The area where Palmas was
built was originally used for agriculture. Before 1990, the only village in the
location was Vila Canela (near the river Tocantins, and near the Graciosa
beach). The village and the beach were often flooded by the new lake. The flat
area of Palmas is right between the river and the Serra do Lajeado hills in the
east, and the vegetation is the typical 'cerrado'. In 1989 Miracema was the
temporary capital of the state. The new capital was initially designed by the
architects Luiz Fernando Cruvinel Teixeira and Walfredo de Oliveira Filho. From
20 May 1989,
