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is a city in St. Lucie County, Florida, United States. The population of Port St. Lucie was 88,769 at the 2000 census. Port St. Lucie forms part of a metropolitan area called the Port St. Lucie, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area that in 2007 had 400,121 residents.
Port Saint Lucie was a largely uninhabited tract of land south of White City, Florida in the 1950s, composed of a fishing camp, a few farms and businesses near US1. In 1958, with a budget of $50 million, the General Development Corporation (GDC) purchased the River Park development and 40,000 acres along the St. Lucie Fork River. In 1959, the GDC opened its first bridge over the Fork River, allowing for direct automobile access to Port St. Lucie.
By February 25, 1961 there were 250 homes in the new city. The GDC requested the state legislature to incorporate 70 miles 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 21st Century, Port St. Lucie was named the fastest growing city in the United States. There were only about 300 inhabitants in 1970; rapid growth began after 1980, with a population around 15,000 in 1980, and approximately 55,000 in 1990.
In 2007, the housing market began to collapse and unemployment started to rise. As of February 2009, unemployment was at 10 1/2 percent and in 2008, nearly 11,000 homes went into foreclosure. This has prompted the county government to consider declaring itself a disaster area. Doing so would give 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 million or $30 million to spend on building projects: research parks, highways and other infrastructure improvements.