Father Of Westward Expansion- Louis Pernini, Nov. 29, 1903 – April 16, 1972

In the mid 1950s, West Palm Beach was only a mile wide. But a single land deal set off a westward land rush now limited only by the Everglades. The man behind it: Massachusetts developer Louis R. Perini Sr., then the owner of the Milwaukee Braves.
The West Palm Beach Water Co., owned by Flagler interests, still controlled the water supply, and the sewer system was so primitive that raw waste flowed into the Intracoastal Waterway. A polio outbreak spurred the city into action.
In 1955, the city bought the water company and nearly 27 square miles of land west of the city limits. About 21.75 square miles became the water catchment area. In 1957, the city sold off the remaining 5,500 acres to five investors, including Perini, for $4.35 million.
The “Westward Expansion” became one of the state’s first planned communities. About 30 million cubic yards of fill was moved, converting swamp into dry land and deepening the lakes. No one worried about wetlands protection then.
It was a boon for blacks, many of whom had moved to Riviera Beach after their segregated neighborhoods ran out of room. In fact, the first development was Roosevelt Estates, a moderate-income neighborhood for black families.
Financial troubles forced the other partners out, but Perini hung on, and eventually the development grew. Interstate 95 cut through, then came the Palm Beach Mall, the city auditorium and stadium, the Forum offices, the Land of the Presidents golf course, the Villages of Palm Beach Lakes and other developments.
Eventually, Perini’s development would account for a third of the city’s area.
“West Palm Beach would be just a nonentity today if not for that development,” former city attorney Grover Herring recalled in 1994. “There is no developer that could have done what Perini did. Had this not been done at that particular time, it would have been impossible to do it later because of all the environmental laws.”
- ELIOT KLEINBERG