There may be more potential outcomes to the fight over Boca Raton’s downtown redevelopment project than there are openings on a chessboard.
It seems likely that opponents, organized under the name Save Boca, will secure enough petition signatures to force a referendum. Holly Schuttler, one of the organizers, told me, “We’re almost there.” Beyond that, however, it’s hard to say.
The petition says the city council “shall not in any manner alienate from the public, lease or sell any [city-owned land] greater than one-half acre, or any part thereof” without approval through a public referendum. The proposed deal with Terra/Frisbie calls for a 99-year lease of the roughly 30 acres around City Hall. Such language would kill the deal.
If Save Boca obtains enough verified signatures of registered voters, that petition would go to the council in the form of a proposed ordinance. Since four of the five council members support the plan, the council likely would reject it.
Next would come a referendum on the ordinance—or even a charter amendment—when the city holds its scheduled election next March. Save Boca missed the deadline to be part of the special election to fill the state House seat of Joe Casello; those votes happen Sept. 30 and Dec. 9. Thus, March would be the organizers’ next opportunity.
On the current timetable, the council is expected to vote on the final master plan Oct. 28. The council approved the interim master plan in June. What would happen if the council approved the plan, and the referendum passed?
“That’s a good legal question,” said City Manager George Brown when we spoke Monday. And could the organizers challenge any vote on the master plan with an election looming?
Another issue is the sweeping nature of the petition if the language became part of the charter, able to be undone only by another referendum. Boca Raton has numerous leases with non-profit groups, among them the Boca Raton Museum of Art, the Historical Society, Tri-County Animal Shelter, the Mae Volen Senior Center and the Fuller Center. All would retain their leases if the petition passed. But every lease renewal, Brown said, would require a referendum.
Brown also said that because of the “any portion thereof” wording, a referendum could be necessary for such routine transactions as easements with such firms as Florida Power & Light and Comcast.
In the worst case, Boca Raton would face a series of special elections, since the city doesn’t always hold an annual municipal election. Supervisor of Elections Wendy Link said a stand-alone vote for Boca Raton would cost at least $200,000.
Such restrictive language probably would have cost the city Blue Lake Elementary School, which has helped to relieve crowding citywide. When the school district’s deal for land outside Boca Raton fell through, the council quickly offered 15 acres near the Spanish River Library. That window would have closed before any referendum.
Schuttler told me she was unaware of the Blue Lake history. Jon Pearlman, another organizer, told the South Florida Sun Sentinel, “The voters would surely pass a project needed for the public.”
We are at this point because the council and the opponents are talking past each other. As Mayor Scott Singer and the other council supporters see it, this deal would bring a new city hall and community center and transform a dead zone. New parks and private development would draw locals and outsiders. Revenue from lease payments would help to secure Boca Raton’s financial future in uncertain times, as Gov. Ron DeSantis talks about abolishing property taxes.
As the opponents see it, the project is just “too much,” as Schuttler put it. The private development would include 912 residential units, 350,000 square feet of offices, 155,000 square feet of stores and restaurants and a 150-room hotel. “Why do we need more condos and offices? No tech company is going to move to downtown Boca.”
Singer has noted repeatedly that the city has held numerous public discussions on the plan over the past year. Terra/Frisbie held two sessions at The Studio at Mizner Park. But Schuttler says of the council, “They aren’t listening to us.”
So, here’s a look at Save Boca’s main criticisms and the city’s response.
On social media, opponents claim that the city would be “giving away” public land to a private developer. Brown countered that the deal is hardly a giveaway. Lease payments are expected to be more than $1 billion over the 99-year term of the lease. At that point, the land would revert to the city, or the lease could be renewed.
Schuttler, who lives just west of the project area in Old Floresta, complained about the loss of recreation facilities on the east side of the city. Within the project area are two softball fields, the skate park and the tennis center.
Brown points out that the city is building a softball complex at Sugar Sand Park and a skate park at North Park. Both will be “better facilities.” Notably, the softball players and skateboarders have stopped coming to council meetings. Only fans of the tennis center remain skeptical. The city plans to replace the 10 downtown courts with 10 at Meadows Park. Terra/Frisbie also will build two walk-up tennis courts and a basketball court, to replace the one near City Hall.
Schuttler, like others, wonders why the city hasn’t done a traffic study of the project. Brown said there can’t be a study until the city “knows the parameters” of the project, which are not finalized. Brown said council members will have a study before the October vote.
Finally, Save Boca organizers have claimed that the city can’t lease or sell land that is part of Memorial Park, which takes up a portion of the project area. Brown responded, as he did at a recent meeting, that the city can find no special distinction for the property and “no plaque.”
He noted that such a restriction would have prevented the City Hall expansion in 1980. Brown said the city “will recognize” the history of Memorial Park in the project.
From my perspective, one reason for this divide is that so much is happening so quickly. The council has demanded what Brown acknowledges is a “challenging” timetable. The city has scheduled a vote in March on bonds for a police station next to the Spanish River Library. City officials say Boca Raton needs a new facility regardless of the redevelopment project.
In addition, the city still doesn’t have a list of the project’s public costs. Councilman Andy Thomson, the lone vote in June against the interim master plan, has raised this point often. Despite his strong support for the finances of the project, Councilman Marc Wigder acknowledged Friday that not having those numbers is a problem. Brown said he hopes to have them by the Aug. 26 meeting.
Singer points out, correctly, that Mizner Park faced strong opposition 35 years ago, but that few people today could envision Boca Raton without it. Save Boca responds that there was a vote on Mizner Park. Why can’t there be one now?
That vote, though, was on the bonds to finance Mizner Park. Because they were revenue bonds—as opposed to general obligation bonds financed with property taxes—the council didn’t need approval in a referendum. The council scheduled the vote to head off a petition drive opposing Mizner Park. In theory, this council could schedule its own vote on the Terra/Frisbie project.
In political terms, the moment is ripe. Every council member could be on a ballot next year. Thomson and Vice Mayor Fran Nachlas are running for mayor in March. Wigder is seeking a second term, Councilwoman Yvette Drucker is running for the state Senate, and talk is that Singer will run for Congress.
Will Save Boca become a political movement and mount candidates for office? Conventional political wisdom is that angry voters are the most energized. Turnout in city elections always is much lighter than for statewide ballots.
In an email, Singer said, “Unfortunately, these petitions are confusing to many residents because they have far-reaching consequences that extend beyond just the downtown campus.” He cited the leases with non-profits and said, “I have discussed this issue with some of the committee. Residents who have concerns may prefer to give feedback to the evolving plans, rather than sign this petition that may prevent nonprofits in the future from providing many benefits to our city.”
Wigder said, “I’m happy to see people activating, but it would be better if all parties worked together.”
That can’t happen unless all parties agree on the basic facts and stop talking past each other.
Boca officials raise awareness of new speed cameras in school zones
With school starting Monday, Boca Raton officials want to raise awareness of the speed cameras that begin this year.
The program will start at Addison Mizner School, Boca Raton High School and J.C. Elementary School. Drivers who exceed the speed limit by more than 10 miles per hour during drop-off and pickup will get $100 tickets. The infractions are civil violations and will not count against driver’s licenses.
Two years ago, the Legislature authorized counties and cities to start the programs under statewide rules. City police officials have cited studies showing high numbers of speeders in school zones. The program will expand this year to Blue Lake and Calusa elementaries and Omni Middle and Spanish River High, which are close to each other at Jog and Yamato roads.
Delray city commissioners to discuss police contract impasse
We can assume that there remains no resolution to Delray Beach’s police contract impasse.
Mayor Tom Carney has scheduled a special city commission meeting for Aug. 21. The topic is “PBA Impasse,” referring to the Police Benevolent Association. The union declared an impasse in February over negotiations toward a contract to replace the one that expired Sept. 30.
Commissioners and the city’s labor attorneys met last month in executive session. Carney had said previously that he wanted to schedule a public forum in which the commission could respond to criticism of the failure to approve a deal.
Delray politics get in the way of city manager evaluation
Last week, Carney called a special meeting because the commission wasn’t ready to conduct its required evaluation of City Manager Terrence Moore by Aug. 1. The commission and Moore had to agree to extend the deadline.
The meeting quickly devolved into another back-and-forth between Carney and Commissioner Juli Casale. Carney said he remained unhappy with the evaluation form. Casale asked why Carney was raising the issue so late. Carney responded that the commission last year had asked for a different format. Casale responded that there had been no such consensus. “I don’t make this stuff up,” Carney said.
Eventually, the commission set the evaluation for Aug. 12.
Moore to head Department of Neighborhood and Community Services
Speaking of Moore, he has assumed control over the Department of Neighborhood and Community Services. In his July 25 commission newsletter, Moore said he would replace Assistant City Manager Jeff Oris as “lead support contact.”
The move comes after an outside investigation found no evidence to support the accusation by the department’s director, Geri Pryor, that Moore and Long pressured her to practice what the report called “selective code enforcement.” Pryor has challenged that finding.
