WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — A draft plan with handwritten edits, which WPTV obtained from a public records request, shows city officials and city-hired consultants had different opinions on the contents of a report to re-envision West Palm Beach’s waterfront.
Although consultants at Street Plans found the amount of time spent by people at the waterfront suggests potential for more amenities and activity, some recommendations are “crossed out,” suggesting their removal from the final report.
For example, Flagler Road is currently four lanes. Consultants pointed out a reduction to two lanes would support the amount of cars using the road while managing pedestrian safety challenges, including reducing the average speed of drivers to posted limits. The recommendation is crossed off.
In another example, the consultants found inadequate bike parking along the waterfront and argued the need for more dedicated bike parking solutions. The entire section is crossed out while leaving in current bike parking programs in place.
The edits also dilute problems at the waterfront. In one part entitled “Maintenance of Public Spaces,” consultants said a patchwork of private and public ownership and level of resources available to the city and other partners of maintenance clearly isn’t keeping pace. It goes on to say:
“…stakeholders site numerous complaints including inadequate case for facilities like restrooms, cleanliness issues, poor maintenance of landscaping and deteriorating side walk infrastructure. The current slate of maintenance does not match with community desires or expectations and points to a clear need for additional resources to maintain the waterfront.”
This entire section is boxed off and replaced with “…is a challenge.”
WPTV reached out to a city spokesperson late Friday night about the edits and didn’t hear back by publication. A call to Street Plans, the consultant group, went straight to voicemail.
The consultants did suggest 10 big ideas to help “activate” the waterfront. They include:
- Adopt a waterfront stewardship model
- Redesign the waterfront as a unified premier open space
- Rethink the edge of the waterfront + Access to water
- Activate the waterfront promenade
- Complete the lake trail loop
- Redesign Flagler drive as a complete street
- Implement quick impact initiatives
- Created a curated + coordinated program schedule
- Prioritize stewardship of the waterfront
- Improve perceptions of safety
The term “stewardship” refers to finding a group like a designated department or entity to oversee planning at the waterfront. The report blames this for the consistent replanning of the waterfront, which has been planned in previous studies.
It also requests the city add more shade and places for people to sit, especially among the waterfront promenade. The consultants' report said making it easier for people to walk and bike along the waterfront promenade is a central goal of the document.
Notably, the report includes no plans or recommendations to build a new marina. Street Plans was hired after the city denied an unsolicited proposal to build a private marina after backlash from people organized by a nonprofit called the Downtown Neighborhood Association.
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Mayor Keith James supported an unsolicited bid from a company called City Harbor, LLC, based in Jupiter, to create a second marina. It would turn public land into an 84-slip marina stretching from Clematis to Fern streets.
The consultant’s report did mention the current marina as a visual barrier, hindering public views of the lagoon. But the part was crossed out, along with a section where the consultant discussed ensuring future developments to prioritize unobstructed visual access to the waterways. It also crossed out mentions for support against a new marina repeatedly.
The consultant’s report also talked about strong support for upgrading the current docks to better accommodate various boat sizes. The sentence was crossed out as well.
