Land & Development

Historically, land in Florida represented both place and vision. To Americans, a grove or beach cottage involved an exchange of capital, but it also involved a spiritual investment, with the hopes that a tropical climate and sea breezes might rejuvenate dreams.

Since the end of World War II, Florida has maintained and sustained an almost continuous land boom. From the smallest population in the South in 1940, Florida now is a megastate, the fourth largest state in America with a population of 18.5 million residents. An extraordinary collection of businessmen, developers and speculators gambled that one could convert sand dunes and swamp into retirement communities and dreams. Instant communities emerged. Today, Cape Coral is the largest Gulf Coast city south of Tampa, while on the East Coast, Port St. Lucie is the largest city between Jacksonville and Fort Lauderdale. Booming cities such as Weston, Pembroke Pines, Miramar, The Villages, Spring Hill, and Lehigh Acres did not even exist in 1950.