Jupiter, FL

A popular beach town and vacation spot in South Florida, Jupiter is located just north of West Palm Beach and is home to 50,000 people, most of whom are families and retirees. Jupiter has become a popular relocation spot for prosperous Northeasterners from the Greater Boston and New York City metropolitan areas, many of whom are drawn to the city's beautiful beaches, temperate climate, and quiet communities.

Residents enjoy many outdoor activities, including spending time on local beaches and waterways, such as the Loxahatchee River and the Intracoastal Waterway.

ECONOMY AND INDUSTRIES

In the early 20th century, the Jupiter economy centered on the logging, fishing and citrus industries. Today the majority of residents work in sales, finance, business, management and other white-collar occupations. Tourism also helps to support the city's economy, with many tourists enjoying fishing, boating, sailing, water skiing, parasailing and wind surfing in area waterways or bicycling, golfing or horseback riding in one of the city's several parks.

The city has a low unemployment rate and a cost of living index that hovers just below the national average. With a well-educated, prosperous populace, Jupiter's median household income and median house value are both relatively high.

The most common industries among men are construction, professional, scientific and technical services, administrative and support, waste management services, arts and entertainment, and recreation. The most common industries among women are health care, educational services, professional, scientific and technical services, accommodation and food services, and finance and insurance.

Major employers include Pratt &Whitney, Jupiter Medical Center, Jupiter Medical Center Pavilion Inc., J.J. Taylor Companies Inc., Walgreens, Johnson Hardwood Distributor, and OSi Transcription.

SHOPPING

• Abacoa Town Center: Home to a variety of boutiques and restaurants, as well as an outdoor amphitheater, Abacoa is a pedestrian-friendly shopping area near Jupiter's Roger Dean Stadium and Florida Atlantic University. In addition to fashionable specialty shops and eateries, the Abacoa houses an interactive studio café, the Go Van Gogh, which allows customers to make their own pottery and jewelry while enjoying coffee or wine and listening to live music.
• CityPlace: An open-air shopping center in West Palm Beach, CityPlace is located about 15 miles south of Jupiter and was designed to evoke an old-world European atmosphere. The center houses more than 50 local and national retailers, as well as a variety of cafés, bars, and restaurants. CityPlace regularly hosts family-friendly community events, such as the Palm Beach Post City Jams and the Jazz Arts Music Series.
• Gardens Mall: Located nearly 18 miles south of Jupiter, in Palm Beach Gardens, the Gardens Mall is a luxury shopping center anchored by high-end retailers, such as Nordstrom and Saks Fifth Avenue. The mall houses more than 160 shops, features award-winning architecture and art exhibits, includes a variety of restaurants and eateries, and blends carefully tended natural landscaping into its 1.4 million-square-foot location.
• Worth Avenue: The Worth Avenue shopping center in Palm Beach, Florida, combines international boutiques with local specialty shops, resulting in more than 250 retail and dining options. Visitors can also take walking tours of Palm Beach's Worth Avenue, with historic buildings dating to the turn of the 20th century, or enjoy events and festivities hosted by the center.

BEST BETS

• Busch Wildlife Sanctuary: A nonprofit wildlife facility, the Busch Wildlife Sanctuary cares for the medical needs of more than 4,000 injured animals every year. The sanctuary offers a number of educational programs for the public, including family-friendly weekly events. The media personality Jack Hanna, who hosts the Animal Channel's Jack Hanna's Animal Adventures, has long been an avid supporter of the sanctuary.
• Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse: Completed in 1860, the Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse has been in continuous operation for more than 150 years. Guests can take individual or group tours of the lighthouse, as well as watch a short video of the lighthouse's history. Nearby stand the DuBois Pioneer Home, which dates to the late 1800s, and the Loxahatchee River Historical Museum, with artifacts from prehistoric times to the present day.
• Marine Life Center of Juno Beach: Opened in 1979, the center is dedicated to the care and preservation of sea turtles, including loggerheads and leatherbacks. Visitors can see turtles currently in the center's care and learn about the history of sea turtles along the Florida coast, as well as about other varieties of regional marine life.
• Burt Reynolds and Friends Museum: Opened in 2003, the Burt Reynolds and Friends Museum houses sports and entertainment memorabilia, such as footballs autographed by the likes of Joe Montana and Dan Marino, and film artifacts from Reynold's own movies and those of close friends, such as Jack Lemmon and Elizabeth Taylor. Reynolds has long been a resident of Jupiter and a supporter of its arts community. The museum also hosts acting and filmmaking classes and lectures.

SPORTS TEAMS

Both the Florida Marlins and the St. Louis Cardinals, as well as the minor league affiliate teams the Jupiter Hammerheads and Palm Beach Cardinals, hold their spring training in Jupiter, making use of the city's Roger Dean Stadium.

EDUCATION

• Florida Atlantic University's MacArthur Campus and Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College are both located in Jupiter. The FAU Jupiter extension offers business, education, the arts, and humanities as its primary areas of study, and it serves as the location of the nationally renowned Scripps Research Institute, which focuses on state-of-the-art biomedical research.
• Residents can also take advantage of the Palm Beach Atlantic College in West Palm Beach and the Palm Beach Community College, both located 20 miles south of Jupiter.