PORT ST LUCIE, Fla. — A major employer is making a footprint in Port St. Lucie, promising hundreds of new jobs.
City officials Thursday broke ground at Legacy Park, a new industrial center along Interstate 95 and Becker Road.
The anchor tenant, FedEx, is set to open a new sortation facility this fall.
An estimated 475 jobs will follow.
"We want opportunity here," said Port St. Lucie Mayor Gregory Oravec. "We want economic prosperity here. We don't want to have to travel somewhere else to work."
The 400-acre stretch of land will soon become an economic engine, housing businesses from different sectors.
"Thousands of jobs, tens of millions, probably hundreds of millions of dollars of investment coming to Port St Lucie," said Oravec.
"It's a great location," said Lenny Vaughn, regional senior manager at FedEx. "We're right in between South Florida and Central Florida."
Brian Bauer, president and CEO of CareerSource Research Coast, said unemployment continues to fall along the Treasure Coast compared to one year ago.
"Our numbers are actually back to normal," said Bauer. "We're pretty close to where we were pre-COVID, pre-pandemic."
"When that FedEx building goes up, it's going to put it on the map instantly here just like Cleveland Clinic has put the northern edge of this development on the map," said Oravec.