West Palm Beach Mayor's State Of The City As Recall Effort Is Underway

WPB Mayor Keith James Delivers State of the City 2023

Photo: CBS 12

The Mayor of West Palm Beach gave his annual update to residents and business owners on Friday.

"It is a tremendous honor to be with you this morning for my fourth State of the City address. I'm happy to report it won't be my last."

The address from Keith James comes as a recall effort is underway from the mayor's former challenger in the upcoming municipal election.

Downtown business owner Rodney Mayo was bumped off the ballot after James sued, claiming he wasn't qualified and didn't live in the city.

A judge ruled in the mayor's favor, leaving him unopposed in the March election. But Mayo is mounting an effort to recall the mayor.

In his speech, James said the state of the city is "strong and robust." He spoke about "transformational" growth.

"Growth that our city has not seen since Henry Flagler first brought the railroad to town."

He also touted key achievements during his time in office.

"We've had the courage to create an exceptional community. In fact, our city received national recognition from Livability.com two years in a row...naming West Palm Beach in the Top 100 Best Places to Live in America."

We found the City of West Palm Beach was actually ranked in Livability's Best Places list two times during James' first term, but not two times in a row. The city ranked #80 in 2019 and #97 in 2021. It was not on the list in 2020 or 2022.

During Friday's address, the mayor also celebrated the largest budget in the city's history and a 20-year low crime rate.


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