HAINES CITY, Fla. (AP) — Not long ago, Polk County’s biggest draw was citrus instead of people. Located between Tampa and Orlando, Florida’s citrus capital produces more boxes of citrus than any other county in the state and has devoted tens of thousands of acres to growing millions of trees.
But last year, more people moved to the county than to any other in the United States, almost 30,000.
Bulldozed citrus groves in recent years made way for housing and big box stores that could one day merge the two metropolitan areas into what has half-jokingly been dubbed, “Orlampa.”
The migration — and property sprawl — reflects a significant kind of growth seen all over the country this decade: the rise of the far-flung exurbs.
Outlying communities on the outer margins of metro areas — some as far away as 60 miles (97 kilometers) from a city’s center — had some of the fastest-growing populations last year, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Those communities are primarily in the South, like Anna on the outskirts of the Dallas-Fort Worth metro area; Fort Mill, South Carolina, outside Charlotte, North Carolina; Lebanon outside Nashville; and Polk County’s Haines City.
For some residents, like Marisol Ortega, commuting to work can take up to an hour and a half one-way. But Ortega, who lives in Haines City about 40 miles (64 kilometers) from her job in Orlando, says it’s worth it.
“I love my job. I love what I do, but then I love coming back home, and it’s more tranquil,” Ortega said.
A pandemic exodus and more
The rapid growth of far-flung exurbs is an after-effect of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the Census Bureau, as rising housing costs drove people further from cities and remote working allowed many to do their jobs from home at least part of the week.
Polk County’s Hispanic population has grown from one-fifth to more than one-quarter of the overall population over the past five years, driven by Puerto Rican migration from the island after 2017’s Hurricane Maria and then from New York during the pandemic.
The county has grown more diverse with the share of non-Hispanic white residents dropping from 61% to 54%, and it has also gotten more educated and wealthier, according to the Census Bureau. Despite the influx of new people, the county’s Republican leanings have remained relatively unchanged.
Yeseria Suero and her family moved from New York to Polk County at the start of the decade after falling in love with the pace of life and affordability during a visit. Still, there were some cultural adjustments: restaurants closing early, barbecue and boiled peanuts everywhere, strangers chatting with her at the grocery store. Suero is now involved with the tight-knit Hispanic community and her two boys are active in sports leagues.