Lee County Florida   Located in South West Florida

Lee County Cities

Land area (rank): 803 square miles (24)
Population 1993 (rank): 357,550 (11)
Population density 1993 (rank): 445 persons per square mile (10)
Growth 1980-1990 (rank): 63.3% (10)

Physical Characteristics

Lee County is in southwest Florida and is bordered by Charlotte Harbor and the Gulf of Mexico and by Charlotte, Hendry, and Collier counties. The Caloosahatchee River bisects the county. The county has 238 square miles of water. The average January temperature is 63.8 degrees F, and the average August temperature is 81.5 degrees F. The average annual rainfall is 52.39 inches.

History

Lee County was established from Monroe County in 1823 and named for General Robert E. Lee.

Population

In 1993, 63% of the population was in unincorporated areas. The incorporated place with the greatest population is Cape Coral, whose 1993 population of 81,339 is nearly an eightfold increase over its 1970 population. Ft. Myers is the second most populous incorporated place, with a 1993 population of 45,069. Since 1980 several unincorporated areas in Lee County have experienced tremendous growth. For example, the population of San Carlos Park increased from 3,590 in 1980 to 11,785 in 1990 and that of Bonita Springs increased from 5,435 to 13,600. The U.S. Bureau of the Census has designated Lee County as the Ft. Myers Metropolitan Statistical Area. In 1993, 92% of Lee County's population was white and 8% was nonwhite. In 1990, 4.5% of the population was Hispanic. Of the population increase between 1980 and 1990, 97.0% was due to net migration. The 1992 birth rate was 11.9 live births per 1,000 persons, and the 1992 death rate was 11.0 deaths per 1,000 persons. In 1992 the infant mortality rate was 8.5 per 1,000. In 1993 the leading causes of death were heart disease, cancer, and stroke.

Education

Of all 1992 high school graduates, 57.2% planned to continue their education. The 1992 high school dropout rate was 5.6%. In 1990, 76.9% of persons in the county were high school graduates, and 16.4% had completed four or more years of college. Colleges and universities. University of South Florida, Ft. Myers Campus; Edison Community College, Ft. Myers; completion in 1997 of the state's 10th 4-year university.

Economy

The per capita income for 1993 was $21,073 (11th highest in the state). The median household income in 1987 was $28,448. In 1989, 6.1% of families had incomes below the poverty level. In 1990, 18.0% of personal income in Lee County was derived from transfer payments. In 1992 the greatest numbers of persons in Lee County were employed in the retail trade, services, and government sectors. The major employers in the retail trade sector were eating and drinking establishments and food stores. In the services sector the major employers were medical and health services and business services. In 1992 there were 517 farms in Lee County, totalling 106,721 acres (21% of land in the county). Major crops include sweet corn, cucumbers, eggplant, peppers, potatoes, squash, and tomatoes. In 1991, 5,011,534 pounds of fish and 2,408,395 pounds of shellfish were landed in Lee County.

Median value of a single-family home 1990: $84,300
Median monthly rent 1990: $417
Mobile homes as a % of total housing: 17.3
Housing starts 1992: 3,745
Housing starts 1993: 4,451

In 1992 the price level index for Lee County was 100.33 (10th highest in the state).

Local Government

In 1993, the ad valorem millage rate was 5.2170, and the total taxable value of property was $19,374,421,790. Taxable sales totalled $3776.30 million in 1992 and $4102.70 million in 1993. Lottery sales totalled $49,446 thousand in 1992-93. In 1990-91 Lee County's revenues totalled $671,398 thousand ($1,951.6 per capita) and its expenditures $482,733 thousand ($1,403.2 per capita). Of those 18 years of age and older, 67.9% were registered to vote in 1992. Of these, 37.7% were registered Democrat and 53.3% were registered Republican. In the 1992 presidential election 44.2% of the votes were cast for Bush, 32.3% for Clinton, and 23.2% for Perot.

Events and Places of Interest

Edison Festival of Light, February, Cracker Festival, April, Ft. Myers; Beach Shrimp Festival, March, Ft. Myers Beach; Sanibel Shell Fair, March; Seafood Festival, Pine Island, March; Edison Winter Home, Ford Winter Home, Ft. Myers Historical Museum, Nature Center of Lee County, Waltzing Waters, Ft. Myers; J. N. "Ding" Darling National Wildlife Refuge, Sanibel; Shell Factory, Inc., Ft. Myers; Koreshan Unity Settlement Historic District, Estero.