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Location: West Palm Beach, Florida
Client: Renaissance Group
Contact: Richard Flierl
In 1923 John Nolen drew a plan for West Palm Beach that was simple in its approach to serve those that lived and worked in the Palm Beach region. The train station was the gateway to the city and was the only connection to the rest of the world for West Palm Beach and Palm Beach. In the town plan Clematis Street was the heart. Clematis Street was a vibrant commercial center for the residents of West Palm Beach because in Nolen’s plan it was the vital connecting conduit between the world and the two cities. Automobile connections eclipsed the importance of train arrival and ferry crossing and brought drastic changes to the contextual environment of West Palm Beach, and Clematis Street lost the title of commercial center to the retail malls and neighborhood strip centers.
At the beginning of the new millennium the city leadership recognized that despite the sprawl that the automobile brought, the downtown’s core still represented the historic center of a region and was a psychological focus for a large population. In response to the master developer request for the Banyan Boulevard corridor, this Master Plan serves a key element that celebrates the historic Nolen and its Clematis Street core and implements a new paradigm for residential that supports the contemporary market place.
Since the inauguration of this vision Clematis Street has re-emerged as a vibrant place for shopping and entertainment. The city has developed a place with unique character where people feel comfortable together and can build memories of interaction. It is becoming a city where people can live close by and not compromise their desire to raise families and live in a predictable, safe environment. The Plan recognizes Banyan Boulevard as a key corridor in the context of the big vision for downtown. The Master Plan incorporates the Flagler waterfront, proposed library square development, marina re-development and the five blocks of Banyan Boulevard including the Helen Wilkes site, the City Hall site, the city garage site and the North and South blocks just west of Olive Avenue to Dixie Highway.