Growth of Black-owned businesses in Port St. Lucie metro area defies easy explanation

Blake Fontenay, Treasure Coast Newspapers
·6 min read
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Larry Lee said his phone started blowing up with calls and text messages soon after the story started airing on Scripps News television stations around the country last month.

The story, headlined "The correlation between integration, successful Black-owned businesses," held up Port St. Lucie as an example of a place where Black-owned businesses are thriving.

Lee, an insurance agent, former state legislator and avid civic booster, was prominently featured in the story, talking about the historical differences between the way Port St. Lucie and Fort Pierce developed.

The story's main premise seemed to be Port St. Lucie, which became a city as the era of segregation was ending, has become more of a haven for Black-owned businesses than its northern neighbor, with a much older history of race relations.

In Lee's eyes, the story was a solid win for both communities because it shined light on progress made by Black-owned businesses in our region.

Michelle Forgue-Jones works on creating curls in her client Melody Creece's hair on Wednesday, March 8, 2023, at her studio in Port St. Lucie. "I got inspired because of the lack of multicultural salons in the area and I thought this area was lacking this and thought it was a great necessity," Forgue-Jones said.
Michelle Forgue-Jones works on creating curls in her client Melody Creece's hair on Wednesday, March 8, 2023, at her studio in Port St. Lucie. "I got inspired because of the lack of multicultural salons in the area and I thought this area was lacking this and thought it was a great necessity," Forgue-Jones said.

"I am still getting text messages from friends I attended college with, telling me it was inspiring to see something positive Blacks are doing, for a change," Lee texed me a few days ago.

I don't disagree with that. The story aired not long after the Martin Luther King Day shooting in a Fort Pierce park that put the city's name in national headlines for less-than-positive reasons.

During my eight-plus year foray into the dark world of being a government communications officer, I learned the value of changing the narrative when a negative story was dominating the news cycle.

Even so, I think the Scripps reporter missed the mark by relying on a faulty assumption. The story cites Brookings Institution research that found Black-owned businesses in the Port St. Lucie area pay higher average salaries than any other region in the country.

I'm familiar with this research. At least I think I know the source the reporter cited.

In an article published Dec. 31, 2020, two Brookings researchers said Census data indicates Black-owned businesses in the Port St. Lucie metro area have higher average salaries ($49,371) than any other metro area in the country.

Here's what the Scripps reporter seems to have overlooked: Port St. Lucie's metro area includes not only Port St. Lucie, but also Fort Pierce, other parts of St. Lucie County and all of Martin County, too.

So based on that data, comparing Port St. Lucie to Fort Pierce isn't an apples-to-apples comparison. It's more like cutting a single apple into pieces, then suggesting one piece of the apple is sweeter than all the rest.

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According to U.S. Census data, the city of Port St. Lucie had an African-American population of 18.2%, as of last July. Fort Pierce had an African-American population of 43.5% at that time.

For comparison, 13.6% of the overall U.S. population is African American.

In neighboring Martin County, the African-American population is a comparatively small 5.6% percent.

These percentages alone don't tell us the complete story. In terms of total population, Port St. Lucie is much larger than Fort Pierce.

Michelle Forgue-Jones (front), owner and stylist at Jones Michelle Studio, and stylist Angie Carr (background) wash their client's hair on Wednesday, March 8, 2023, at their studio in Port St. Lucie. "I think here is an area that is growing a lot," Forgue-Jones said. "We need more versatile stylists like myself, who happens to be of African American descent, so there's opportunity for more black salons that can help with all the clients that want their services in the area."

Port St. Lucie had 397 businesses owned by African Americans or other minorities, compared to 233 for Fort Pierce, according to those same sets of census data.

Of course, none of those numbers really address the more important question in my mind, which is: Why are Black-owned businesses setting up shop in the region, and what's the key to their successes?

For that, there are no quick and obvious answers.

TCPalm columnist Blake Fontenay
TCPalm columnist Blake Fontenay

As I've noted in previous columns, business owners in our region don't have particularly easy access to the state's Black Business Loan Program. The program is scarcely marketed in this part of the state, and there isn't an administrator anywhere on the Treasure Coast who's authorized to make loans with the state's funding.

Whatever Black-owned businesses in our region are doing, they seem to be doing in spite of, not because of, the government's help.

Some business owners, like Bobbie Williams, president and chief executive officer of Answer The Call LLC, a property management and business consulting firm, moved here from other parts of the state because they like the lower cost of living and slower-paced lifestyle.

Williams, a retired Army colonel, moved to Port St. Lucie from Boca Raton because he liked the area's real estate costs and growth potential.

"The same house I bought in Tradition would cost me double in Boca Raton," Williams said. "I don't plan to live anywhere else until the Lord calls me home."

Michelle Forgue-Jones, owner/operator of Jones Michelle Studio, a beauty salon catering to clients of different ethnic backgrounds, said she moved to Port St. Lucie from Tamarac for the relatively low-cost housing market.

Forgue-Jones said she's found a niche that wasn't being filled by other local beauty shops.

"You have to have a certain skill level to work with that type of hair," she said. "There is definitely a need for it. We're not leaving."

Gary Palmer, a musician who owns Gary Palmer Enterprises, finds local traffic less stressful than where he used to live in Broward County.

"We love it up here," Palmer said. "It was just a quieter atmosphere. We just felt like it was a good place to be."

Meghan Wood grew up in Coral Springs, but bought The Book Exchange in Port St. Lucie about a year and a half ago because she has family living in the area.

She knows of at least two other Black-owned businesses in the same shopping center where her bookstore is located. Although it may not be widely known, Wood said there's a growing network of Black-owned businesses in the area.

"There are a lot of people moving to Port St. Lucie, so it (business) is getting better and better," Wood said.

There are also snowbirds like Michael Smith, owner/operator of MMA Trucking LLC, and Akia Dyas, owner/operator of Nail Attraction, both of whom moved here from Michigan, primarily for the weather and the lifestyle.

"It seems like Port St. Lucie was a perfect fit," Smith said.

This much is clear: Whatever the reason, Black-owned businesses seem to be thriving on the Treasure Coast. Our community leaders should do whatever they can to ensure that trend continues.

This column reflects the opinion of Blake Fontenay. Contact him via email at blake.fontenay@tcpalm.com or at 772-232-5424.

This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Black-owned businesses in St. Lucie, Martin ahead of national curve