Only In Florida
My drive to work every day is only eight miles, but it's eight very diverse miles. I go through the Cape, where Cory and I live, which is an enormous suburb. Then, I drive through what we call "NoFo," another suburb, but not quite as affluent (not that the Cape is particularly ritzy).
NoFo is kind of strange. It's going through a renewal of sorts, so in about five minutes, I drive through some normal middle-class neighborhoods, a huge subdivision under construction (average home cost: $450,000), a little riverfront area where they're building a new high-rise "yacht club," and a pretty run-down area rife with trailer parks (and no, I don't mean "manufactured homes." I mean trailers. If these people really wanted to, they could hook their houses up to their trucks and drive away.)
Then I cross the bridge into "The Fort." The downtown area is small, but very cute. There's tons of construction along the riverfront, with high-rise condos popping up everywhere. Because the downtown area is all one-way streets, I have to drive about two miles out of my way to get to work. I drive through a cute little neighborhood called "Dean Park," and right after that, I go through a pretty run-down area that's on the cusp of a scary neighborhood. Then, I turn left on another one-way street, and I'm back on the riverfront with all the luxury high-rise condos. I work right across the street from some of the newer construction.
I'm telling you all of this because it leads up to today's "Only In Florida." We live in one of the fastest growing cities in the Sunshine State. Only Port St. Lucie is expanding at a quicker pace. And while there is already a housing glut, thanks to soaring real estate prices and low wages, developers keep building more and more and more high-end housing.
One of those communities is being built about a mile from our apartment. In addition to a high-rise, they're also building some parks and a yacht club in the surrounding area. For months, I've been driving by a pretty big chunk of land that's all dirt. Then, one day, a sign appeared:
That's right. "Paradise is Nature Preserved."
Is this some kind of a joke?
Irony, thy home is Florida.
NoFo is kind of strange. It's going through a renewal of sorts, so in about five minutes, I drive through some normal middle-class neighborhoods, a huge subdivision under construction (average home cost: $450,000), a little riverfront area where they're building a new high-rise "yacht club," and a pretty run-down area rife with trailer parks (and no, I don't mean "manufactured homes." I mean trailers. If these people really wanted to, they could hook their houses up to their trucks and drive away.)
Then I cross the bridge into "The Fort." The downtown area is small, but very cute. There's tons of construction along the riverfront, with high-rise condos popping up everywhere. Because the downtown area is all one-way streets, I have to drive about two miles out of my way to get to work. I drive through a cute little neighborhood called "Dean Park," and right after that, I go through a pretty run-down area that's on the cusp of a scary neighborhood. Then, I turn left on another one-way street, and I'm back on the riverfront with all the luxury high-rise condos. I work right across the street from some of the newer construction.
I'm telling you all of this because it leads up to today's "Only In Florida." We live in one of the fastest growing cities in the Sunshine State. Only Port St. Lucie is expanding at a quicker pace. And while there is already a housing glut, thanks to soaring real estate prices and low wages, developers keep building more and more and more high-end housing.
One of those communities is being built about a mile from our apartment. In addition to a high-rise, they're also building some parks and a yacht club in the surrounding area. For months, I've been driving by a pretty big chunk of land that's all dirt. Then, one day, a sign appeared:
That's right. "Paradise is Nature Preserved."
Is this some kind of a joke?
Irony, thy home is Florida.
Labels: Only In Florida
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