What is MIRA on Merritt Island, FL?

MIRA is the Merritt Island Redevelopment Agency, a Brevard County community redevelopment agency focused on the SR 520 and Courtenay Parkway commercial corridors. It is funded by tax increment revenue and does not add a fee to residential tax bills.

Merritt Island is unincorporated. There is no city hall, no mayor, and no municipal budget dedicated to it. For a place with the population of a small Florida city, that surprises people who move here from somewhere with a downtown business district and a city council.

MIRA is the closest thing Merritt Island has to a public body whose entire job is Merritt Island. If you own property here, are buying here, or are trying to understand why the medians along the causeway look the way they do, it is worth knowing what this agency is and what it is not.

What is the Merritt Island Redevelopment Agency?

MIRA is a community redevelopment agency created under Chapter 163 of the Florida Statutes, the same law that authorizes redevelopment agencies across the state. Brevard County's Board of County Commissioners established the agency's seven-member Board of Directors by Ordinance No. 88-43 on November 15, 1988, under Section 163.356, Florida Statutes.

Directors serve four-year terms. To be eligible, a person has to either live in or be engaged in business within the agency's area of operation, which keeps the board local rather than appointed from elsewhere in Brevard County. You can see the current board roster on the county's Merritt Island Redevelopment Agency page.

The agency describes its own mission simply: sustainable growth for Merritt Island through planning, partnerships, public infrastructure, financing tools, and grants.

Where is the MIRA redevelopment area on Merritt Island?

This is the part most people get wrong. MIRA is not island-wide. It covers two commercial corridors, and both are defined in acres.

Sub-area Adopted Size Extent
SR 520 Commercial Core (Merritt Island Causeway) 1989 and 1991 745.53 acres and 280.12 acres The main west to east arterial, running from the Indian River on the west to the Banana River on the east, north to approximately Merritt Avenue and south to approximately Fortenberry Road
SR 3 Sub-Area 2006 165.7 acres Properties fronting Courtenay Parkway from the SR 528 interchange at the north end to Merritt Avenue at the south end

If you own a house in a Merritt Island subdivision off Tropical Trail, South Tropical Trail, or over toward Sykes Creek, you are almost certainly outside the redevelopment area. The boundaries follow the commercial frontage on the two main roads, not the residential neighborhoods behind them.

How is MIRA funded, and does it raise my taxes?

MIRA is funded through tax increment financing under Section 163.387, Florida Statutes. Its audited financial statements filed with the state describe the agency as funded primarily by tax increment revenue collected and remitted by the Brevard County Tax Collector, with 95 percent of the revenue generated from increases in property values inside the redevelopment area boundaries placed in the agency's trust fund.

Here is the part worth understanding: tax increment financing does not create a new tax or a new millage rate. It redirects a portion of the growth in existing ad valorem revenue inside the district back into that district. A homeowner in a Merritt Island neighborhood is not paying a MIRA line item, because there is no MIRA line item. That is different from a special assessment, which does appear as a separate charge on a Brevard County tax notice.

If you want to see exactly what is on a specific parcel's tax record, the Brevard County Property Appraiser shows the taxing district and assessment detail for any property on the Space Coast.

What has MIRA actually done on Merritt Island?

The agency's work falls into a few buckets: infrastructure, corridor beautification, and grant programs aimed at commercial property owners and businesses.

  • Landscaping and median improvements along significant portions of the SR 520 corridor, now running from the mainland to the ocean
  • A commercial facade grant program for businesses inside the redevelopment area
  • A Merritt Island brownfields grant program
  • Safety and image improvements along North Courtenay Parkway
  • Corridor planning work, including public input sessions on the future of the SR 520 core

Current projects and grant opportunities are posted on the agency's own site at mymerrittislandfl.com.

Why should a Merritt Island buyer care?

Two reasons, and neither one is about your tax bill.

The first is commercial trajectory. Merritt Island's retail and restaurant scene lives almost entirely on SR 520 and Courtenay Parkway. Both are inside the redevelopment area. When those corridors improve, the residential streets behind them benefit, and when they stagnate, that shows up too. Anyone weighing Merritt Island against Viera, Rockledge, or Suntree is really weighing what the commercial spine looks like in ten years.

The second is transparency. MIRA meetings are public and its plans are published. If you are relocating to Brevard County and want to know what is coming to a corridor before you buy near it, the agency's project list and workshop notices are one of the few places on Merritt Island where that information shows up in advance.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is MIRA a city government for Merritt Island?

No. Merritt Island remains unincorporated Brevard County. MIRA is a county community redevelopment agency with a defined boundary and a defined funding source. It does not provide police, fire, or general municipal services.

Does being inside the MIRA boundary change what I can build?

Zoning and building rules still come from Brevard County. The redevelopment area brings planning attention, grant programs, and infrastructure investment to the corridor rather than a separate set of building rules for homeowners.

Where is MIRA's office?

The agency office is at 2575 N. Courtenay Parkway, Suite 214, Merritt Island, FL 32953, and the phone number is (321) 454-6610.

I moved to Merritt Island in 2022 and I have watched the causeway change since. If you are looking at Merritt Island and want an honest read on which corridors are moving and which neighborhoods sit behind them, let's talk it through. My partner Nichole and I got your back. Reach out anytime at (321) 212-7676 or www.livingspacecoast.com.