West Palm Beach mayor says city is about 72% toward 1,400-unit affordable housing goal

Mayor Keith James said West Palm Beach has reached about 72% of a goal to produce 1,400 affordable housing units over eight years and expects the city to exceed that target by the end of his second term in 2027.

The goal was part of James’s administration strategy to keep West Palm Beach affordable as demand rises, the mayor told the City Center podcast. "I established a goal of 1,400 units in 8 years of my having 1,400 units of affordable housing, completed on on the books, by the time I finish up my second term in 2027," James said. "I'm happy to say I think we're about 72% of the way there."

The mayor linked the housing effort to broader growth pressures: as job and development activity increases, he said, simple supply-and-demand dynamics have pushed prices up. "If you put more and more demand for housing there, the prices will go up," James said, urging continued use of city policies and ordinances to "incentivize the developers to give us more affordable and workforce housing."

James also compared the city's written commitment to other jurisdictions, saying the 1,400-unit target "is more than any other municipality has put on the books, and it's more than the county has put on the books." He framed the target as a tangible metric that his administration can track and expand on, but did not provide a line-item funding breakdown during the interview.

Discussion only: the city has relied on policy incentives and partnerships with developers to meet the target; James described progress but did not announce a new ordinance or a specific funding appropriation during the interview.

What happens next: James said he is confident the city will exceed the 1,400-unit goal by 2027 and that city leaders will continue to pursue policies to expand affordable and workforce housing.