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West Palm Beach hosts African American Mayors Association winter meeting; city honors four sponsors
Summary
Mayor Keith James and city staff recapped the city's hosting of the African American Mayors Association (AAMA) board meeting in December, thanked four private sponsors and highlighted tours of downtown redevelopment and the historic northwest neighborhood.
Mayor Keith James and West Palm Beach staff on Jan. 21 recapped the city’s hosting of the fourth-quarter board meeting of the African American Mayors Association (AAMA), which the mayor and staff said was a successful, no-taxpayer-funded weekend of panels, tours and receptions designed to spotlight the city’s redevelopment work.
Faye Johnson, city administrator, said the AAMA — described as the only organization exclusively representing African American mayors in the U.S. — held its board meeting in West Palm Beach on Dec. 6–7, 2024. Participants toured projects in the city’s community redevelopment area, with the historic northwest neighborhood the focus of parts of the tour, and visited downtown sites such as 1 Flagler and Heart and Soul Park. Johnson noted four private sponsors underwrote the event so it required no city or taxpayer dollars: Florida Power & Light, Related Ross Frisbie Group, Holland & Knight, and Related (as stated in the meeting record).
Mayor James said the weekend helped raise the city’s profile, leading to invitations to share West Palm Beach’s development story at other cities and the U.S. Conference of Mayors, where he later spoke. The mayor and staff presented tokens of appreciation to sponsor representatives and asked staff involved in the event to stand. The city also showed photographs from the closing reception and described the event’s panels, fireside chats and rooftop reception at 360 Rosemary.
Why it matters: City leaders said hosting the AAMA brought national exposure to West Palm Beach’s redevelopment efforts and provided networking opportunities with other municipal executives and private-sector partners. Staff emphasized that tour content included both newly redeveloped downtown sites and projects in historically Black neighborhoods to illustrate equitable redevelopment efforts.
The mayor publicly thanked staff and sponsors on Jan. 21 and acknowledged the promotional benefits the city received after hosting the AAMA event.
