Domino's Founder Grows His Catholic-Friendly Town

After a year, Florida's Ave Maria boasts close to 1K residents
By Nick McMaster,  Newser Staff
Posted Apr 14, 2008 1:55 PM CDT
Domino's Founder Grows His Catholic-Friendly Town
Street signs that read Annunication Circle and John Paul II Blvd are seen at a corner in a town being built called Ave Maria, about 20 miles outside of Naples, Fla. in this July 18, 2007 photo.    (AP Photo/J. Pat Carter)

Almost a year after opening, Domino’s founder Tom Monaghan’s made-to-order Catholic town is growing. Although the 1,000 residents of Ave Maria, Fla., are not exclusively Catholic, the town wears it identity on its sleeve: The only coffee shop plays Mass on TV 24/7, and the bookstores prominently display Vatican, a "papal election board game." The Telegraph pays a visit.

"I'd go crazy if I lived here,” said a student touring Ave Maria University.  "We asked what the students did for entertainment after lectures. They said they had the Pro-Life club and the chastity club." (More Ave Maria stories.)

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