Rick,

I know your presence in Key Largo will be sorely missed. Since you must move on it seems, I would like to extend to you the invitation to explore the Space Coast area as you look for a new place to live. The area I am refering to is from New Smyrna to Melbourne, FL. I do not know much about Florida from Melbourne south, but here are a few thoughts.

Melbourne is a large city and the home of Performance Sail. Scott Hubel is the owner of Perf Sail and is doing a fantastic job with rallying the community together to enjoy sailing. He has many cats on his lot and has been a key advisor to me. I try to stay away from traffic so I do not go to Melbourne much except to do serious shopping. They have a monopoly on furniture stores there it seems.

My favorite cities in this area are Merritt Island, Titusville and New Smyrna. All three cities are well kept with good housing, close to the water and a good place to live. I live in Titusville, which is well suited for seniors and families. There is not too much to keep the 16-28 age group occupied, but I love it here. We are right off SR50 which make a 40 min. drive to Orlando, Melbourne and Daytona. We are 15 minutes from Playalinda Beach and I live 5 minutes from the Indian River where I sail my Wave. Last Saturday when me and my 5 yr old went sailing, there were about 10 Sunfish on the water at the same time participating in the Red Cross Introductory Sailing Course. The winds were quite calm that day and I let my little girl take the helm and sail all by herself. She was so proud. On windy days the Hobie Cats, Wind surfers and Kite Sailors come out to the river in groves. You can see I love it here.

Let me know If I can send you any information to help you make your decision.

gus