Ocean Village

Fort Pierce wears its identity honestly — a working waterfront city on Florida's Treasure Coast where the Indian River Lagoon meets the Atlantic and the pace of life follows the tides. As the county seat of St. Lucie County, the city carries real economic weight anchored by Lawnwood Regional Medical Center and the St. Lucie County School District, while Indian River State College gives the area a steady academic heartbeat. The historic downtown core, centered on 2nd Street and the Marina District, draws people in with the Sunrise Theatre, the A.E. Backus Museum, and the National Navy UDT-SEAL Museum — a nod to Fort Pierce's role as the birthplace of the Navy SEALs. The Florida Highwaymen, a celebrated group of African-American landscape artists who got their start here in the 1950s, remain a source of lasting cultural pride.