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Port St. Lucie, FL

Population: 175,652
livability score shield 83

Key findings

  • Port St. Lucie has a Livability Score of 83/100, which is considered exceptional
  • Port St. Lucie crime rates are 57% lower than the Florida average
  • Cost of living in Port St. Lucie is 1% higher than the Florida average
  • Port St. Lucie real estate prices are 10% lower than the Florida average
  • Rental prices in Port St. Lucie are 13% higher than the Florida average

Best Places to Live in and Around Port St. Lucie

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Compare Port St. Lucie, FL Livability

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      What do the locals think about Port St. Lucie?

      79%Family friendly 24%Public transit is accessible 45%Walkable to grocery stores 69%Yards are well-kept 41%Lots of parks 48%Walkable to restaurants 59%Friendly neighbors 83%Safe at night 52%Pet friendly 41%Streets have sidewalks 69%A quiet area 59%Sense of community
      Based on 29 votes from AreaVibes users. See all Port St. Lucie poll results.

      How Do You Rate The Livability In Port St. Lucie?

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      Port St. Lucie Real estate & Rental prices

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      Port St. Lucie Demographics

      Population175,652 Median Age41.1 Have Kids (under 18)40%
      See more Port St. Lucie demographic data

      Port St. Lucie, FL

      Staying true to its motto, “A City for All Ages,” Port St. Lucie, Florida, is indeed a vibrant and diverse community. Being only two hours from Orlando, two hours from Miami and Fort Lauderdale, and three hours from Tampa also places it in the middle of many desired suburban locations and major attractions. It is a constantly-growing urban area but has not lost a feeling of the “real Florida" with its small-town atmosphere and avoidance of city traffic.

      Port St. Lucie is situated on the Atlantic coast in the heart of Florida's Treasure Coast, which is the name given to the coastal regions of St. Lucie, Martin, and Indian River counties. The name commemorates a Spanish Treasure Fleet that was lost in a 1715 hurricane.

      Incorporated in 1961, it has an area of 120.51 square miles, which is 118.89 square miles of land and 1.62 square miles of water. Residents and visitors can paddle the rivers, hike environmental preserves, ride horses on the beaches, and other outdoor activities. They can play championship golf or go to the Fort Pierce Jai-Alai, the "fastest game on Earth" at one of the few remaining Florida frontons.

      The Port St. Lucie Civic Center is an elegant facility with 100,000 square feet dedicated to the hosting of social, business, trade shows in the Ruby Conference Hall, conferences, meetings, various classes, and numerous recreation and sporting events. The beautifully-appointed Emerald Ballroom and the Plaza Boardwalk outdoor patio area, overlooking a pond and fountains, is an outstanding setting for a wedding ceremony and reception or a prom or any kind of special family or corporate gathering. There is also an Art Gallery, an outdoor Martin Health System Village Square and Stage, a gym, and racquetball courts. The Center even holds a summer camp for the children.

      The Treasure Coast Model Railroad Club opens on Tuesday evenings from 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM and on Saturdays from 10:00 AM to 12:00 Noon so that the public can go back in time and marvel at the remarkable and lovingly-recreated workmanship of model railroad enthusiasts. There are various setups by the builders of model trains and miniature towns with old-time depots and advertising signs. Club members tell lots of stories and spend time with visitors. No admission is charged, but they do ask for donations.

      The JW Corbett Wildlife Management Area Trails near nearby Indiantown include the 1.2-mile Hungryland Slough Boardwalk and Trail where you explore the usually inaccessible cypress swamp. The trail begins in slash pine flatwoods. Along the boardwalk are a variety of trees and plants and 13 species of ferns. The Corbett portion is foot traffic only with no vehicles, bicycles, or horses allowed.

      Top Rated Schools in Port St. Lucie

      Name Grades Students Proficiency
      Mosaic Digital Academy Upper School (St. Lucie Virtual Franc6 - 1211780%
      Fau/Slcsd Palm Pointe Educational Research School @ TraditioKG - 81,40874%
      Morningside Elementary SchoolPK - 557670%
      West Gate K-8 SchoolPK - 81,32564%
      St. Lucie West K-8 SchoolKG - 81,34064%
      Somerset College Preparatory Academy6 - 1268563%
      Floresta Elementary SchoolPK - 561760%
      Rivers Edge Elementary SchoolPK - 566359%
      See all Port St. Lucie schools

      The best places in Florida

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      Port St. Lucie Reviews

      Write a review about Port St. Lucie Tell people what you like or don't like about Port St. Lucie…
      Review Port St. Lucie
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      Port St. Lucie Use to be nice
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      Attractions7/10
      Community6/10
      Nightlife3/10
      Dining4/10
      Shopping6/10
      Port St. Lucie use to be a nice place to live. It use to have affordable housing and a great community. People use to know each other and you couldn't go any where without running into someone you knew. The schools were nice and laid back with plenty of things for the kids to do. These days it is a shadow of its former self.
      A lot of things have changed in port st lucie over the course of the last 10 years. After the recession Port St. Lucie was gasping for its next breathe of fresh air. A town that had been founded for its retirement communities and family friendly environment was found to no longer have those people living there. They had all moved away or died. The people advertising Port St. Lucie however failed to see this and still kept on throwing that hook out there trying to find new victims. The thing is Port St. Lucie is no longer a retirement city or a family friendly city. It is just another heartless, hopeless, over marketed slum just like every city south of it in florida all the way down to the keys. It has been filled to the brim by greedy home builders and worthless politicians who do nothing but line their pockets with the money of lobbyists and developers.
      Reasons why Port St. Lucie is like a dying beached whale are. For one the population in the city exploded so fast that the City planners and administrators couldn't keep up. When they should have been developing road systems and ways to relieve traffic they spent the money foolishly on other projects so now people drive 80 mph down the back roads and neighborhood streets where kids play in order to elude the traffic. There is no more sense of community because every one who lives there is either from South Florida bringing their ghetto mentality or some other state while the people who have lived there look on in disgust at what was once a nice area. There is nothing for anyone to do but go to the beach. So drugs are rampent and overdoses are common. So much so that the great city leaders and county leaders decided it was a good idea to let a multi million dollar drug rehab institute be built on one of the most pristine portions of beach that the county had to offer.
      In all honesty Port St. Lucie is one step away from being the next garbage society associated with Southern Florida. People come here from all over the country and bring their trash with them and then they don't understand why the city they moved to goes down in the dumps. But hey if you moved here you are stuck here now. All those high paying gas station jobs and walmart are the best employers around here. Your money from selling your house somewhere else will run out and you will be stuck here just like everyone else.
      • Anonymous (Current resident)
      • May 24, 2019
      • 13 -13
      Port St. Lucie, Florida - A Golfer's Paradise
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      Attractions9/10
      Community9/10
      Nightlife9/10
      Dining9/10
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      The city of Port St. Lucie Florida is conveniently located in southern mainland region of St. Lucie County. Port St. Lucie is home to more than one hundred and fifty thousand people, thirty parks, and the New York Mets spring training camp. The biggest attraction in Port St. Lucie is the world renowned PGA Village. Golf enthusiasts as well as professionals flock to the only public PGA-America owned center.

      Upon moving to the west coast of Florida, the PGA Village was the first weekend vacation my parents partook. My mother was excited and impressed with the idea of golfing on a PGA course much less vacationing in a true PGA location. Golf Digest had this to say about the PGA Village, "Tom Fazio's Ryder and Wanamaker Courses provide distinctly different playing experiences, and the Pete Dye-designed Dye Course interweaves a slight British Isles feel into the beautiful Florida landscape." My mother even clipped the story! There are five courses to choose from and every one is challenging, my father proclaimed. Not one aspect of golf was excluded. Activities included clinics and lessons, golf pro shop, and a PGA school. The weekend was astounding. That Hilton Garden Inn offered a spectacular view, wonderful service, and golf fees were included in the cost.

      Golf activist would certainly agree that the city of Port St. Lucie is a golfer's paradise!
      • Anonymous
      • Jul 07, 2010
      • 4 -4
      Reason for reporting
      Source: The Port St. Lucie, FL data and statistics displayed above are derived from the 2016 United States Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS).
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