page_title: History of West Palm Beach, Florida
section_title: 1980–1999
hierarchical_section_title: History of West Palm Beach, Florida / 1980–1999
caption_attribution_description: Kravis Center for the Performing Arts at night
context_page_description: The history of West Palm Beach, Florida, began more than 5,000 years ago with the arrival of the first aboriginal natives. Native American tribes such as the Jaegas inhabited the area. Though control of Florida changed among Spain, England, the United States, and the Confederate States of America, the area remained largely undeveloped until the 20th century. By the 1870s and 1880s, non-Native American settlers had inhabited areas in the vicinity of West Palm Beach and referred to the settlement as "Lake Worth Country". However, the population remained very small until the arrival of Henry Flagler in the 1890s. Flagler constructed hotels and resorts in Palm Beach to create a travel destination for affluent tourists, who could travel there via his railroad beginning in 1894.
  Flagler originally intended for West Palm Beach to serve as a residential area for the workers at his hotels in Palm Beach. In 1893, George W. Potter surveyed and platted the original 48 blocks of the city. West Palm Beach would be incorporated as a town on November 5, 1894, before becoming a city in 1903.
context_section_description: By the 1980s, downtown West Palm Beach had become notorious for crime, poverty, and vacant and dilapidated businesses and houses. Then-United States Senator Lawton Chiles referred to the area as a "war zone" during his visit in September 1987, while local politicians were not optimistic about the future of downtown. The city had the highest crime rate for a city of its size in the late 1980s. Crack USA: County Under Siege, a 1989 documentary film about the crack epidemic, was filmed in West Palm Beach.
  In 1986, private investors David C. Paladino and Henry J. Rolfs presented a 20-year, $433 million project to revitalize the western side of downtown. The proposal included plans 3,700,000 sq ft (340,000 m²) for offices, 1,900,000 sq ft (180,000 m²) for retail stores, 800 hotel rooms, and 700 housing units. Paladino and Rolfs purchased and razed properties across 77 acres (31 ha) of land – more than 300 properties – adjacent to Okeechobee Boulevard for about $40 million, with the exception of First United Methodist Church, which later became the Harriet Himmel Theater. The duo donated 5 acres (2.0 ha) of land for development of the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts, which opened in 1992. However, by the early 1990s, the project was discontinued after Rolfs exhausted his personal fortune and due to defaulted loans, foreclosures, lawsuits, and a recession.
  After several decades under the Council–manager government, public opinion shifted in favor of electing a strong mayor and having a mayor–council government by the early 1990s. Under one proposal, the mayor would be elected to a four-year term and be eligible for re-election once, the city manager and mayor would share administrative duties, and the mayor would receive the power to veto commission votes, which could be overridden by a 4–1 vote. Additionally, the mayor would be authorized to line-item veto the budget, initiate investigations, and supervise contracts and purchases involving more than $5,000. After a successful petition drive, this proposal would be listed on the ballot as Question 2. In response, the city commission submitted Question 1, which effectively added a weak mayor. In this proposal, the difference versus Question 2 is that the city manager would retain administrative authority, the mayor would vote with city commissioners only in the event of a tie, and the mayor could not veto votes by the city commission. In the referendum for mayor, voters were required to vote yes or no on Question 1 and Question 2. If both received a majority of yes votes, the question with more votes passed. The election was held on March 12, 1991. Both propositions received a majority of the votes. Question 1 received 2,944 yes votes versus 2,665 no votes, a margin of 52.6%–47.4%. Question 2 passed by a margin of 65.7%–34.3% and a vote total of 3,779–1,972. Therefore, Question 2 prevailed, allowing citizens of West Palm Beach to directly elect a strong mayor.
  The first general election for Mayor of West Palm Beach since the late 1910s occurred on November 5, 1991. Candidates included attorney and former state representative Joel T. Daves, city senior planner Jim Exline, Nancy M. Graham, Josephine Stenson Grund, property management company owner Michael D. Hyman, and former Palm Beach County commissioner Bill Medlen. Graham and Hyman received 34.3% and 24.9% of the vote, respectively, allowing them to advance to a run-off election held on November 19. Graham defeated Hyman by a margin of 55.8%–44.2%. She was sworn-in as the city's first strong mayor on November 21.
  During the campaign, Graham vowed for improvements to downtown. Much of the renovations in downtown began after a $18.2 million bond was issued to the city in October 1992, with $4 million allotted to the waterfront. Among the first projects was a beautification of Clematis Street, which was complete in December 1993. Over the previous six months, benches, sidewalks, and trees were replaced. The project resulted in several businesses moving to Clematis Street. Architect Dan Kiley was hired for several of the wat
caption: Kravis Center for the Performing Arts, which opened in 1992
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