A hidden gem
Commitment to all things green and a sense of
community help create Melbourne Village
There is neither pomp nor
circumstance to the main
entrance of Melbourne Village.
Only a simple wooden sign
reveals that — sandwiched between
a Target store and Haverty’s along
Highway 192 — lies the gateway to a
social experiment in homesteading. With
typical understatement, the sign simply
announces Mabel’s Welcome. It takes
detective work to discover that villager
Mabel Saunders so enjoyed bidding hello
to neighbors that a sign was erected to
greet all visitors.
Comparing Melbourne Village to
developments dotting Florida is like
measuring a zebra against a horse. They
may be both in the general family, but
24: SPACE COAST LIVING | SPACECOASTLIVING.COM
the former has a much more interesting
background pattern than the latter.
To create tract communities that spring
up hither and yon, today’s developers
raze acreage, devise artificial lakes and
plop down similar-looking structures.
Melbourne Village, on the other hand,
was originally intended as a community
of productive homesteads where resi-
By Maria Sonnenberg
ROB DOWNEY
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