The founder of the City of Palm Beach Gardens was John D. MacArthur…read more When he created his new community he wanted it to have a garden theme with streets named after flowers and trees. In the late 1960's MacArthur heard about someone who was going to cut down a banyan tree that was damaging her home. MacArthur arranged to have the tree moved to his new city new and pl;anted at the intersection of Northlake Boulevard and MacArthur Boulevard, formerly Garden Boulevard. Since the tree weighed 75 tons and was 60 feet high the city needed six months to prepare the tree for the move to its new location. On the morning of April 26, 1961 the tree was ready to be transplanted. Two cranes on two cargo trailers were sent to bring the tree to it's new home five miles away. Unfortunately disaster struck when a feed mill truck burst on the road cleared for the tree. Ten thousand gallons of molasses were dumped raising the height of the roadway. As it traveled the tree snapped several railway signal lines causing crossing gates to close. While the tree was crossing the train tracks one of the cables supporting it snapped. Workers had to saw off limbs of the tree to allow the blocked 1:30 train to get back on it's way. Just after 2 PM the tree was dropped into it's prepared hole. The Rev. A. P. Snyder of St. John's Evangelical Church said a prayer over the tree and MacArthur threw the first shovel of dirt over the roots of the tree. The entire process cost $30,000 and 1,008 hours of manpower. One year later, a second forty ton tree was moved from Lake Park next to the first tree. When people criticized Mr. MacArthur for spending so much to move the tree he replied "I can buy anything but age. This tree will be the centerpiece of our entrance, and while we could plant a little one there, I wouldn't be around 80 years from now to see it as it should be." Moving the tree gave MacArthur the nickname Banyan Mac. Although he was a developer, MacArthur was able to claim that "I built Palm Beach Gardens without knocking one tree down, I moved the biggest tree ever moved in Florida." MacArthur would go on to eventually move more than 200 trees including a sixty foot Norfolk pine that he replanted at the Colonnades Hotel on Singer Island and four more banyans which he floated on a barge from West Palm Beach. Today the landmark banyan trees have a limb span of half an acre. The trees are featured on the Palm Beach Gardens city shield. In 2007 Alexandre Renoir, a great-grandson of artist Pierre-Auguste Renoir, presented the City of Palm Beach Gardens with a painting of the trees. A historical marker was installed across from the trees in 2011.

Palm Beach Gardens was founded in 1959 by John D. MacArthur. MacArthur was born in poverty in…read morePennsylvania in 1897 but he made his first million at the age of 48. He became the owner of a $1 billion empire of insurance companies, land in eight states, including 100,000 acres in Florida, and investments that included Alamo car rental and MacArthur Scotch. Words used to describe him included "cantankerous. intelligent, tenacity, ruthless." MacArthur purchased 4,000 acres of pine forest, swamp, and cattle pastures that would become the planned city of Palm Beach Gardens. He believed there was no human habitation but it turned out that he famously had to deal with one squatter, Charlie Cooper who had a trailer and chicken coop. MacArthur moved Cooper to a house he owned with running water, a toilet and septic tank and then went quickly cleared out his old Cooper homestead. By the time MacArthur died in 1978 at the age of 80 he was the second richest man in the country. He left his $1 billion fortune and his stewardship over northern Palm Beach County with no instructions to a foundation in his name that was set up the year he died. John D. MacArthur State Park is named in his honor. When creating Palm Beach Gardens, MacArthur wanted a garden theme with streets named after flowers and trees. The banyan tree became the symbol of the city. His first choice of town name was Palm Beach City but it was rejected for being too similar sounding to the Town of Palm Beach. One of the first things MacArthur did was to convince PGA of America to move to Palm Beach Gardens. He loaned them the money to build its first complex and he built two golf courses. He also convinced manufacturer RCA to move into town. PGA National resort community broke ground in 1978 and the Gardens Mall opened in 1988. Today Palm Beach Gardens has over 50,000 residents and is close to 60 square miles It has grown to be the largest city by area in Palm Beach County, larger than even West Palm Beach. One of the draws to Palm Beach Gardens is that there is so much to experience. For those seeking outdoor activities, the abundance of parks, trails, and recreational facilities ensures there's always something new to explore. Palm Beach Gardens is known for its natural beauty with meticulously manicured golf courses, parks like Gardens North County District Park and Lake Catherine Park, and natural areas such as Loxahatchee Slough, Frenchman's Forest, Prosperity Oaks Natural Area, and Blue Gill Trail. Palm Beach Gardens also has a rich cultural scene with art shows, and concerts throughout the year. The Gardens Green Market is held every Sunday from 8 to 1 at the City Hall Municipal Campus. For those looking to shop and dine look no further than the Downtown, a lifestyle and entertainment that opened in 2005 in Palm Beach Gardens. The 49 acre, 340,000-square-foot dining, shopping, and living center is anchored by Whole Foods Market, CMX Theatres (formerly called Cobb Theaters when the center opened), the Yard House, and Cheesecake Factory. PGA Commons is another great destination with a mix of residences, shopping, services, galleries, art, and dining. Don't miss Voo Doo Bayou Cafe, Avocado Cantina, The Cooper, and Alaina's Cafe & Bake Shoppe. People who live in Palm Beach Gardens praise its large city amenities while still maintaining a small town feeling. Whether you're drawn by its natural beauty, cultural vibrancy, or access to whatever you may need, Palm Beach Gardens offers a sanctuary where residents can live, work, and play in a harmonious blend of luxury and leisure.

Great place to live ... they're building a new baseball park right by my house and it makes the…read morewhole city look nice :)

I booked a 90-minute tour with Palm Beach Water Tours through Groupon, and it was money well spent…read more You climb on this Catamaran at the Riviera Beach Marina to go up and down the Intracoastal Waterway. They had some light snacks on board with water and soda. The tour included a nice mix of local history and sightseeing. They pointed out well-known or celeb homes and gave context about Palm Beach County, plus we cruised around Peanut Island. I wouldn't say I remember much about the guides' conversation on the tour, they were nice and friendly but honestly, the day and scenery did most of the talking for me. I tuned into that peace and serenity. It was a beautiful day on the water, calm ride, great views--just an all-around relaxing experience. I love being on the water, so this was right up my alley. Damnit, I should've been born a mermaid!!! If you're looking for something easy and scenic, this is a great way to spend an hour and a half. Definitely worth it, especially at any reduced price.

My mom wanted to try the palm beach guided tour for Mother's Day since we tried the Jupiter one a…read morefew years ago and loved it! They also had a great deal for mothers to come on free. It was such a lovely day and our tour guide, Sydney, and captain, Luke were great. They provide snacks and beverages on board and you can bring your own as well. It was so nice to learn all about the houses and history of Palm Beach and Peanut Island! Definitely recommend!

Best part of Florida is easily the hiking/nature areas. As everything is flat LOL. This was a…read morescenic 5 mile loop that we did maybe half because it turned into sand trails eventually. The views were spectacular and if you're lucky you might just see an alligator!

An amazing place to spend a half a day or more on the water in the jungle. They have canoes and…read morekayaks for rent. It's beautiful leisurely and a wonderful place to spend time.

The only reason we stopped here was that there were geocaches here. We immediately recognized that…read morethis must have been a landfill especially since we saw the current one across the highway. They did an awesome job converting this into a park. This should be required of all landfills. Actual hills in Florida - what a rare sight. We understand they have their own olympic cauldron (the flame they use to burn off the methane produced from the landfill). Lots of different sporting uses in this park - biking, walking, soccer, softball, fishing, "mountain biking", etc. Congratulations to whoever made this possible.

For 20 years (1968-1989) trucks hauled trash to the the 445 acre Dyer Boulevard Landfill site until…read moreit finally closed. In April of 1995 the old landfill was turned into a park. The waste authority paid the $5 million to build the park per an agreement they made. They needed to purchase some parcels of land the county did not own from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. The foundation required that once the landfill closed it had to be turned into a park. The waste authority wanted to make the park a showcase of recycling and they used compost, mulch and plastic lumber and other recycled materials wherever possible. A restroom, two baseball diamonds, four soccer fields, a picnic area, lakes for boating and fishing, hiking trails, equestrian trials, and walking paths and a mountain bike challenge course were added to what was once a large modern garbage dump. Most of the park is spread out in between the four garbage hills. All four landfills hills were covered with a plastic liner and topped with two feet of soil and grass. You can see this park from the turnpike. I have often passed it and was intrigued because you never see hills in Florida. Across the street is the landfill that is currently being used. With nothing but time I finally stopped to see what was here. I took the trail from the parking lot to the top of the hill and it ended up being a mile. This was a fun and unique way to work out because it is difficult to find an incline unless you use a gym machine. From the top of the hill you could see people playing on the sports fields down below. All along the trail people were exercising at a safe distance apart. Even so the City of Palm Beach has now closed the park.

Driving in to Ballenisles is like entering paradise! The…read moreviews are amazing, the grounds magnificent and the people both residents and workers are warm and friendly. The three golf courses offer a wonderful experience, the tennis, pickleball and swim facilities are hard to match elsewhere.

Managed by Troon golf and done one 100% right. Played the south course. An incredible course with…read moreplenty of water sand and challenges. Incredible club house great range, putting area and short game practice. All services and then some. One of 3 great courses they have here one of the best reasons to have Troon privilege