Florida county tops growth chart

PALM COAST, Fla. -- In northeast Florida's Flagler County, where warm ocean breezes sweep across thousands of acres of buildable land, the Sun Belt population boom is deafening.

So many students are enrolling in the county's schools that the school department recently announced plans to open one new school every year -- for the next 15 years.

A new elementary school and high school were built last year, and the elementary school, which was designed for 1,200 students, had an opening-day enrollment of 1,900.

``On any given day, we can have 25 to 30 children show up in our office to enroll," said Riza Cohen, assistant superintendent for instruction for the Flagler County schools. ``We recruit teachers year-round. We hire over 200 a year. I hired 13 in one night -- after school began."

In each of the last two years, this semi-rural seaside area has been the fastest-growing county in the United States. Located on the Atlantic coast between historic St. Augustine and spring break/NASCAR hot spot Daytona Beach, Flagler County also is in commuting range of Jacksonville and Orlando.

``It is in a very advantageous location," said Stefan Rayer, a demographer for the University of Florida's Bureau of Economic and Business Research.

The rapid residential growth has had a dramatic impact on the landscape, which for years was dominated by farms, woodlands, and swamps. Now, subdivisions stretch for miles, separated by divided parkways.

``Traffic is a big problem," said Jerome Full, a retiree and former city councilor.

Environmentalists worry that the new homes and waterfront developments in Flagler County are encroaching on wildlife habitats. Manatees are threatened by new docks and other development on the Intracoastal Waterway, according to Sarah Owen, planning director for the Florida Wildlife Federation. She said new homes in the northwest part of the county are destroying habitat for black bears, wild boars, and the endangered Florida panther.

``If there isn't proper planning, this biodiversity will be lost," Owen said.

Like much of Florida, Flagler County is drawing residents from other parts of the country, according to David Lusby, vice president of Palm Coast Holdings Inc., the principal developer in the area. ``The other thing that's happening is that people are moving here from other parts of Florida -- places that have become congested, like Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties," he said.

According to the US Census Bureau, Flagler County's population jumped 10.7 percent between July 2004 and July 2005. In the preceding 12 months, its growth rate was 10.1 percent. Over a five-year period, the county's population has increased 53 percent.

The second-fastest-growing county in the country last year was Lyon County, Nev., near Reno. Third was Kendall County, Ill., outside Chicago.

Flagler County's very high growth rate is due, in part, to its small population base -- a modest influx of residents produces a big percentage change. According to census estimates, the county added 7,394 residents in the last year, boosting the population to 76,410. In absolute numbers, the county's population growth is 91st nationwide, behind neighboring St. John's and Volusia counties.

To keep up with the growth, county government launched a building boom of its own, expanding the road network and utilities, and constructing schools and other government buildings. Money for schools comes, in part, from a fee imposed on developers. As a short-term solution, the county has added portable classrooms to existing schools. The Belle Terre Elementary School, which opened in August, has 30 portable classrooms already. School officials estimate that more than a quarter of the system's elementary students are taught in portable classrooms.

The county's rapid growth has been concentrated in the planned community of Palm Coast -- one of five cities in Flagler County. The others are the smaller communities of Flagler Beach, Bunnell, Beverly Beach, and Marineland -- which are all seeing growth but not on the scale of Palm Coast. The Census Bureau last year named Palm Coast the nation's fastest-growing small city after its population jumped from 50,000 to 63,000 in a three-year span.

Much of Palm Coast conforms to the suburban ideal: stylish, one-story homes with two-car garages. While the price of houses varies widely, an attractive home can be found for a little over $200,000.

Robert Preer can be reached at preer@globe.com.