WELLINGTON TIME LINE
June 26, 1953 — The Acme Drainage District is set up by Florida law to do the necessary drainage work to make C. Oliver Wellington’s property in western Palm Beach County usable for agriculture. Residential population, mostly farmers, totaled about 100.
1959 — A Plan of Reclamation is adopted, which laid out a set of roads, canals, and pumping stations in the area now called “Wellington.”
1960s — The land is used for agricultural purposes. At one point, more than 2,000 acres were devoted to growing strawberries.
January 1971 — Investment Corporation of Florida proposed the development of much of the Wellington land. ICOF reaches an agreement with the Acme Drainage District to do the drainage work and roads for the new development. Guerry Stribling is hired as the project manager.
March 1972 — The huge “Wellington P.U.D.” (Planned Unit Development) is unanimously approved by the Palm Beach County Commission. Alcoa Florida Inc. joins ICOF as one of Wellington’s original developers.
November 1972 — Work begins on the 150-acre Lake Wellington, centerpiece of the new community.
March 16, 1973 — Groundbreaking held for the first phase of Wellington.
May 18, 1974 — 1,000 lots for immediate-build homes are available.
1975 — The Acme Drainage District becomes the Acme Improvement District, allowing for the maintenance of parks and recreational activities.
Feb. 19, 1976 — Business comes to Wellington with the groundbreaking at Wellington Country Plaza, the community’s first shopping center.
1977 — Gould Florida Inc. buys out Alcoa. In 1978, Gould buys out ICOF to become Wellington’s sole owner. Gould’s polo-loving chairman, William Ylvisaker, introduces Palm Beach Polo & Country Club to the project.
1978 — Palm Beach Point is begun immediately southwest of the original Wellington P.U.D.
March 1979 — Palm Beach Polo opens.
1979 — In a further attempt to bolster Wellington’s image as a retreat for the wealthy, Gould breaks ground on the Aero Club, an aviation-themed community unlike any other in Florida.
1979 — Groundbreaking for the Wellington Club East, now the Wellington Community Center.
1981 — The first public school built in the western communities, Wellington Elementary School opens on a 20-acre site at the intersection of Paddock Drive and Big Blue Trace.
1985 — Cuban-born multi-millionaire Alberto Vadia Sr. buys Gould’s undeveloped land and creates Corepoint, Wellington’s final master developer.
1986 — Wellington Regional Medical Center opens, as does the Wellington Boys & Girls Club.
1987 — Wellington Landings Middle School opens on a 15-acre site in western Wellington.
1987 — A resident-controlled property owners association known as “Residents of Wellington” (ROW) is formed. The group is the first Wellington organization totally without developer input. Always controversial, the group was disbanded in 1996 after strongly opposing the successful incorporation effort.
1988 — Wellington High School opens on a 63-acre site that had been the Wellington Athletic Association fields. New Horizons Elementary School opens nearby.
December 1989 — The Acme Improvement District Board of Supervisors votes unanimously to proceed with Wellington’s incorporation.
November 6, 1990 — A first vote regarding incorporation is held. The idea narrowly fails with 53 percent voting “NO.” Residents in favor of the idea vow to keep the goal alive.
1990 — The charter of the Acme Improvement District is changed to allow for popularly elected supervisors, rather than a landowner vote by acreage.
1991 — The “Town of Wellington” project is proposed for the area just west of Wellington. It is to be a self-contained commercial/residential community such as today’s Abacoa in Jupiter. An economic down-turn, along with mass protests from Wellington residents, dooms the project.
1991 — Panther Run Elementary School opens on Lake Worth Road.
1992 — Corepoint ceases operations.
November 8, 1994 — A “Straw Poll” is held that for the first time shows a majority of Wellington voters (57 percent) favored incorporation. The vote leads to a full-scale state effort.
May 11, 1995 — House Bill 1439 approves a charter for the “Village of Wellington.”
November 7, 1995 — Wellington residents vote to incorporate by a slim margin: 3,851 (51 percent) to 3,713 (49 percent).
December 31, 1995 — Incorporation becomes official.
March 12, 1996 — Wellington’s first election is held as 27 people run for the five seats on the new Wellington Village Council.
March 26, 1996 — A run-off is held among the top vote-getters, electing Paul Adams, Kathy Foster, Mike McDonough, Dr. Carmine Priore, and Tom Wenham to the first Wellington Village Council. Of the winners, only Adams was not previously an Acme Improvement District supervisor.
March 28, 1996 — Full municipal operations commence as the Wellington Village Council meets for the first time.
December 1996 — After a nationwide search, Charles Lynn takes over as Wellington Village Manager.
March 1998 — Wellington voters oust Mike McDonough and put Al Paglia on the Wellington Village Council.
October 1998 — The council inks a deal to purchase the old Wellington Club East and turn it into the Wellington Community Center.
February 1999 — Wellington annexes land along Forest Hill Blvd., east of State Road 7 to Florida’s Turnpike. The land, sought by both Wellington and Greenacres, will later be developed by Minto Communities Inc.
February 2000 — Binks Forest Elementary School opens.
March 2000 — Incumbents Paul Adams and Kathy Foster lose bids for re-election. Incorporation activists Mark Miles and Linda Bolton take seats on the council.
August 2000 — Polo Park Middle School opens. Master HOA First Wellington Inc. is dissolved.
October 5, 2001 — The Mall at Wellington Green opens.
