Robert E. Bateman was responsible for the early development of two cities adjacent to Pompano Beach.

In the early 1950s he started the Lighthouse Point subdivision, and later that decade got going on a development west of Pompano Beach that he initially called Edgefield. He later changed that name to the more tropical sounding Coconut Creek.

In both cases, he staged waterski shows to bring potential customers out to his see his properties.