Port St Lucie Celebrates its 45th Birthday!

Port St. Lucie celebrates its 45th birthday this month with a population that is surging toward 150,000.

The recent change has been dramatic. In its first 30 years, the city welcomed 55,000 residents. In the past three years, about 45,000 people moved here. The Census Bureau calls it America's fastest growing city.

That explosive growth is straining city services and relations with its neighbors, igniting political feuds with Martin and St. Lucie counties.

The face of the city also is changing: more families with children, more newcomers from South Florida instead of the Northeast, more diversity.

Port St. Lucie milestones:

1961: On April 21, Port St. Lucie filed for incorporation. Port St. Lucie Boulevard paved from U.S. 1 to Morningside Boulevard.

1970: Census results indicate city's year-round population is 330. The city has only one doctor until 1980.

1980: The city's population jumps to 14,000.

1988: New York Mets training facility opens.

1990: General Development Corp. declares bankruptcy.

1994: The city embarks on a citywide water-sewer project despite criticism about cost.

1999: Early census numbers indicate the city exceeds West Palm Beach by more than 3,000 people.

2001: $20 million in state funds earmarked for the Walton Road Bridge is moved to fund the West Virginia Corridor.

2003: The population tops 100,000.

2004: Fifteen square miles west of Interstate 95 annexed. The area includes a large job corridor along I-95.

2005: Census names Port St. Lucie the fastest-growing large city in the country.

2006: By the city's 45th birthday, the population nears 150,000.