Port St. Lucie
Port St. Lucie — “A City of All Ages” has been designated among the top ten fastest growing cities in the nation by the U.S. Census office and often named the 3rd fastest growing city in America by a multitude of media. A large city with a “small town feeling,” Port St. Lucie offers business opportunities and a wonderful lifestyle for any economic level from the very modest to the most discriminating. The City has ranked among the top ten safest cities in America for many years and is certified as the safest city in the southeastern United States with a metropolitan area population approaching 400,000. In the 2000 census, it was less than 100,000.
While Port St. Lucie was incorporated only in 1961, the rich history of the area dates back to 1891 when John Enos Fultz, Jr. founded Spruce Bluff on what is now Blakeslee Creek on the North Fork of the St. Lucie River. They first planted pineapples and citrus, but the winter frosts affected their crops. In the 1890s, the Crews family opened a sawmill. Indian Mounds and a cemetery are still a part of Spruce Bluff. The area later was owned by large landholders who grew citrus and raised cattle on very large ranches.
For many years, Port St. Lucie has been called a “bedroom community,” and now is rapidly evolving into a dynamic and diverse city. The lack of planned growth in the past has created a flurry of aggressive redevelopment and attention to future growth. With no downtown urban district, the city is undertaking major development of just that — “East Lake Village” will be nestled east of U.S, 1 as Port St. Lucie’s scenic town center. Its “Main Street” will feature tree-lined, pedestrian-friendly streets with quaint lampposts and luscious Florida landscape. East Lake Village will offer fine restaurants, retail shops, businesses and residences with spacious public spaces including and open air stage band shell for entertainment. As so many communities on the Treasure Coast, East Lake Village.
Other communities within Port St. Lucie include the St. Lucie West, PGA Village, the Town of Tradition and the new upscale Tesoro. Each community offers unique and interesting features with wonderful neighborhoods with schools, health care, entertainment, recreation, shopping and commerce offering a superior quality of life unlike many cities where new residents are finding it a wonderful place to live, work and play.
The opportunities for recreation in Port St. Lucie abound. St. Lucie West is home to the New York Mets, and St. Lucie Mets for minor league baseball. PGA Village is home to the National PGA Learning Center and two of the finest golf course anywhere. Private and pubic golf courses are scattered throughout the city. The National PGA Tournament will be played at Tesoro in October of 2007.
Port St. Lucie is home to some of the best examples of the new trend of “New Urbanism” where planned growth is first and foremost and communities are developed to be all encompassing in residence, business, entertainment, education and total quality of life within a single community.
The newest trend in economic development in Port St. Lucie is directed at research-oriented businesses. Torrey Pines Institute of Molecular Studies is the city’s newest addition, coupled with educational research at the new Florida Atlantic University K-8 School in the Town of Tradition are just the beginning. The entire Treasure Coast is expected to attract a multitude of research facilities and ancillary businesses needed to support those endeavors creating a very large clean industry job market with higher paying jobs.
