HAINES CITY, Fla. (AP) — Not long ago, citrus fruits, not people, were the biggest draw in Polk County. Located between Tampa and Orlando, Florida’s citrus capital produces more cases 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 any other in the United States, nearly 30,000.
The bulldozed citrus groves have in recent years made way for apartment buildings and enormous stores that could one day merge the two metropolitan areas into something half-jokingly called “Orlampa.”
The migration — and the expansion of ownership — reflects a major growth seen across the country this decade: the rise of the far-flung suburbs.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, remote communities on the fringes of metropolitan areas – some up to 60 miles (97 kilometers) from the city center – were among the fastest-growing populations. These communities are primarily in the south, like Anna on the edge of the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area; Fort Mill, South Carolina, outside Charlotte, North Carolina; Lebanon outside Nashville; and Haines City in Polk County.
For some residents, like Marisol Ortega, the commute can take up to an hour and a half one way. But Ortega, who lives in Haines City, about 40 miles from her job in Orlando, says it’s worth it.
“I love my job. I love what I do, but I love going back home and it’s quieter,” Ortega said.
A pandemic exodus and more
The rapid growth of far-flung suburbs is an aftereffect of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the Census Bureau, as rising housing costs push people further out of cities and remote work allows many to do their jobs from home at least part of the week.
Polk County’s Hispanic population has grown from a fifth to more than a quarter of the total population over the past five years, driven by the migration of Puerto Ricans from the island after Hurricane Maria in 2017 and then from New York during the pandemic.
According to the Census Bureau, the county has become more diverse, with the percentage of non-Hispanic white residents falling from 61% to 54%. He has also become more educated and wealthier. Despite the influx of recent people, the county’s Republican leanings have remained relatively unchanged.
Yeseria Suero and her family moved to Polk County from New York at the beginning of the decade after falling in love with the pace of life and affordability during a visit. Still, there were some cultural adjustments: restaurants closed earlier, grilled food and boiled peanuts were everywhere, and strangers chatted to her in the supermarket. Suero is now involved in the close-knit Hispanic community and her two sons are dynamic in sports leagues.
“My children now say, ‘Yes, ma’am,'” she said.
Recent hurricanes and citrus diseases in Florida have also made it more attractive for some Polk County growers to sell their citrus groves to developers building recent homes or businesses.
Citrus planting there fell over the last decade from 81,800 acres (33,103 hectares) and nearly 10 million trees in 2014 to 58,500 acres (23,674 hectares) and 8.5 million trees in 2024, according to federal agricultural statistics.
“It wasn’t a hasty conversion of citrus growing areas for growth,” said Matt Joyner, CEO of Florida Citrus Mutual, a grower group. “But you certainly see it in the northern, northeastern Polk.”
A suburb of a suburb
Anna, Texas, more than 45 miles (72 kilometers) north of downtown Dallas, is experiencing the same kind of migration.
It was the fourth fastest-growing city in the U.S. last year and its population rose by a third to 27,500 residents in the 2020s. Like Polk County, Anna has become slightly older, wealthier and more racially diverse. According to the Census Bureau, nearly three in five households have moved into their homes since 2020.
Schuyler Crouch, 29, and his wife wanted to buy a house in a closer suburb like Frisco, where he grew up, so they could settle down and start a family. But due to population growth, prices there have skyrocketed.
They fell in love with Anna last year in a house that was more affordable. They both work in Frisco, about 30 miles away, and downtown Dallas has become their go-to place for dining and entertainment, although not long ago Frisco itself was considered a distant outpost of the metro area.
Still, Crouch said he has noticed the suburbs are being pushed further north as rapid growth puts affordable housing out of reach in neighborhoods once considered the outskirts of the metro area.
“The next suburb we’ll live in is Oklahoma,” he joked.
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