses, to live)

[centralfloridaroadgeek]

Do any know why we lack an major urban center here? We have an population of 550,000 here and yet we lack an major urban center compared to other areas with around the same population.🤔

[Nypafl4u]

I don't think 550,000 people spread out over the size (square miles) of land in Brevard County would be considered urban. You need density in population over a smaller space I would think.

[chopchop0]

[quote=centralfloridaroadgeek;43360614]Do any know why we lack an major urban center here? We have an population of 550,000 here and yet we lack an major urban center compared to other areas with around the same population.

[rrokit]

Why the rush to crowd up Brevard County? The Space Coast is one of the increasingly fewer jewels left in Florida in terms of density and its what keeps me coming back. Not trying to argue with you, but have you noticed how crowded Florida is becoming?

[centralfloridaroadgeek]

Originally Posted by chopchop0

There is an MSA.


You have to remember that the biggest city in Brevard is Palm Bay followed by Melbourne (104K + 75K). Not really big cities in the grand scheme of things.

True but unlike other metropolitan areas our size, we lack an major urban center. Savannah metropolitan area population is around 500,000 and it's has an major urban center. Sarasota-Bradenton metropolitan area has an major urban center (Downtown Sarasota). And Sarasota population is just above 50k.

[centralfloridaroadgeek]

Originally Posted by rrokit

Why the rush to crowd up Brevard County? The Space Coast is one of the increasingly fewer jewels left in Florida in terms of density and its what keeps me coming back. Not trying to argue with you, but have you noticed how crowded Florida is becoming?

Lol I'm not rushing Brevard County to become crowded. It's just I notice that most area around our size population wise have an major urban center and wondering why we don't. Also I'm haven't notice Florida has become crowded.

[centralfloridaroadgeek]

Originally Posted by Nypafl4u

I don't think 550,000 people spread out over the size (square miles) of land in Brevard County would be considered urban. You need density in population over a smaller space I would think.

I always wonder does that play into why we don't have one.

[ImmerLernen]

Originally Posted by centralfloridaroadgeek

True but unlike other metropolitan areas our size, we lack an major urban center.

What, exactly, would be included in what you describe as a major urban center? And why is the lack of such something you're mentioning?

I'll be interested to read you answer, but in the meantime, my kneejerk reaction is Be Careful What You Wish For.

[Rabflmom]

Originally Posted by centralfloridaroadgeek

Do any know why we lack an major urban center here? We have an population of 550,000 here and yet we lack an major urban center compared to other areas with around the same population.��

No need to put everything in one spot because plenty of room to spread out. Most of the towns revolved around the rivers/intercoastal waters and didn't get out into the marshes (unfortunately) until the 1990s when houses and buildings started being built in wetlands because of short sight of powers in charge.
It was basically settled as a farm community(oranges, pineapple,sugar cane) so all that was needed was a boat and then when the train connected the county to the North the train to move the products grown to other areas so not a lot of big manufacturing plants needed. The Space program eventually brought in the big tech manufacturing plants like Lockheed and even Harris Corp., but they didn't require being next to each other
When people started building a lot liked being in more rural areas. Mosquitos were horrible for the early settlers so didn't attract the population to sustain big manufacturing and most places did not get air conditioning till the mid to late 60s. Even the VAB building on KSC did not get air for years. Every afternoon in the summer it would basically rain inside the building.
Even in the tech industries it was just more laid back.......engineers would shut down and leave some of them to surf the tides and then return to work when they could in the 60s.

And then I remember reading about a big fire one year in Brevard County. It probably discouraged some businesses from coming down. If I remember correctly it was so huge that the settlers that were here mostly farming, working at the sugar mill and lumber plant had to flee to the ocean on boats to save their lives. It ended all the businesses for a while.

So what we have are a lot of bedroom communities because basically that is all we need since we don't manufacture a lot of anything in Florida.

[ExIslander]

Simplest explanation is, most urban centers got to be urban centers a long time ago, in the pre-suburban era, when people had to live close to work because transportation was difficult or expensive. Brevard County wasn't very big then. By the time people started moving to the Space Coast in large numbers, they didn't have to cluster together, there was plenty of room to spread out. If I remember right, there weren't even 100,000 people in the entire county when the space program got started.

(I see rabflmom made the same points and beat me to it. Oh well.)