West Palm Beach, city (1990 pop. 67,643), seat of Palm Beach co., SE Fla., on Lake Worth (a lagoon) opposite Palm Beach, with which it is connected by bridges; inc. 1894. It has commercial fishing and is a center for the research and production of aeronautical and electronic equipment. Tourism is important to the city, which underwent a development boom in the 1970s and 1980s and engineered a successful downtown revival in the 1990s. It was developed by Henry M. Flagler in 1893 as a commercial center for Palm Beach. A canal runs from the city to Lake Okeechobee. In the city are Palm Beach Atlantic Univ., the Florida campus of Northwood Univ., a campus of South Univ., the Norton Museum of Art, a performing arts center, and a science museum and planetarium. Nearby transportation facilities include Palm Beach International Airport and Port Palm Beach.
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