Ave Maria, Florida facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Ave Maria, Florida
unincorporated community
Ave Maria, Florida Location in Florida
Country	United States
State	Florida
County	Collier
Government
• Type	Stewardship Community District
Area
• Total	10.424 sq mi (27.00 km2)
Elevation	18 ft (6 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	6,242
• Density	598.6/sq mi (231.1/km2)
Time zone	UTC-5 (Eastern (EST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-4 (EDT)
ZIP Code	34142
Area code(s)	239
FIPS code	12-47625
GNIS feature ID	0287528

Ave Maria, Florida, is a special community in the United States. It is a planned community, which means it was designed and built from scratch. It is located in Collier County, Florida.

The community covers about 5,000 acres (2,023 hectares). In 2020, about 6,242 people lived there. Ave Maria is part of the larger Naples-Marco Island area in Florida.

Ave Maria was started in 2005. It was created by Ave Maria Development. This group included Barron Collier Companies and the Ave Maria Foundation. A Catholic businessman named Tom Monaghan led the foundation. He is famous for starting Domino's Pizza and Ave Maria University. The university is right in the middle of the town.

The town center has shops and restaurants. It also has the beautiful Ave Maria parish church. This church has cool steel arches. Inside, there is a 30-foot-tall marble carving of the Annunciation.

History of Ave Maria

Ave Maria was founded in 2005. It was a project by Ave Maria Development. This group included Barron Collier Companies and the Ave Maria Foundation. Tom Monaghan, who founded Domino's Pizza, led the foundation. He also started Ave Maria University.

The Florida government helped make the town possible. They created a special local group. This group helps build important things like roads and water systems. Ave Maria was the first town built under a special land program.

Monaghan wanted the town to be a great place for Catholics to live. Many street names have Catholic meanings. A large Catholic church is at the heart of the town. In 2007, Monaghan said that Ave Maria is "open to everyone, not just Catholics." A Baptist church, Fellowship Church, also opened there in 2017.

In 2007, Monaghan shared his plans for the town. He hoped Ave Maria would have 11,000 homes and 25,000 residents. He also wanted 5,000 students at Ave Maria University. He aimed to build a community where many serious Catholics would want to live. This community would be around a high-quality Catholic university.

In 2022, Ave Maria was ranked 18th in the U.S. for new home sales in planned communities. In June 2023, the town was allowed to grow by another 1,000 acres. This made the town 5,000 acres big. This is the largest size allowed by the county. The university campus is separate from this area. The new land will be used for homes and new shops.

Since 2005, over 5,000 homes have been sold in Ave Maria. This has led to many new businesses opening. Midtown Plaza is one new area with different stores. These new businesses help the local economy grow.

Education in Ave Maria

Students in Ave Maria go to schools in Collier County. Some of these schools are right in town.

Ave Maria University

Ave Maria University first opened in 2003. It was on a temporary campus then. Building the main campus began in 2005. Students moved into the new campus in 2007. The university is also home to the Mother Teresa Museum.

Private Schools

• The Palm Preschool
• Rhodora J. Donahue Academy (for students from kindergarten to 12th grade)
• K-12 Fellowship Academy

Public Schools

• Estates Elementary School
• Corkscrew Middle School
• Palmetto Ridge High School

Geography and Climate

Ave Maria is about 36 miles northeast of Naples, Florida. It is part of Collier County. The town is about 18 feet above sea level. The total area of the town is about 10.42 square miles (27.0 square kilometers).

Ave Maria has a tropical savanna climate. This means it is warm all year with a wet season and a dry season. The temperature rarely gets as hot as 100°F (38°C). It also rarely drops to freezing.

The town gets about 23 inches of rain each year. Most of this rain falls during the wet season. This season is from June to September. During these four months, about 80 percent of the yearly rain falls. From October to May, there is much less rain. The average daily temperature is about 66°F (18.9°C) in January. It rises to about 83°F (28.3°C) in August. The average temperature for the whole year is about 74.5°F (23.6°C).

Ecology

Ave Maria is in southern Florida. This area has a subtropical wetland ecosystem. It is similar to the Florida Everglades. Many different birds live here. You might see wood storks, anhingas, herons, and hawks. Alligators can also be found near fresh water.

Visitors can explore nearby nature spots. These include Camp Keais Strand and Rookery Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve. The Everglades and Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary are also close by. The wetlands around Ave Maria are home to mansonia mosquitoes. These can be a problem for people. The Collier Mosquito Control District helps control them. They spray the area regularly to prevent mosquito-borne diseases. In 2022, Ave Maria's tap water was named the best-tasting water in Florida.

Demographics

2020 Census

In 2020, there were 6,242 people living in Ave Maria. There were 2,227 households and 806 families.

Commerce and Fun

Ave Maria has more than 60 businesses. There is also a water park for fun. You can find many recreational parks, too. There is an indoor market with local sellers. The town also has an amphitheater for shows. Other features include a dog park, walking trails, and playgrounds. You can play bocce and tennis, and there's a fitness center. The main Ave Maria Town Center is a large outdoor area. It covers 100,000 square feet.

Ave Maria offers different types of homes. These include condominiums, attached villas, and single-family houses. In 2023, plans were announced for a new apartment complex with 300 units.

Ave Maria Parish Church

The band Scythian performs at a festival in front of the Ave Maria Oratory with Annunciation sculpture visible in the background

The front of the church has a huge sculpture. It is 30 feet tall. The sculptor, Márton Váró, created it. It shows the Annunciation. This is when the Archangel Gabriel greets the Virgin Mary. He says the words Ave Maria, which means "Hail Mary." It took Váró three years to finish this amazing sculpture. Inside the church, you can see Váró's "Good Shepherd" sculpture. Both sculptures were carved from marble from Italy.

The church is part of the Diocese of Venice. It serves as the main church for people living in Ave Maria. Students and visitors also attend services there. A special part of the building is its steel structure. Much of the steel can be seen both inside and outside. In 2008, the church won an award for its design. It received the Innovative Design in Engineering and Architecture with Structural Steel award. The American Institute of Architects also gave it an award. You can take tours of the church to see it up close.

See also

In Spanish: Ave María (Florida) para niños