Metrics and Milestones: A Conversation With Mayor Keith James

The past six years has been a tumultuous time for the City of West Palm Beach. From the dark days of the pandemic to overwhelming optimism about the future, West Palm has prospered like no other. Today, we talk with Mayor Keith James about how the City got here, how 2025 is shaping up, and what he sees is in store for this “city on the move.”

Episode Transcript

(10:36:53):
Welcome to the City Center podcast. I'm
Jerry Marcello. The past six years have
been a tumultuous time for
the city of West Palm Beach.
From the dark days of the pandemic to
overwhelming optimism about the future,
West Palm has
prospered like no other city.
Today we'll talk with Mayor Keith James
about how the city got here, how 2025 is

(10:37:13):
shaping up, and what he sees is in store
for the city on the move. Coming up next.
[Music]
Joining us today is Mayor Keith James.
Mr. Mayor, I appreciate you
making time with us today.
Thank you so much for having me.

(10:37:33):
One of the things I want to touch on
right away is one of the signatures of
your campaign and your administration has
been the concept of a community of
opportunity for all.
Beautiful words. How did you develop that
idea and more importantly, how does that
really resonate now in 2025?

(10:37:54):
I came up with the idea because I was
actually out on a morning walk one day
and I was just kind of thinking. I don't
know why I was on this line of thought.
Both of my children, I've got a son who
was now 37, a daughter who is 35. Both of
them were born here in West Palm Beach,
educated here, matriculated
through the public schools.

(10:38:14):
Each of them went off. My son went to
Duke undergrad and my
daughter went to Harvard.
But they never once thought about coming
back to West Palm Beach to actually live.
They were pursuing their careers, they
were pursuing their educational
opportunities and their
professional opportunities.
They felt they had to leave West Palm

(10:38:35):
Beach to pursue those opportunities.
I thought to myself, why can't West Palm
Beach be a place where there is indeed an
opportunity, a community
of opportunity for all?
This was pre-COVID. This was because Iran
for office was elected
in April, March of 2019.

(10:38:55):
This was well before COVID. But that was
kind of my idea. Why can't we create a
city where young, talented people who
grow up here can feel that either they
can live here or return here to pursue
their particular opportunities?
And that's how I really came up with it.
It's really kind of a personal thing with

(10:39:16):
me. Wow. I'd love to
have my kids feel like.
Now they may still want to go to New York
or California, but at least feel like
West Palm Beach was an option.
You talked about young people wanting to
return to West Palm Beach
or stay in West Palm Beach.
Do you feel that we've started to make
progress in creating an environment where
young people will want to stay?

(10:39:37):
Oh, absolutely. Because I think we're now
bringing the jobs here that
these people would like to have.
We're also bringing in educational
institutions. Would Vanderbilt
establishing a graduate MBA program,
engineering, and it would also have some
cybersecurity and financial
services, that type of thing.

(10:39:58):
So young people may go off to get their
undergraduates someplace else, but at
least the Vanderbilt might be an option
for them if they grew up here.
But also the jobs are here. That's one
reason why Vanderbilt is coming here
because the companies with the jobs of
tomorrow are being
attracted to West Palm Beach.
And I think you create a critical mass.

(10:40:21):
Once you get a few of these young people
here, whether it's in the financial
services industry, which we already have,
or what's coming down the pipeline is a
tech hub. More tech companies coming
here. Now it creates an
energy in and of itself.
And I guess one of the biggest

(10:40:42):
compliments, going back to my daughter, I
don't know why I'm making this so
personal, but it is personal.
My daughter happened to be here a few
weeks ago. She now resides in Cape Town,
South Africa. It's a whole other story.
But we were out having lunch at
someplace, and she voluntarily stated.
She said, "Wow, Dad, West Palm Beach is

(10:41:02):
getting pretty cool."
As the mayor of this city, that's
probably the ultimate compliment coming
from my daughter. She has very
sophisticated tastes.
So for her to say that West Palm Beach is
cool, that's the ultimate compliment.
That is a great goal to have. Okay, so
you mentioned before that you started
your time as mayor in

(10:41:23):
2019. Six years have gone by.
Reflect on what your successes have been
over the six years, and what do you think
about the remaining two years?
Well, another plank in my campaigning
platform was public
safety is job number one.

(10:41:43):
So when I think about what we've
accomplished over the six years, I go
back to the fundamentals.
And I think we've done a very good job of
making West Palm Beach safer, making
people feel safer in our city.
When I was running, West Palm Beach had
three years, three consecutive years,
when each of those

(10:42:04):
years there were 18 murders.
Eighteen murders. Indeed, West Palm Beach
was in the top 10 on a per capita basis
for the most violent city in the nation.
This is back 2017, 2018, 2019. So we have
come a long way since then.

(10:42:26):
Violent crimes have gone down
significantly. And so that to me is the
major accomplishment.
Now, that doesn't mean the job is done.
If we have one more
murder, that's one too many.
So we still have to be vigilant and
intentional about continuing to make West

(10:42:48):
Palm Beach feel safe and secure.
Having made significant progress there,
another area, and this goes back to my
goal of making West Palm Beach a
community of opportunity for all,
what kind of housing opportunities do we
have? To some degree, West Palm Beach has
been a victim of its own success,
as the word has gotten out about what

(10:43:08):
West Palm Beach is, who we are as a city,
more and more people
looking to move down here.
There's simple supplies of supply and
demand, simple laws of supply and demand,
enter into the picture
when it comes to housing.
If you put more and more demand for
housing there, the prices will go up.
So I have to continue as the mayor to

(10:43:29):
continue to be intentional about doing
whatever we can as a city, whatever
policies we can adopt, whatever
ordinances we can adopt,
to incentivize the developers to give us
more affordable and workforce housing.
And we're making progress there.
I established a goal of 1,400 units in

(10:43:50):
eight years of having 1,400 units of
affordable housing completed on the books
by the time I finish up
my second term in 2027.
I'm happy to say I think we're about 72%
of the way there, and I'm confident that
in the next two years we
will have exceeded that.

(10:44:12):
1,400 may not sound like a lot, but
relatively speaking, that's more than any
other municipality has put on the books,
and it's more than the
county has put on the books.
So I'm proud of our success. Could we do
more? Do I want to do more? Absolutely.
But we at least have a tangible goal that
I think we will far exceed.
You've talked a little bit about the

(10:44:33):
city's success now, obviously, from the
days of the pandemic to now we've seen
exponential growth and an attraction of
financial business to the area.
How did this happen?
How did we get there?
It has been a unique... The

(10:44:54):
stars became a line, I guess.
And I've told this story before. In fact,
I was quoted in the Wall Street Journal
telling this story. The first time I met
Stephen Ross, who was the head of related
Ross, he's the head of related
billionaire owner of the Dolphins.

(10:45:14):
The first time I met him was when we had
a groundbreaking for a major luxury
residential project that they were doing.
I had never met him. I dealt with his
partner Ken Himel over the years when I
was a commissioner. And so this must have
been in probably 2020.

(10:45:36):
Anyway, first time I met him, he comes
over to me, we shake hands, go through
the normal niceties, and he looks me in
the eye. He says, "Mr. Mayor, I want you
to know, I'm spending money in your city
like a drunken sailor."
Any time a billionaire tells you they're
spending that much money, that's a lot of
money. That's a lot of money. But what I
was most encouraged by, he says, "I'm

(10:45:56):
doing it," poke me in the chest.
He says, "I'm doing it because of your
leadership." So to answer your question
more directly, there is a convergence of
public sector and private
sector pursuing a common goal.
I've made it very clear, this goes back
to my vision of making West Palm Beach a
community of opportunity for all. In

(10:46:16):
other words, inclusive growth.
It's important to me that as we continue
to grow as a city, that the benefits of
this growth extend throughout my city.
That is a message that I preach whenever
I talk to developers or businesses that
are looking to come to the city.
And it's something I was consistent when
I talked to Mr. Ross about. It resonated
with him because I think he understood,

(10:46:37):
as someone who has developed projects
throughout the world and certainly
throughout this country, that
it's not just the buildings.
You've got to have a healthy community in
order to attract the tenants that they're
looking to attract. So you have a unique
convergence of certainly the public
sector of me articulating this goal,

(10:46:59):
inclusive growth, and private sector, a
significant private sector partner,
related Ross, Stephen Ross, who also
believes that inclusive
growth is a worthwhile goal.
And so those two partnerships, those two
forces are coming together to pursue the

(10:47:21):
goal of inclusive growth.
To Mr. Ross's benefit, and he's brought
other developers on, they're doing more
than just building buildings. And that's
what I tell these guys. I don't need more
pretty buildings in my city. I need help
building a community.
So to him, it's more than just building
the buildings. He has been very

(10:47:43):
influential in attracting the Vanderbilt
project to come here. He's been very
involved in attracting Cleveland Clinic
come here because he recognized there's a
need for quality health care.
And also looking at opportunities for
both public and private K through 12
educational opportunities, recognizing
that all of those factors have to come

(10:48:04):
together to have the kind of community
that the companies that they're looking
to attract, the tenants they're looking
to attract, will want to, where the
employees of those
companies will want to be.
What do you say to people who say that
the city has grown too far and too fast?
Well, you know, one thing I learned in
this business of being elected official

(10:48:25):
or politician, as some people call me, is
you can never please everyone. Listen,
some people are afraid of
change. Others welcome change.
My job as the mayor is to try to create
the balance. How can we grow? How can we

(10:48:46):
grow and to be the city of tomorrow
without sacrificing some of the special
characteristics that we have? We've got
to be balanced. We've got to be smart.
That's why it's so important to make sure
that the benefits of the growth are
spread throughout the city. If you only
have a certain corner of our city that is
prospering. And believe me, West Palm

(10:49:07):
Beach has seen growth spurts in the past.
But inevitably, there are certain
communities, certain neighborhoods,
certain zip codes that were left out and
left behind. I did not want that to
happen on my watch. You can't have Uber
wealthy within blocks of abject poverty.
That combination won't work. That is not

(10:49:27):
the model for a sustainable community.
So to me, it's very important that as we
do this change, as we create an
environment where change is welcome, that
we're smart about the growth. Yes, the
skyline is changing. There's more
traffic. But if we have more jobs for

(10:49:49):
people, if we have more opportunities,
whether it's in education, whether it's
in employment, whether it's in housing,
for folks who might not have otherwise
had those opportunities,
if we have more smarter mobility and
transportation options, where we're not
just moving people, but we're not just
moving cars, but we're moving people. If

(10:50:11):
we are more of a technologically savvy
city, okay? So we need to combine all of
those things as we think about growth.
But I'm not afraid of the naysayers who
say, "No, we just need to say the size
that we were when my grandfather came
here and settled down."
I'm very frank that West Palm Beach is no
longer your grandfather's West Palm

(10:50:31):
Beach. I'm not ashamed of that. But my
challenge continues to be as mayor of the
city to ensure that we
are smart about our growth.
Indeed, West Palm Beach is no longer our
grandfather's city. But a question I have
for you, what are the challenges that we
face making this city
our grandchildren's city?
Well, a couple of things. One is we have

(10:50:54):
to anticipate what the jobs of tomorrow
are going to be. We can't build based
upon old assumptions. We have to be wise
and anticipate what's coming down the
pike so that we can create an environment
in which those opportunities are being

(10:51:15):
created in our city.
We still have to stick to some of the
basics, though. And I go back to what I
was saying before. Public safety is,
indeed, job number one. We have to
continue to focus on that because if
people don't feel safe on the streets

(10:51:35):
that they walk, on the streets that they
live on, whether in the play--if their
kids don't feel safe, but they don't--as
a parent, they don't feel safe.
They don't feel that their kids are safe
in the playgrounds, in the schools. No
matter how many beautiful office
buildings we build, no matter how many
jobs we try to create, they won't be able
to take those jobs if we aren't smart

(10:51:57):
about public safety. So that's job one.
But the other thing is I, as the mayor of
the city, have to be intentional about
pursuing and making West Palm Beach a
community of opportunity for all. So when
I sit down with the CEOs and the CFOs of
companies that are looking to come here,
I have to be very candid and very upfront

(10:52:19):
about what my vision is.
And many times in those conversations,
I'll look the CEO--and the CFOs in the
eye, and I say, "Listen, you all are
going to be okay as
occupiers of the C-suite."
I say, "But I guarantee you the people
that you're looking to hire and retain
want to live in an inclusive, safe

(10:52:40):
community." And so that's my job to
continue to build that environment so
that companies will
continue to look to invest.
Let's take a snapshot. 2025. We're about
coming up on about halfway through. It's
been a tumultuous year.
Yeah.

(10:53:00):
Where are we? How do you feel about the
year? What are the positives and
negatives that you see for 2025?
I will start my answer to that question
by saying I'm an eternal optimist. I have
to be in this business. To me, the glass
is always half full.
And I'm just trying to get the glass more
full. So having prefaced my answer to

(10:53:22):
that, I am cautiously--I continue to be
optimistic about the future of our city.
And if you look at the geographical
location of where West Palm Beach
vis-a-vis the center of the universe,
Mar-a-Lago, I think that actually works

(10:53:42):
to the city's benefit.
Because, first of all, we, the city,
provide water to Mar-a-Lago, to the
resident of Mar-a-Lago. So it's in his
best interest that West Palm Beach
continues to be a healthy, vibrant city.
But I've also said publicly, and yes, I

(10:54:05):
do take advantage of that. And even
though we may be from different political
camps, I recognize the opportunity that
is being presented to us as being
literally right across the bridge from
the summer--or the winter White House.
I've had the opportunity to go over there
and address the president personally

(10:54:26):
about some of the initiatives that we're
looking to do here. And so that was an
opportunity to get an audience with him.
And I needed to do that because I am the
mayor of the city. So it's important that
he at least hopefully have a favorable
response to the person he knows as the
mayor of the city that's
literally right across the bridge.

(10:54:47):
But I've also stated publicly in another
form that--and this was at a board
meeting of the African American Mayors
Association. I'm a member of their board.
And this was in a meeting in January
shortly after the swearing
in of the new administration.
And I told my fellow board members, all
of whom are African American, I said,
"Listen, black mayors cannot, should not,

(10:55:11):
be the face of opposition
to this new administration."
I said, "It would be hazardous to your
personal political health and it would
also adversely affect your city." I mean,
we just have to be honest. We understand
the person who's
occupying the White House now.
I said, "But what is it--but we have to
be strategic in how we address the

(10:55:31):
challenges with which we are going to be
confronted in the upcoming
and under this administration."
And so I point out a couple things that I
think we as black mayors need to do. One
is we need to do a level set or a stress
test on what's going to happen if the

(10:55:53):
policies that we're hearing coming out of
Washington are indeed adopted, whether
there are certain grants that are going
to no longer be made, whether there's an
attack on DEI, and that might
affect--adversity affect the state.
The jobs that people might get. We need
to do that stress test and have that
data. Then we need to take that data to

(10:56:15):
the business people in our community, no
matter where you may be located. I happen
to be located right across the bridge.
Others will be in the Midwest. I don't
know West Coast, et cetera. But
inevitably, there will be members of the
business community who supported the new
president, which is fine.
But they're also members of your

(10:56:37):
community. So you need to sit down with
them, whether it's through a Chamber of
Commerce or whatever, the business
organization, or one-on-one, and share
with them the data that you as the mayor
and you and your team have put together
as to how these policies
will adversely affect our city.
This is not a national fight we're
fighting. This is a very localized

(10:56:58):
battle. And so I need you, Mr.
Businesswoman, A, to understand how our
city will be adversely affected, and then
B, work with me to take the message back
to the occupier of the White House and
say, "We need your help. What you're

(10:57:19):
doing now is going to adversely affect us
for the following reasons."
And I, the businessman talking, was a
supporter of yours, Mr. President. So I
need you to help me make my
community a stronger community.
In other words, we can't be out front in
this fight. We need to choose our allies
in this fight. But we have to do it based

(10:57:40):
upon data and not just
feelings or emotions.
So it's really a science that we're
looking at. You're looking at data and
making decisions, strategic decisions,
based on what the city really needs.
Absolutely. What the city needs and what
we anticipate the city will not get, or
the blowback that the city will receive
because of some things that are in place.

(10:58:02):
And it's also a messaging thing, right?
We have to be realistic, even though we
may strongly feel that DEI, diversity,
equality, and inclusion programs are
important. Let's be
realistic and change the name.
And let's not call it DEI, I call it

(10:58:22):
something else that is
more palatable to the taste.
Indeed. We have an opportunity here for
you to send a message to the residents of
West Palm Beach. Here we are, mid-2025.
What is that message?
The message is West Palm Beach is in very

(10:58:43):
good hands, and West Palm Beach is headed
in the right direction. We have a very
positive, upward trajectory.
And you have a leadership of the city
that is very focused and very intentional
about our growth, continuing to be

(10:59:04):
balanced and effective.
Mr. Mayor, thank you for your time today.
Thank you very much for having me.
And thank you for joining us. The City
Center podcast is a production of the
Communications Department for the City of
West Palm Beach. I'm Jerry Marcello.
We'll see you next time.