PSL has spent decades searching for a downtown. Could a new vision finally create one?

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. (CBS12) — For more than two decades, Port St. Lucie leaders have talked about creating a downtown.

The city has grown rapidly, reaching nearly 270,000 residents and becoming one of Florida’s largest cities. Census data show Port St. Lucie’s population has increased about 31% since 2020.

But despite that growth, some residents say the city still lacks something many communities take for granted: a central gathering place.

“No, I don’t see a downtown area,” resident Ronald Hemphill said. “We have to travel to West Palm to go to the restaurants, the trendy places, stuff like that.”

Hemphill moved to Port St. Lucie from New York during the pandemic. He said he enjoys living in the city but believes a recognizable downtown could help give Port St. Lucie an identity of its own.

“They have a downtown, every borough has a hipster area,” Hemphill said. “I think it’ll do well.”

Why doesn’t Port St. Lucie have a traditional downtown?

It is a question that comes up frequently among residents.

Dan Toback, who runs the popular SLC Scanner Facebook page, said the city has several places where residents gather for dining, shopping and entertainment, but no single area that functions as a traditional downtown.

“We don’t have what I would describe as a formal downtown right now,” Toback said. “We have several hotspots that people go to for entertainment … but we don’t have a place that anybody can call home that’s like a formal downtown.”

City leaders say the reason is rooted in Port St. Lucie’s history.

Unlike many Florida communities that developed around a railroad, waterfront or historic commercial district, Port St. Lucie began largely as a residential community.

“This city was created really as a bedroom community,” city spokesperson Scott Samples said. “We’ve had to kind of go in over the last 25 years or so and try to retrofit what would be more of a traditional city design.”

Josh Steppling, a Port St. Lucie native, real estate broker and founder of TreasureCoast.com, said the city’s beginnings continue to shape its development.

“Port Saint Lucie started off really as a subdivision … and it’s grown out from subdivision to subdivision to subdivision,” Steppling said. “So the question really is, where’s the third place? There’s a lot of places to go. Are there places to be?”

One downtown — or several destinations?

Today, Port St. Lucie leaders are taking a different approach.

Instead of focusing entirely on creating one traditional downtown, the city is highlighting several destination areas spread across Port St. Lucie.

Those include:

St. Lucie West: Home to New York Mets spring training, restaurants, shopping and entertainment.Tradition: A live-work-play community with shopping, dining, events and additional entertainment planned.The Port District: A riverfront destination featuring parks, a boardwalk, events and plans for waterfront dining.Walton & One: A planned walkable redevelopment featuring retail, restaurants, housing and the MIDFLORIDA Event Center.

Samples said city leaders increasingly view the areas as separate destinations serving different parts of Port St. Lucie.

“We’re able to serve quadrants of the city in different ways,” he said.

While other cities may have one centralized downtown, Samples said Port St. Lucie’s size and development pattern have pushed leaders to consider multiple options.

“This is the place where downtown could be,” Samples said of the city’s redevelopment efforts. “While some places may have one location, we’ve looked at a lot of different opportunities to serve a really growing and disparate group of residents and visitors.”

Walton & One could become a major hub

Of the four areas, Walton & One stands out because of the city’s long and complicated effort to develop the property around the MIDFLORIDA Event Center.

Public records show roughly $77 million was invested over the years in infrastructure connected to the original City Center project.

Now, the city’s long-term redevelopment plans call for restaurants, retail, housing and entertainment in the area, along with a proposed soccer stadium.

Toback said the project has become a major topic of conversation among residents.

“The hot topic is Walton & One, which is where the soccer stadium is going to be going in,” he said. “What a lot of people don’t know is that around the stadium there are plans to put a lot of restaurants, hotels and other commercial locations for businesses to move in.”

“Walton and One is looking like the anchor for those plans so far,” Toback added.

Steppling also sees the area as a significant opportunity for the city.

“There should be restaurant retail, there should be high-density residential, it should be walkable,” he said. “There should be a place where all ages can be.”

In April, CBS 12 News reported that Mayor Shannon Martin showcased the redevelopment project to federal officials as the city sought additional investment and redevelopment funding for the area.

Samples said the city is planning well beyond its immediate growth.

“We’re looking not just this year or five years from now or 10 years from now,” he said. “In many cases, we’re thinking, what does the city need to do now to prepare for 20 years, 50 years, 100 years from now?”

Whether Port St. Lucie ultimately develops one recognizable downtown or continues building several destination districts remains an open question.

But with the city growing rapidly and major redevelopment plans moving forward, the debate over where — and what — Port St. Lucie’s downtown should be is likely to continue.

The mayor’s race is headed to a November runoff, and the future of a downtown is also part of the conversation among voters. CBS 12 News will continue asking the candidates how they envision Port St. Lucie’s growth and redevelopment.