Editorial: 2023 was crucial year for planning town's future

Goodbye, 2023. You were certainly one for the books — a pivotal year filled with planning and preparation by Palm Beach’s Town Council, commissions and committees to deal with far greater population and tourism growth than anyone ever expected.

Palm Beach, with its distinctive environs and charming ambience, has always attracted visitors and new residents. But with a perfect storm of factors that included the COVID-19 lockdowns in major financial centers, wealth expansion and work-from-home technology, the Town Council suddenly found itself with what seemed to be too much of a good thing.

The year began with real estate values at an all-time high, but that wasn’t the only thing. The amount of traffic on the island nearly doubled from pre-pandemic levels.

Against this backdrop, town leaders were in the process of writing a 20-year-old Strategic Plan and a 10-year Comprehensive Plan update, while also wrestling with the need for an extensive revision of its 50-year-old zoning codes, which have become so convoluted that they are often contradictory and counterintuitive.

All this came amid growing concerns about rising sea levels, the supply of fresh water and more active hurricane seasons.

The town hosted Designing our Palm Beach Week workshops in February to solicit public commentary in advance of this exhaustive code, traffic and parking-plan overhaul. Leaders deemed the event largely a success, with excellent attendance and plenty of positive input. Such positivity was fleeting, however.

Here is a list of some of the year's hottest-button issues:

Zoning: In October, the council decided to slow down its aggressive timetable for the comprehensive zoning code initiative because of concerns voiced by residents and the arrival of a new state law that forbids some municipalities from passing more restrictive land development amendments until Oct. 1, 2024. Despite the setback, town leaders say they plan to to continue working on cleaning up the code where they can.

Parking: When a new seven-point comprehensive parking plan was rolled out in May by the Business and Administrative Committee, it was met with resistance that pitted residents and the business community against each other. A tweaked plan was again presented in October at a contentious council meeting, where some members expressed further concerns and dismay over a lack of clear communication. As such, the town has implemented new residential parking permit and changes to the park mobile hourly rates, the metering of currently free one- and two-hour parking spaces remains to be seen.

Traffic: In February, the town hired Miami-based traffic engineering consultant The Corradino Group to conduct a comprehensive traffic and parking study of the island. Its recommendations should come with the new year. In the meantime, the town is deploying smart sensors at traffic lights and has changed traffic patterns on Barton and Sunrise Avenues to help alleviate congestion surrounding the Flagler Memorial Bridge access points. Leaders also got the Coast Guard to reduce bridge openings during peak hours on a trial basis.

Drinking water: Six options for water sources were presented in April by West Palm Beach-based environmental consultant Kimley-Horn. Two of those remain in consideration: renewing the existing contract with West Palm Beach, including partnering on a membrane-technology upgrade; or contracting with the city of Lake Worth Beach. Council members say they expect to make a decision soon.

Development: In August, residents were shocked to discover that Royal Poinciana Playhouse demolition had left only a few walls standing. The demolition was far more extensive than outlined in renovation plans previously presented to the Landmarks Preservation Commission, exposing gaps in communications and code approval procedures.

Without clear-cut zoning ordinances as yet, the council continues to wrestle with redevelopment amid continual controversies. Projects at the Brazilian Court hotel, the newly named Vineta Hotel and The Paramount Building have all vied for council attention in recent months. No end is in sight in 2024, when the council is expected to review a major housing development proposed for the landmarked Wells Fargo Bank property on South County Road.

Still, despite the demolition brouhaha, the Royal Poinciana Playhouse project continues apace and the town just approved plans for its new waterfront restaurant. And residents can look forward to the completion of the eight-year-long electrical-undergrounding project, with contracts for the final two phases to be awarded in 2024.

A national election year, 2024 also will mark the first time in three years that the town has held an election for a council seat, as President Maggie Zeidman steps down from the dais.

In some ways, the town in 2023 seemed like it danced a two-steps-forward, one-step-back jig. But the newly constituted council can look forward to a year when many of the town’s major initiatives are poised to take concrete shape.

And despite last year’s municipal tax-rate cut, revenues from parking, property taxes and sales taxes have never been better.

So here’s wishing all Palm Beachers — officials and their constituents alike — success and happiness in 2024.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Town wrestled with future impacts in 2023