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Building A New Catholic City In Florida

Posted by: Chris Steins

23 July 2007 - 1:00pm

Tom Monaghan, the founder of Domino's Pizza, has built a Catholic college and a Catholic-focused community in Ave Maria, Florida. The 5,000-acre community will include 11,000 housing units, 1.2 million s.f. of mixed use space, and a 55-foot crucifix.

"Ave Maria has not been without controversy. The Florida American Civil Liberties Union has threatened to sue if the town bans birth control, as Monaghan suggested in a speech. Catholic educators say he could have found better ways to reach out than to create a town where single-family home prices range from $256,900 to $481,900.

...The town and university will operate independently but the Catholic influence is hard to miss. Streets bear names like Assisi and Annunciation. The town center holds a cathedral-size chapel based on a design Monaghan sketched himself. Atop it is a 13-foot-high cross, the highest point in the town."

Full Story: Birth of clean town: Ave Maria
Source: USA Today, July 23, 2007
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These practices are also inequitable since they force non-drivers to subsidize parking costs, reduce travel options for non-drivers, and reduce housing affordability.
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