PALM BEACH COUNTY, Fla. — The message on billboards in Times Square is a simple one: "Dear NYC, It's Not You. It's Me. Love, The Palm Beaches." It also includes a tag line of "Wall Street South."
"It was sort of satirical in nature," says Kelly Smallridge of the Business Development Board of Palm Beach County, the firm that put up the signs.
WATCH BELOW: Palm Beach County targets NYC residents with Times Square billboards
Appealing to New York residents is nothing new for Palm Beach County, but Smallridge admits the recent mayoral victory of Zohran Mamdani in New York City did play a role in the new campaign.
"I would say with the recent mayoral race, the phones went on fire," Smallridge said. "The mayoral situation elevated the number of inquiries coming in, and New York families are looking for areas where they can raise their children and do their business, and have certainty and low taxes."
Business migration from the northeast picked up during the pandemic, and local leaders are now looking to continue the momentum.
Real Estate News
These are the 4 cities in Palm Beach County New Yorkers are relocating to
"The Mamdani effect may or may not be real, but it's something people are thinking about," says Brian Seymour, an attorney at Gunster law firm, which serves businesses and developers. "Wall Street South, it's for real, and it's not stopping."
Smallridge said the effort is not about attracting corporate executives but rather creating jobs for the area.
However, the corporate migration is sounding alarms about how it may affect the cost of local housing.
"Unlike COVID, where you saw this huge bump overnight, prices rose by 30% in a year, you're not going to see that in this market," says Sasha Kraver, an agent at Douglas Elliman real estate company. "A lot of people are getting pushed out of this area, but for someone who's lived in Manhattan, it's a lot more affordable here."
