Elements of Urbanism: Downtown West Palm Beach

[Metro Jacksonville]

Elements of Urbanism: Downtown West Palm Beach



In 1993, West Palm Beach was featured in a 60 Minutes segment on urban decay. At the time, 80% of downtown properties were vacant. Today, West Palm Beach has one of the most vibrant downtown scenes in Florida.

Full Article
http://www.metrojacksonville.com/article/2011-mar-elements-of-urbanism-downtown-west-palm-beach

[duvaldude08]

I guess we'll be on sixty minutes next for Urban decay LMAO!! Im sorry I couldnt resist.

[avonjax]

I went to DT WPB last year and was very impressed. They have done a great job. It made me very sad for us. The whole DT was impressive. I guess we will never see that kind of progress and development in our DT Jax.

[tufsu1]

was just there a few weeks ago...our state planning conference will be held there in September (Jax. hosted in 2009)....they have done quite a bit over the last decade, and seemed to have found the perfect balance between City Place and Clematis Street (difficult to achieve for several years).

[urbaknight]

Will MJ still be around in the near future? You know, since there's nothing else to talk about anymore. With the way the election turned out I mean. Kiss any prospects for urban development goodbye, it all died with our hopes last night. 

I may even move back home over this travesty!

[avonjax]

The majority of Jacksonville's residents don't care about Urban development. In order to retain their domination and political power in Jax, the future mayor and city council only care about what the people want, and that is to spend "no" money on DT. The Representatives of the DT area have no worries because they can preach their desire to make things better, but they know there's not a chance in  hell anything is going to happen. This I'm afraid is one of the ugly sides of consolidation. The vast majority of Jacksonville's population live in the suburbs with their suburban malls and super markets and all the conveniences close at hand, so why should they care about DT. When our own Progressive talk show host supports not spending ANY money on DT improvements and endorsing Mike Hogan you know you don't have a chance. Am I cynical? Yes. I have lived here for a lifetime and have only seen spurts of activity in our core, building or otherwise since the 70's, of course unless you include the wreaking ball that for 20 plus years stayed busy destroying the unique architecture that made us different. Now many cry they don't want us to be like Central or South Florida, yet where was the outcry when all our Klutho masterpieces were defaced or imploded? Those were the things that made our downtown unique and unlike the rest of Florida. We are in year 21 since a new office building was built in the core. For those of us who really care (cared), visiting other Florida cities only magnifies the sadness of it all.

[vicupstate]

This I'm afraid is one of the ugly sides of consolidation. The vast majority of Jacksonville's population live in the suburbs with their suburban malls and super markets and all the conveniences close at hand, so why should they care about DT.

Indianapolis, Nashville, Norfolk, Lexington KY, Denver are all consolidated and for all intents and purposes, so is Charlotte, and they ALL have great Downtowns cores.

It is Leadership, or the lack thereof, that has put Jax in the position it is in.

A LEADER would understand the importance of the core, develop a plan and vision to transform the area, could articulate it, get buy-in from the key brokers, and implement it.  

Delaney was doing just that, when his term expired.  The void has not been filled since, and won't be unless Brown can pull off the upset.

[avonjax]

You are absolutely correct. I guess my real point was for the last 8 years in particular, our city government has caved into the anti downtown climate of Duval county as a whole. The real "heroes" of city government have been those opposed to "wasteful spending." When the conversation of "wasteful spending" comes up, it almost always includes any money spent on DT. Almost all the candidates in Jax overemphasize the "I will not raise taxes by a single penny," even when everything is falling apart. They know if they don't they will commit political suicide.  I also agree with you about Delaney. He did get the buy-in and I think the Better Jacksonville Plan, warts and all, was tremendous for our city. It was well worth the 1/2 sales tax it has cost us. But if you listen to the other side of the coin including our local Progressive Talk Show host, his plan was corrupt and it was a waste of money for our city. Until someone is willing to take their "political chances" and do the right thing, Jacksonville will remain stagnant. If Hogan wins, I fear we have at least 4 more years of stagnation, maybe more.

[urbaknight]

Yeah I'm with Brown. He's our last chance to have any kind of urban fabric in this city.

[MusicMan]

DT West Palm Beach is great. I lived and worked down there for years. Everything they got right we have gotten wrong. It is an International City, we are provincial. Keep in mind they are doing all this without
a major professional sports franchise or a big university.

[north miami]

I have just returned from a week in Downtown Palm Beach, an annual event for me- Palm Beach Boat Show.

The Palm Beach Boat Show follows closely on the heels of the industry giant February Miami Boat Show and is a favorite of many due to it's smaller scale and direct connection to Down Town Palm Beach.There is ample pier and boat dock facility.Great restaurants and the like steps from the water.

Down Town Palm Beach is wonderful.Separated by two weather zones from Jacksonville,the ambiance is shades of my native Miami.That certain energy.I also witnessed a truly mostly comfortable,congenial,interactive racial mix-a rarity and no doubt driven by entrenched Palm Beach demographic.

Alas,I could not help but reflect on the comparative positives of Down Town Jacksonville....and Jacksonville's "potential".
Downtown Palm Beach delineation is somewhat lost by vast similar development structure,high rises alongside and outward from the core.The "good","restored","safe" and "desireable" areas joined at the hip with areas of decline,crime literally next door-a state wide hallmark.

The immediate Palm Beach Down Town waterfront is typified by the straight,somewhat boring shoreline of the Intracoastal Water Way.

In comparison,Palm Beach's Downtown is a Condo Balcony compared to Jacksonville's Gracious Front Porch.

Honor the image.

[copperfiend]

I was in DT West Palm for the first time in years this weekend and was impressed. The Clematis area is wonderful. Full of packed out restaurants and bars. But outside of that and the outdoor mall, there are plenty of empty lots. Driving around yesterday, many parts of downtown are like a ghost town on the weekend.

[mtraininjax]

West Palm Beach has one of the most vibrant downtown scenes in Florida.

This is again like comparing Jacksonville to Atlanta. The closest thing we have to Worth Drive used to be San Marco then all the chic stores left to the strip mall called St. Johns Town Center. We haven't one hundredth the wealth that is in WPB. Our most famous hotel is the Omni in downtown, WPB features the Breakers, which was built by Henry Flagler. The wealth in WPB is tremendous and their downtown leaders were able to get the wealthy to invest in downtown.

That is not to say that everything is smooth sailing. There are many empty new "condos" in the downtown area, and they have had their share of projects start and not finish, but they do have some impressive areas, but go a few blocks out of downtown and you are in their versions of the hood, and they are scary in some places. We share a lot with WPB, just not the money and oh yeah, not the Sunrail. 

[tufsu1]

um mtrain...you do know that Palm Beach and West Palm Beach are 2 different cities right?

[thelakelander]

When talking about economic development, attracting skilled workers and quality companies to locate in your town, they don't give you a flyer for not offering the QOL they seek for them and their employees.  Instead, they tell you deuces and head to the environment that captures what they seek.  I had this exact same discussion with the Lakeland Economic Development Council (LEDC) a decade ago when working with them to attract young professionals to their community.  We need to understand that we're competing in a highly competitive market.  Focus on enhancing your local QOL.  On that end, you can and should be keeping an eye on failed and successful economic strategies being used in other places.  Regardless of city size or density, there's always something you can learn from evaluating others.