West Palm Mayor Keith James sues Rodney Mayo, alleging his re-election opponent does not live in West Palm Beach

West Palm Beach Mayor Keith James has filed suit against his re-election opponent, the Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections Office and, in an unusual twist, the city James leads, challenging that restauranteur Rodney Mayo does not live in West Palm and is therefore ineligible to run for mayor.

James' lawsuit, filed recently, notes that Mayo, in filing to run for mayor last month, listed a Clematis Street address as his primary residence.

"In fact, this statement by Mayo regarding his residence was false," the suit states.

James argues in the lawsuit that Mayo actually lives near Lantana, and, because West Palm Beach requires its mayoral candidates to live in the city for the six months prior to the date of the election, Mayo is ineligible.

The mayoral election is scheduled for March 14.

In a Facebook post on Tuesday, Mayo scoffed at the notion that he does not live in West Palm Beach and can't run for mayor.

He began that post with a definition of the word ludicrous: "amusing or laughable through obvious absurdity, incongruity, exaggeration, or eccentricity … ."

Mayo went on to write: "The lawsuit against me is Mayor Keith James' attempt to go unopposed in this election. If he can disqualify me, the election is canceled, and Mayor James will serve another 4 years."

He later added: "Most folks who know me know I live, breathe and work in Downtown West Palm Beach and have for over 35 years."

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The mayor had no official comment on the suit. A campaign advisor, Rick Asnani, said the city was included in the lawsuit because it administers municipal elections and the elections office was included because it oversees the city's work.

While James had no comment on the oddity of a mayor including the city he leads in an election lawsuit, the same wasn't true for Mayo, who owns a slew of eateries and entertainment establishments on Clematis Street.

"What would you call it when someone files a lawsuit against themselves?" Mayo asked in his Facebook post. "Ludicrous comes to mind. Yes, hard to believe, but our Mayor sued the same City he is responsible for running. Does this cost us the taxpayer's money? Of course, it does. Our Mayor does not pay for legal fees. We, the taxpayers of West Palm Beach, pay for this crazy way our administration runs the government."

Who determines the eligibility of city candidates?

West Palm Beach's on-staff city attorney represents the city in legal disputes. In cases that require specialized legal expertise, the city can hire an outside firm to handle that work.

Any city response to James' lawsuit would mean the attorney who crafted it was working on that response and not on another legal matter for the city.

Wendy Sartory Link, Palm Beach County supervisor of elections, said she has heard that her office was included in the suit but added that it has not been served with the litigation.

She said her office is not responsible for determining who is or who is not eligible to run in municipal elections.

"Their city clerk is their qualifying officer," she said. "They do all the work to see who is eligible. They provide us that information. We take our direction from the city clerk."

The city did not respond to a request for a comment from the city clerk.

What property records reveal about Rodney Mayo's residence

On filing documents, Mayo listed 518-520 Clematis Street, Apartment 1, West Palm Beach, as his place of residence.

Palm Beach County property records show that 518 Clematis is a Mayo-owned tavern/bar of 3,362 square feet with a 2,930-square foot apartment.

James suit alleges that Mayo lives at 6171 Pine Drive, just west of Lantana.

"Our contention is that Rodney Mayo is not a resident of the city of West Palm Beach, and that's what we filed," Asnani said of the James suit.

Asked what proof the James campaign has that Mayo is not a resident of the city, Asnani demurred.

"That's going to be part of our lawsuit," he said. "We can't talk about that right now."

Property records show that Mayo is the owner of a 4,570-square foot single family home at 6171 Pine Drive in unincorporated Palm Beach County. The search query for that Pine Drive property shows it as 6171 Pine Drive, Lake Worth.

The records do not indicate that Mayo has claimed a homestead exemption for either the Pine Drive or Clematis Street properties.

Homestead exemptions limit how much more a homeowner will be required to pay in property taxes. Florida law only permits homestead exemptions to be granted on properties that serve as a homeowner's primary place of residence.

In his Facebook post on the mayor's lawsuit, he noted his long connection to downtown West Palm Beach.

"I bought my first property, an old 1923 condemned Salvation Army building slated to be torn down in 1983," Mayo wrote. "I spent 4 years renovating the structure myself, built 4 apartments on the 2nd floor, and created Respectable Street Café, which opened in 1987."

'Coming full circle': As Respectable Street turns 35, band behind nightclub’s name to perform

Keith James is seeking a second four-year term as mayor

James, who is seeking his second four-year term as mayor, served on the city commission for eight years.

He has presided over a city that struggled through the coronavirus pandemic and has experienced explosive economic growth since, particularly in the downtown area. His administration has surpassed its goal in the building of affordable housing, a problem vexing cities throughout the county. And James' administration has poured millions into revitalizing the Tamarind Avenue corridor, long an area plagued by crime and economic decline.

State of the city: West Palm mayor talks about boom times, crime, expensive housing and water problem

But James' term has had its share of troubles. An algal contaminant forced customers of the city's water utility to rely on bottled water for a week last year. Angry water customers blamed the mayor for not telling them about the problem quickly enough, though a review by The Palm Beach Post showed that James did act to direct a response as soon as he was made aware of the water testing results.

More:WPB officials meet with state investigators, insist they followed rules on water problem

James angered some Black residents by initially backing a Miami group's efforts to manage the rebuilt Sunset Lounge, a 1920s-era supper club that served as the cultural hub of the city's largely Black Northwest community before falling on hard times. Many local Black residents had urged James to support the management bid of a local Black contingent, but the mayor initially threw his support behind the Miami group's bid, arguing that it had the financial resources and experience to get the job done.

Management of the Sunset Lounge is now tied up in a legal dispute.

Sunset Lounge debacle: A bidding process dissolves into acrimonious mess with more delays, costs

James angered downtown residents and business owners when his administration raised parking rates. The mayor said the rates had not been increased in years and that the additional money would be used to improve the city's parking infrastructure. Residents and business owners, however, complained that the higher rates were an unwelcome financial jolt that was particularly painful in the immediate aftermath of the pandemic.

The city lowered some of the rates after a public outcry.

More:West Palm Beach tweaks parking rates in response to anger from residents, business owners

Keith James and Rodney Mayo have sparred in the past

And James' new sidewalk cafe fees, imposed on businesses that serve customers on city-owned property outside of their buildings, was another trigger for downtown business owners, who argued that the city failed to adequately consult them or consider their needs.

Mayo has served as something of a spokesman for downtown business anger at the James administration, and, when it appeared that the mayor would be unopposed as he sought re-election, he filed to run.

Mayo said the lawsuit shows his candidacy has gotten under the skin of the James campaign.

"They must be concerned about their opponent if they need to try to eliminate me through the courts," Mayo wrote. "Mayor James does not want to let the public decide the election's outcome and our City's future. Instead, he wants to take that choice away from us. We are fully confident this lawsuit will not stand."

Wayne Washington is a journalist covering West Palm Beach, Riviera Beach and race relations at The Palm Beach Post. You can reach him at wwashington@pbpost.com and follow him on Twitter @waynewashpbpost. Help support our work; subscribe today.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: West Palm Beach Mayor Keith James sues Subculture's Rodney Mayo