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Vero Beach is a city in Indian River County, Florida, USA. According to the U.S. Census Bureau's 2004 estimates, the city had a population of 17,209. It is the county seat of Indian River County.
Vero Beach is the location of Dodgertown, where the Los Angeles Dodgers have held their spring training camp since 1948 (longer than they've been in Los Angeles). The minor league Vero Beach Dodgers play there during the regular season.
The New Piper Aircraft Inc. builds aircraft here. Major industries include citrus fruit packing and tourism.
Geography
Vero Beach is located at (27.641817, -80.391105).
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 33.5 km² (12.9 mi²). 28.7 km² (11.1 mi²) of it is land and 4.8 km² (1.9 mi²) of it (14.31%) is water.
Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 17,705 people, 8,516 households, and 4,777 families residing in the city, and one Nat. The population density was 617.5/km² (1,598.9/mi²). There were 10,286 housing units at an average density of 358.8/km² (928.9/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 92.73% White, 3.42% African American, 0.20% Native American, 1.24% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 1.40% from other races, and 0.99% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 5.79% of the population.
There were 8,516 households out of which 17.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.4% were married couples living together, 8.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 43.9% were non-families. 36.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.02 and the average family size was 2.59.
In the city the population was spread out with 16.0% under the age of 18, 7.0% from 18 to 24, 23.6% from 25 to 44, 24.1% from 45 to 64, and 29.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 48 years. For every 100 females there were 92.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.0 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $38,427, and the median income for a family was $50,260. Males had a median income of $31,217 versus $24,022 for females. The per capita income for the city was $30,940. About 6.4% of families and 9.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.6% of those under age 18 and 4.5% of those age 65 or over.
Points of interest
Vero Beach is known for its outstanding beaches. Part of Florida's Treasure Coast, it is situated north of South Florida's Gold Coast and just south of Sebastian Inlet, the Surf Capital of the East Coast. Vero's beaches combine excellent sand quality with significant surf and tidal action, appealing to beach strollers, surfers, and boogie-boarders alike. Vero's main public beach is known as South Beach, accessible at the Eastern End of Causeway Boulevard. Vero also features Humiston Park and Jaycee Beach as its other primary public beaches.
The Driftwood Inn, located in Vero's central beach business district, is a historic hotel constructed in the early 20th Century by the late local eccentric and explorer Waldo Sexton. Originally built entirely from pieces of driftwood and other antiques, it is a popular tourist destination. Casey's Place, close to the beach, is a great place to get a hamburger, rated "Best Burger" four years in a row.
The city includes several parks, most notably Riverside Park, which is the location of Riverside Theater, the Vero Beach Museum of Art and the city's greatest group of recreational assets. Among Vero Beach's other cultural centers is (community theater) the Vero Beach Theater Guild, and the McKee Botanical Garden. Actor Stephen Root graduated from Vero Beach High School.
- McKee Botanical Garden
- Vero Beach Museum of Art site [http://www.vbmuseum.org/
Vero Beach is also home to general aviation manufacturer New Piper Aircraft *, which is the largest private employer in Indian River County.
'Vero Man'
Vero Beach was the site of a major archaeological discovery by local resident Frank Ayers in 1915. Known as the 'Vero Man', the find created an international controversy for it provided the first evidence that human beings had inhabited the 'new world' prior to the end of the Wisconsin glaciation (c. 10,000 BCE). Over the next thirty years, the remains were shuffled back and forth between the Smithsonian Institution and the Florida State Museum of History in Tallahassee. Experts could never reach an agreement and the remains were eventually lost just prior to the invention of Carbon-14 dating in 1947. Interest in Vero Man gradually waned, though more recently there was some renewed interest in finding the remains.Vero Beach Magazine "How Vero Man was lost - and found again" September/October 1998.
References
"Vero Beach, Florida"