Indialantic, officially incorporated as Indialantic-By-The-Sea, is a town in Brevard County, Florida, United States. It is part of the Palm Bay–Melbourne–Titusville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. The town's population was 3,010 at the 2020 United States census, up from 2,720 at the 2010 census.
The town's name is a portmanteau derived from the town's location between the Indian River Lagoon and the Atlantic Ocean.
History
From 1919 to 1921, the Dutchman Ernest Kouwenhoven, who bought the land that ultimately became Indialantic, settled in the area, and built a wooden bridge connecting Indialantic with Melbourne (Bridge #1).
In the 1920s the Indialantic Hotel was built. Its name was later changed to the Tradewinds Hotel. The hotel was on what is now South Shannon Avenue, the current location of Tradewinds Terrace.
By 1924, the Indialantic Casino was built. Its name was later changed to the Bahama Beach Club. This is the location of Nance Park today.
From 1941 to 1947, the wooden bridge was replaced with a drawbridge, delayed by the war years. (Bridge #2)
In 1952, Indialantic was incorporated with the official (but rarely used in common parlance) name "Indialantic-By-The-Sea".
In 1985, a modern causeway was built with an elevated span to avoid obstructing boats using the Indian River (Bridge #3)
Geography
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Indialantic is situated on the barrier island that separates the Indian River Lagoon from the Atlantic Ocean. This island, approximately in length, stretches south from Cape Canaveral to the Sebastian Inlet. The Melbourne Causeway connects Indialantic to the city of Melbourne across the Indian River Lagoon. Indialantic is bordered on the south by the town of Melbourne Beach and on the north by unincorporated Brevard County and Indian Harbor Beach, Florida.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of . of it is land, and of it (25.80%) is water.
Greater Indialantic
Greater Indialantic, outside the town boundaries, represents a parallel development of suburban beach homes, which for lack of a stronger identity, has assumed that of the nearest town. The Town of Indialantic is a community. The areas mentioned below are not in town but share a ZIP code with Indialantic.
This area starts with the town of Indialantic on the south and lies between the Atlantic Ocean and the Indian River, extending north just short of the Eau Gallie Causeway (SR 518). It includes mostly unincorporated parts of Brevard County but also includes a development that is part of the city of Melbourne, otherwise a mainland community.
Included are these developments:
- Canova Beach
- Cloisters
- Coventry
- Highland Groves
- Indialantic Heights
- North Atlantic by the Sea
- Ocean Park
- Oceanside Village
- Palm Colony
- Puesta del Sol
- Rio Linda
- Rio Villa
- River Shores
- Riviera
- The Sanctuary (part of the City of Melbourne)
- Shady Shores
- Terrace Shores
Climate
The Town of Indialantic is part of the humid subtropical climate zone with a Köppen Climate Classification of "Cfa" (C = mild temperate, f = fully humid, and a = hot summer).
Demographics
Racial and ethnic composition
{| class="wikitable"
|+Indialantic racial composition<br> (Hispanics excluded from racial categories)<br> (NH = Non-Hispanic)<br>
!Race
!Pop 2010
!Pop 2020
!% 2010
!% 2020
|-
|White (NH)
|2,475
|2,638
|90.99%
|87.64%
|-
|Black or African American (NH)
|7
|15
|0.26%
|0.50%
|-
|Native American or Alaska Native (NH)
|5
|7
|0.18%
|0.23%
|-
|Asian (NH)
|46
|53
|1.69%
|1.76%
|-
|Pacific Islander or Native Hawaiian (NH)
|0
|0
|0.00%
|0.00%
|-
|Some other race (NH)
|0
|11
|0.00%
|0.37%
|-
|Two or more races/Multiracial (NH)
|44
|114
|1.62%
|3.79%
|-
|Hispanic or Latino (any race)
|143
|172
|5.26%
|5.71%
|-
|Total
|2,720
|3,010
|100.00%
|100.00%
|-
|}
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, Indialantic had a population of 3,010. The median age was 52.2 years. 17.6% of residents were under the age of 18 and 24.7% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 99.1 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 96.1 males age 18 and over.
100.0% of residents lived in urban areas, while 0.0% lived in rural areas.
There were 1,368 households in Indialantic, of which 23.6% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 53.9% were married-couple households, 18.3% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 21.6% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 28.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
In 2020, the top ancestries were 19.7% English, 14.3% German, 8.5% Italian, 7.1% Irish, 6.9% Scottish, 5.7% Polish, 3.8% French, and 1.2% Norwegian.
In 2020, 13.7% of the population were foreign born; of those, 44.7% were born in Europe, 34.5% were born in Asia, 14.4% were born in Latin America, and 6.4% were born in North America.
2000 census
As of the census
Total population = 12,792
Gender and age:
- Male = 6,339 (49.6%)
- Female = 6,453 (50.4%)
- Median Age = 45.2, above US average of 35.3
- Under 5 years = 583 (4.6%)
- 18 years and over = 10,361 (81%)
- 65 years and over = 2,887 (22.6%)
Racial characteristics:
- White – 96.4%
- Asian – 1.2%
- Two or more races – 1.1%
- Black or African American – 0.7%
- Another Race – 0.5%
Households:
- Size – 2.25
- Family size – 2.74
Housing:
- Owner occupied – 78.5%
- Renter occupied – 21.5%
- Vacant housing units – 11.3%
Social Characteristics:
- High school graduate or higher – 95.2%
- Bachelor's degree or higher – 47.5%
- Veterans – 21.5%
- Disability status (5 years and over) – 15%
- Foreign born – 7.4%
- Male, now married, except separated, (15 years and over) – 61.5%
- Female, now married, except separated, (15 years and over) – 61.1%
- Speak a language other than English at home (5 years and over) – 8.1%
Government
The town publishes a quarterly report to all residents.
As of 2024, officers are as follows:
- Mayor – Mark McDermott
- Deputy Mayor – Stuart "Stu" Glass
- Council Member – Loren Strand
- Council Member – Brett Miller
- Council Member – Doug Wright
As of 2024, the following are all appointed or hired:
- Town Manager – Michael Casey
- Police Chief – Michael Connor
- Public Works Director – Joe Gervais
- Town Attorney – Paul Gougelman
- Town Clerk – Mollie Carr
- Fire Chief – Tom Flamm
- Building Official – Clifford Stokes
In 2008, the town had a taxable real estate base of $367.69 million. The budget for fiscal year 2012 was $4,060,999.
Public safety
There are six paid firefighters plus fifteen active volunteers. Since 1985, residents have lit luminaria before Christmas when firemen have distributed candy to children from a firetruck, on every street.
Indialantic maintains a police force with 12 sworn police officers, including the chief of police. On average, officers respond to 4,000 calls for service a year with an approximate response time of under two minutes.
Emergency services are dispatched from the town's communications center, staffed by four full-time and five part-time dispatchers.
- Witch Way 5K run and Halloween Party in Nance Park in October
In 2005, Hoover contained grades 7 and 8. There were 512 students and 32 teachers, for a ratio of 16:1. 11.3% qualified for free or reduced lunch. Indialantic Elementary contained grades pre-kindergarten though sixth. There were 812 students and 54 teachers for a ratio of 15:1. 13.3% qualified for free or reduced lunch.
Media
- Florida Today
- The Hometown News is a free weekly paper distributed to each home
- [https://www.spacecoastdaily.com]Space Coast Daily
Infrastructure
Roads
Travelocity.com named route A1A, which runs along the Brevard shore, as the "Best Driving Route" in Florida. This runs close to the ocean. A secondary major route, paralleling it, is Riverside, which is close to the Indian River.
The Florida Department of Transportation maintains A1A and 192. Brevard County maintains North Riverside Drive. The town maintains of roadway. Most blocks are long.
See State Roads in Florida for explanation of numbering system.
- 20px U.S. Route 192 – "Fifth Avenue"
- 20px SR A1A – Miramar Avenue
- Riverside Drive – 10,000 vehicles used this road daily in 2010. It runs throughout the length of Indialantic including "greater Indialantic" in the county
Notable people
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- Brian Bollinger — NFL player
- Kyle Carr — soccer player
- Kathy Johnson — gymnast
- Ernest Kouwen-Hoven — businessman
- Robert F. Marx — pioneer scuba diver and author
- Pat Neshek — MLB pitcher for the Philadelphia Phillies
- Stefanie Scott — actress
- John Siptroth — U.S. politician and public figure