IS WPB Growing To Fast To Keep Residents Safe?
January 1, 2022
What is the population of West Palm Beach Florida 2017 106,805
What is the population of West Palm Beach Florida 2020 117,415 West Palm Beach is the 17th most populated city in the state of Florida out of 919 cities.
10,610 new residents in just 3 years. WPB is on the move and moving quickly.
11 Reasons Why People Are Moving to West Palm Beach
(1) Great Job Market (2) No State Income Tax (3) The Beaches (4) A Growing Arts and Culture Scene (5) Rosemary Square (6) Big But Not Too Big (7) Beautiful Natural Areas (8) An International Airport (9) It’s a Golfer’s Paradise (10) Great Restaurants (11) Travel to the Islands
“These are some of the reasons that people have decided to make West Palm Beach their home. Once famous for all the ex-New Yorker’s, West Palm Beach now is attracting people from across the country, with plenty of natives also staying and helping create one of the best cities in Florida.” Read the story below.
https://greekmoving.com/11-reasons-why-people-are-moving-to-west-palm-beach/
You only have to look at the skyline to see how WPB has grown, with thousands of class A office space and new luxury apartments already built and hundreds more in the making. Look at the new Bristol where apartments sell for many millions of dollars.
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (CBS12) —” West Palm Beach Fire Rescue responded to a record-breaking 30,000 calls this year, an increase of nearly 3,000 emergencies from the previous year.
30,000 calls for our fire department is an exhaustive amount of calls,” Jayson French, President West Palm Beach Association of Firefighters said in an interview with CBS12 News. “It still takes a toll on you physically and mentally.
French says the increase in calls was fueled by the city’s rapid growth, and made worse by the pandemic.
Meanwhile, the increase in calls comes as French says West Palm Beach Fire Rescue is short on first responders and facing cuts to the overtime budget, which is used to fill openings for rescuers who take time off or call out sick and to temporarily staff positions that have not yet been filled.
The City of West Palm Beach confirms that the department’s overtime budget was slashed in half, from $2,723,000 during the 2020-21 budget to $1,057,000 in the new 2021-22 budget.”
New safety worries following recent spike in West Palm Beach homicides.
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — The mayor of West Palm Beach and police are speaking about a recent string of fatal shootings in the city.
“Since the weekend, there have been two shootings that have left three dead.
One of the victims was a 16-year-old girl, who police said was an innocent bystander when she was gunned down Friday night at Spruce Avenue and 17th Street.
A separate shooting also occurred last Wednesday, killing a 17-year-old boy and injuring a 16-year-old.
Even one is too many. We continue and work and talk with the police chief, incorporating as many policy changes as possible and increasing our community policing efforts,” James said.
West Palm Beach police said this year has now seen 21 homicides, compared to 17 last year.”
Now lets use our common sense.
I attended both the Police and Firefighters negotiations held in 2020, between the union, Mayor James and City Administrator Faye Johnson and was shocked to hear the city declare an impasse in the talks. It took a Special Magistrate to bring our first responders from the bottom of the heap to making a decent wage to keep us safe.
The City’s constant complaint was overtime. I understand the overtime situation.
Both the Police and Firefighters are seriously understaffed, and more hiring should be at the forefront, but it’s not happening in either department.
The City is growing which is why I gave readers the information above.
In 3 years we have 10,610 new residents and still growing. How can the City justify the same amount of first responder’s it had years ago?
A first responder calls in sick, goes on vacation, is injured on the job, retires or moves away, the shift must be covered. By who? Here’s where the overtime comes in.
Your suffering a heart attack or you wake up in the middle of the night and realize some stranger is attempting to break in, or God forbid he’s already in your home. What do you do? You call 911 seeking help, hoping they reach you in time.
Do you ever think the people helping you are exhausted from working overtime and a mistake may be made?
All these first class offices and apartments how comfortable are the residents reading about the murders happening right under their noses. How soon before people start the migration to safer shores?
City Administrators must take immediate steps to insure that first Responders are fully staffed. Until personnel is hired and trained, the focus must be on safety. Overtime is a must.
Streamline the budget without cutting overtime for first responders.
The end