That little survey is all about quality of life.

Starting Monday, the 2010 Census form will be mailed to households and its results could impact the future of the Treasure Coast.

The federal government counts everyone in its borders every 10 years as required by the U.S. Constitution. The results impact roads, schools, hospitals and Congressional seats.

The most immediate impact is the near 1,200 temporary jobs locally the census is providing to the region that in December had an unemployment rate of 13.7 percent.

The 10-question survey, with a postage-paid return envelope, will be mailed to households asking questions about number of people residing there.

Forms should be returned by April 1, when federal officials will release the country’s population for that day.

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About 1,000 to 1,200 part-time jobs working on the 2010 Census in Martin, St. Lucie and Indian River counties are up for grabs and officials are having job fairs in each Treasure Coast county this week.

The U.S. Census Bureau needs part-time workers to help sign up families on the Treasure Coast who do not respond to the initial questionnaire mailed to every household in the nation. In many cases, that may mean going from door to door in neighborhoods. The Census begins in March.

The Census Bureau expects to hire up to 1.4 million temporary, part-time employees to perform that research nationally. Much of it will be done in the evenings and on weekends when people are most likely to be at home.

The Port St. Lucie office of the bureau, which covers the Treasure Coast, anticipates hiring 1,000 to 1,200 part-time workers in Indian River, St. Lucie and Martin counties. It’s possible there could be as many as 4,500 offers made with 2,600 hires.

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The West Palm Beach-Fort Pierce-Vero Beach metro area is the smartest in Florida, but tied with Cleveland for brain power on a nationwide scale, according to The Daily Beast Web site.

The Daily Beast, an Internet-only news outlet, ranked the 55 most populated metro areas in the nation and placed the Treasure Coast and West Palm Beach region 31st on the list, with Tampa-St. Petersburg at 33, Jacksonville at 37, Miami at 39 and Orlando 46.

The Daily Beast based its rankings on the number of residents with bachelor’s degrees and graduate degrees, according to the U.S. Census; political engagement; available institutions of higher learning; and nonfiction book sales, as tracked by Nielsen BookScan.
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Martin County lost 130 residents between 2007 and 2008, and growth in the rest of the Treasure Coast has slowed to a crawl, according to population estimates released Thursday by the U.S. Census Department.

St. Lucie County, once the one of the fastest-growing counties in the country, saw a population increase of 1.9 percent. Indian River County grew by less than a percent.

But even in the midst of the housing market crash, the Hispanic population is growing in all Treasure Coast counties.
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STUART — For the kids at the East 10th Street Recreation Center, shooting hoops or playing football for the Stuart Hornets is all a part of growing up.

Taking a few swings with the bat or playing soft toss on the diamond is not, a reflection of baseball’s diminished grasp in some areas of the country especially those populated by black youth. (more…)

The 2007 crime statistics are out, and Port St. Lucie has been ranked the third safest city in Florida, according to a news release issued by the city. Only Coral Springs and Pembroke Pines had a lower crime ranking. Nationally, Port St. Lucie ranked in the top 20 percent of cities with the lowest crime rates.

The crime rankings were released last month by CQ Press, a leading independent publisher of information on national politics, government and world affairs. Cities and metropolitan areas having a population of at least 75,000 were ranked using the same categories reported to the Federal Bureau of Investigation in 2007, including murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary and motor vehicle theft.

Of the 385 cities ranked, Ramapo, N.Y. had the lowest crime rate in the nation, while New Orleans had the highest.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Port St. Lucie’s population in 2007 totaled 151,391. In comparison, Coral Springs’ population was 126,875 and Pembroke Pines, 146,828.