Port St. Lucie, Florida

Port St. Lucie is a city in St. Lucie County, Florida, United States. It is the most populous municipality in the county with a population of 164,603 at the 2010 census due to its rapid growth during the 2000s. It is located 125 miles (201 km) southeast of Orlando.[7][8] In 2019, the United States Census Bureau estimated the city's population at 201,846.[5] The Port St. Lucie Metropolitan Area includes the counties of St. Lucie County & Martin County and as of 2016 had an estimated population of 465,208.[9] Port St. Lucie is also contained within the Miami - Fort Lauderdale - Port St. Lucie Combined Statistical Area with an estimated population of 6,832,588.[10]

Port St. Lucie, Florida
City
City of Port St. Lucie
PGA Golf Club in Port St. Lucie
Motto(s): 
A City for All Ages
Location in St. Lucie County and the state of Florida
U.S. Census Map
Coordinates: 27°16′33″N 80°21′18″W
CountryUnited States
StateFlorida
CountySt. Lucie
Incorporated1961[1]
Government
 • MayorGreg Oravec[2]
Area
 • City120.51 sq mi (312.11 km2)
 • Land118.89 sq mi (307.92 km2)
 • Water1.62 sq mi (4.19 km2)
Elevation
16 ft (5 m)
Population
 • City164,603
 • Estimate 
(2019)[5]
201,846
 • RankUS: 112th
 • Density1,557.18/sq mi (601.23/km2)
 • Urban
376,047 (US: 101st)
 • Metro
438,095 (US: 116th)
Time zoneUTC−05:00 (Eastern (EST))
 • Summer (DST)UTC−04:00 (EDT)
FIPS code12-58715
GNIS feature ID0308089[6]
Websitewww.cityofpsl.com

History

Port St. Lucie was a largely uninhabited tract of land south of White City in the 1950s, composed of a fishing camp, a few farms and businesses near U.S. 1. In 1958, with a budget of $5, the General Development Corporation (GDC) purchased the River Park development and 40,000 acres (160 km2) along the North Fork of the St. Lucie River.[11] In 1959, the GDC opened its first bridge over the St. Lucie River, allowing for direct automobile access to Port St. Lucie.

By February 25, 1961 there were 250 homes in the new city. GDC requested the state legislature to incorporate 70 miles (110 km), along with the River Park settlement, into the City of Port St. Lucie. River Park did not incorporate into the city at the request of its residents. Port St. Lucie became a city on April 27, 1961 with the passage of House Bill No. 953, proposed by State Representative Rupert Smith and approved by Florida Governor C. Farris Bryant.

In the early 1990s, Core Communities (CC), acquired and began planning what would become St. Lucie West. Originally, St. Lucie West was to have contained about 14,000 homes over a 20-year period on 7 square miles (18 km2). But after realizing the community's strategic position, they began developing it into more than just a residential area. CC began building business sectors and places of entertainment and leisure. That resulted in 7,000 jobs being brought to the small town, helping it into its boom during most of the early 2000s.

In 2006, CC started development of its newest community, Tradition. The community, which sits west of the Interstate 95 interchange with Gatlin Blvd., was a large cattle ranch before CC began to develop it. There they built around 13,000,000 square feet (1,200,000 m2) of commercial area, and room for over 18,000 residences. According to CC's website, Tradition is the largest fully entitled residential development area from the tip of Interstate 95 to the Canada–U.S. border. It is modeled after a 1950s-era town. According to its website, Tradition Square, the town center of the community, holds festivities year-round. It was also chosen as the site of HGTV's Green Home 2009, and one of America's best 100 communities.

In 2007, the housing market began to collapse and unemployment started to rise. As of February 2009, unemployment was at 10½ percent and in 2008, nearly 11,000 homes went into foreclosure. This prompted the county government to consider declaring itself a disaster area. Doing so would have given county administrators access to $17 million in county emergency reserve funds. That money, combined with a transportation fund and other accounts, would give St. Lucie $20 – $30 million to spend on building projects: research parks, highways and other infrastructure improvements.[12]

In 2008, Tradition and Core Communities welcomed the Florida Center of Innovation (later renamed Tradition Center for Innovation), a 150-acre privately-owned research park dedicated to drug discovery, immunology and medical devices, and healthcare. TCI initially composed of Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies, Oregon Health and Science University’s Vaccine and Gene Therapy Institute (VGTI), Martin Health System Hospital (Tradition Medical Center), and Mann Research Center. In 2015, VGTI shut down their TCI facility, and Mann Research Center soon followed. As of 2019, only Torrey Pines and Tradition Medical Center remain in TCI.

In 2017, TAMCO, a subsidiary of City Electric Supply, a family-owned electrical wholesale business, created plans with the Port St. Lucie City Council to construct a $38 million, 400,000 square foot manufacturing and distribution center located in the Tradition Commerce Park.[13] Construction of the TAMCO facility began in 2018 and was completed in late 2019.[14]

Demographics
Historical population
CensusPop.%±
1970330—
198014,6904,351.5%
199055,866280.3%
200088,76958.9%
2010164,60385.4%
Est. 2019201,846[5]22.6%
U.S. Decennial Census[15]
Port St. Lucie Demographics
2010 CensusPort St. LucieSt. Lucie CountyFlorida
Total population164,603277,78918,801,310
Population, percent change, 2000 to 2010+85.4%+44.2%+17.6%
Population density1,444.5/sq mi485.7/sq mi350.6/sq mi
White or Caucasian (including White Hispanic)74.3%71.8%75.0%
(Non-Hispanic White or Caucasian)61.6%61.2%57.9%
Black or African-American16.3%19.1%16.0%
Hispanic or Latino (of any race)18.4%16.6%22.5%
Asian2.0%1.6%2.4%
Native American or Native Alaskan0.4%0.4%0.4%
Pacific Islander or Native Hawaiian0.1%0.1%0.1%
Two or more races (Multiracial)3.0%2.6%2.5%
Some Other Race3.9%4.4%3.6%

As of 2000, 31.6% of households had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.8% were married couples living together, 10.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.1% were non-families. Of all households 18.2% were made up of individuals, and 8.9% had someone living alone who was aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.60 and the average family size was 2.94. As of the 2010 census the population was 61.6% non-Hispanic white, 15.6% non-Hispanic black, 0.8% Hispanic black, 0.4% Native American, 0.5% Asian Indian, 1.5% other Asian, 0.1% Pacific Island, 0.4% non-Hispanics reporting some other race alone, 3.0% from two or more races, and 17.6% non-black Hispanics.

In 2000, the city's population was spread out, with 24.3% under the age of 18, 5.9% from 18 to 24, 28.1% from 25 to 44, 22.8% from 45 to 64, and 18.8% who were 65 or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.4 males.

In 2000, the median income for a household in the city was $40,509, and the median income for a family was $44,162. Males had a median income of $18,730 versus $16,702 for females. The per capita income for the city was $18,059. About 15.7% of families and 17.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.1% of those under age 18 and 9.8% of those age 65 or over.

Languages

As of 2000, 88.05% of residents spoke English as their first language, while 6.59% spoke Spanish, 1.34% spoke Italian, 1.00% spoke French, 0.60% spoke German, and 0.50% spoke Haitian Creole as their mother tongue. In total, 11.94% of the total population spoke languages other than English.[16]

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 76.7 sq mi (198.6 km2), of which 75.5 sq mi (195.6 km2) is land and 1.2 sq mi (3.0 km2) (1.50%) is water.[17]

Climate

Port St. Lucie is located in the broad transition zone between a humid subtropical climate, which dominates Central Florida, and within the northern extent of the tropical climate typical of South Florida. Summers are usually hot, with high temperatures averaging in the low 90s. Winters are usually mild to warm, with average high temperatures in the 70s. The average yearly precipitation is around 53.5 in.

Port St. Lucie was hit directly by Hurricane Frances (as a Category 2 hurricane) on September 4, 2004, and by Hurricane Jeanne (as a Category 3 hurricane) on September 26, 2004. On October 24, 2005 Port St. Lucie was hit directly by Hurricane Wilma (as a Category 3 hurricane).

Climate data for Port Saint Lucie, Florida
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °F (°C) 89
(32)		 90
(32)		 92
(33)		 97
(36)		 98
(37)		 101
(38)		 101
(38)		 98
(37)		 99
(37)		 96
(36)		 92
(33)		 89
(32)		 101
(38)
Average high °F (°C) 73
(23)		 75
(24)		 79
(26)		 82
(28)		 86
(30)		 90
(32)		 92
(33)		 91
(33)		 90
(32)		 86
(30)		 81
(27)		 76
(24)		 83
(28)
Average low °F (°C) 51
(11)		 52
(11)		 56
(13)		 61
(16)		 67
(19)		 71
(22)		 72
(22)		 72
(22)		 72
(22)		 67
(19)		 60
(16)		 54
(12)		 63
(17)
Record low °F (°C) 23
(−5)		 28
(−2)		 26
(−3)		 33
(1)		 45
(7)		 56
(13)		 64
(18)		 61
(16)		 60
(16)		 42
(6)		 31
(−1)		 26
(−3)		 23
(−5)
Average precipitation inches (mm) 2.7
(69)		 2.9
(76)		 3.3
(83)		 2.8
(70)		 4.4
(111)		 5.8
(148)		 5.8
(147)		 6.4
(161)		 7.8
(198)		 5.8
(148)		 3.5
(89)		 2.3
(58)		 53.5
(1,359)
Source: Weather Channel[18]

Transportation

Port St. Lucie is served by the St. Lucie Transportation Planning Organization (TPO).[19] The TPO is a Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO), a federally mandated and federally funded transportation policy-making organization responsible for transportation planning, programming, and financing of State and Federal Transportation Funds for the City of Port St. Lucie. The TPO is governed by a TPO Board, which is composed of elected officials, representatives from the St. Lucie County School Board, and representatives from Community Transit, a division of The Council on Aging of St. Lucie, Inc.[20] The original bus system started out as a demand response service bus in the 1990s, it only served St. Lucie County. Soon it expanded to a fixed route system, going to predetermined locations along a route. On June 3, 2002, the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) approved funding, expanding the bus service to Martin County, and became the Treasure Coast Connector.[21]

Crosstown Parkway, completed in October 2019, is an east/west highway connecting Interstate 95 (State Road 9) with U.S. 1 (State Road 5). Along with being a much-needed high-capacity third crossing of the North Fork of the St. Lucie River (Port St. Lucie Blvd. to the south, and Prima Vista Blvd. to the north being the other two), it is also the location of Florida's first superstreet intersection — also known as a "restricted-crossing U-turn intersection" — at Crosstown Parkway and Floresta Drive.

Major highways

Florida's Turnpike (State Road 91) is the only toll road in St. Lucie County, which is the northernmost place where the Turnpike and Interstate 95 run close to each other. The Turnpike has 2 exits within Port St. Lucie's city limits: Exit 142 (Port St. Lucie Boulevard (SR 716)) and exit 138 (Becker Road). For all of its route through Port St. Lucie, the Turnpike is east of I-95. The Turnpike is 4 lanes wide (2 in each direction), and provides access to Orlando to the north, and Miami to the southeast. The Port St. Lucie/Ft. Pierce Service Plaza is also located in Port St. Lucie.

Interstate 95 (State Road 9) is in the western portion of the city. It is 6 lanes wide (3 in each direction), and provides access to Jacksonville to the north, and Miami to the south. Exits within PSL's city limits are exit 126 (CR 712/Midway Road), exit 121 (St. Lucie West Blvd.), exit 120 (Crosstown Parkway), exit 118 (Gatlin Blvd./Tradition Pkwy.), and exit 114 (Becker Rd.).[22]

U.S. 1 (State Road 5) almost runs parallel to Interstate 95, and runs from Key West to Jacksonville, where it crosses into Georgia at Folkston. Its route through the city extends from the Martin/St. Lucie County line to the south to Midway Road at the northern limits of the city. This stretch of US 1 contains mostly strip malls and shopping centers. On the southeast corner of US 1's intersection with Walton Road/Veterans Memorial Blvd., is the MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Event Center, which was once envisioned as the center of the city's 'downtown'. As of today, the area around the Event Center remains mostly undeveloped.

Sports
PGA Village golf complex

The city is home to New York Mets spring training, the St. Lucie Mets Florida State League team and the Gulf Coast League Mets rookie level team in the Gulf Coast League. All three play at Clover Park. The city also has two soccer clubs, Mako Soccer Club and Port St. Lucie Soccer Club, that field both competitive and recreational teams at several age levels. The PGA Village golf complex includes 54 holes of golf as well as a learning center and a historical center. The city also hosted the Ginn sur Mer Classic at Tesoro, the city's first ever PGA Tour event, in 2007.[23] Port St. Lucie is also the home of the 2009 & 2011 National Champions in Pop Warner football. The 2009 Jr. Midget team went 16 - 0 en route to winning the Pop Warner National Championship at Disney's Wide World of Sports Complex. The 2011 Jr. Peewee team went 17 - 0 in winning the National Championship. The Treasure Coast Tritons soccer team also play in the city at the South County Stadium, starting in the 2019 season.[24]

Education

Port St. Lucie is served by St. Lucie County Public Schools, which is a school district which serves the rest of St. Lucie County, FL. In Port St. Lucie, there are six elementary schools, seven K–8 schools, three high schools, and three post-secondary institutions. The three public high schools in Port St. Lucie are Port St. Lucie High School, St. Lucie West Centennial High School, and Treasure Coast High School. The two post-secondary institutions operated in Port St. Lucie are Indian River State College and Keiser University. There are also a number of public Charter Schools throughout the city: Palm Pointe Educational Research School at Tradition, Renaissance Charter School at Tradition, Renaissance Charter School of St. Lucie, Somerset Academy St. Lucie, and Somerset College Preparatory Academy.

Government

City Council

  • Mayor Gregory J. Oravec
  • Vice Mayor Shannon Martin-District 3
  • Councilwoman Stephanie Morgan-District 1
  • Councilman John Carvelli-District 2
  • Councilwoman Jolien Caraballo-District 4

City Manager

  • Russ Blackburn

Notable people

A fictional version of Port St. Lucie is the setting for JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Part 6: Stone Ocean.

Parts of the James Bond film, Moonraker, was shot in Port St. Lucie on the St. Lucie River.[25]

Sister City

Wuxing, China [26]

References
  1. Reeder, Cathy (April 13, 2011). "First history book about Port St. Lucie encompasses 50 years" (PDF). Port St. Lucie Historical Society. Retrieved June 21, 2018.
  2. Nicole Rodriguez. "Greg Oravec wins Port St. Lucie mayor's race - TC Palm". TCP. Retrieved February 28, 2015.
  3. "2016 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 7, 2017.
  4. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 1, 2014.
  5. "Population and Housing Unit Estimates". Retrieved May 21, 2020.
  6. "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. October 25, 2007. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
  7. "Orlando to Port St. Lucie". Orlando to Port St. Lucie.
  8. "Miami to Port St. Lucie". Miami to Port St. Lucie.
  9. "Port St. Lucie, FL Metro Area". Data USA. Retrieved September 30, 2018.
  10. "Census profile: Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Port St. Lucie, FL CSA". Census Reporter. Retrieved September 30, 2018.
  11. "The New Pioneers". Port St. Lucie Historical Society. Archived from the original on October 5, 2008. Retrieved October 1, 2019.
  12. "Hard-Hit Boomtown Considers Emergency Measures". NPR.org. February 18, 2009. Retrieved February 28, 2015.
  13. "Port St. Lucie eyes $38 million City Electric Supply facility, 50 new jobs". TCPalm. Retrieved September 30, 2018.
  14. "TAMCO Group groundbreaking lights way for Tradition Center for Commerce". TCPalm. Retrieved September 30, 2018.
  15. "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
  16. "Data Center Results". apps.mla.org.
  17. "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. February 12, 2011. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
  18. "Average Weather for Port Saint Lucie, FL - Temperature and Precipitation". Retrieved April 8, 2009.
  19. "St Lucie TPO". stlucietpo.org. Retrieved February 28, 2015.
  20. "COASL: Our Services - Transportation". coasl.com. Retrieved February 28, 2015.
  21. "Treasure Coast Connector: Home". treasurecoastconnector.com. Retrieved February 28, 2015.
  22. Laurie K. Blandford. "Becker Road interchange should make things easier for Port St. Lucie residents". TCP. Retrieved February 28, 2015.
  23. PGATOUR.COM - Ginn Resorts to host PGA TOUR event Archived October 31, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  24. "North County United Becomes Treasure Coast Tritons Ahead Of 2019 Season". USL 2. Sports Engine, Inc. Retrieved December 11, 2019.
  25. Kenyon, Maureen. "Port St. Lucie, Florida: 10 things you might not know about Florida's eighth biggest city". TCPalm. Treasure Coast Newspapers. Retrieved December 14, 2019.
  26. Erazo, Christin. "Port St. Lucie gets a sister". TCPalm. Retrieved June 1, 2020.
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