Save Boca starts new petition, not trusting that vote will be held
Terra and Frisbie Group’s latest renderings of the proposed buildings on the east side of Second Avenue show restaurant and other retail on ground floors, pedestrian promenade, protected bike lanes and shaded sidewalks. Rendering provided
By Mary Hladky
With the outcome never in doubt, Boca Raton City Council members approved the major components of a public-private partnership with developers Terra and Frisbie Group to transform a portion of the 31.7-acre downtown campus.
The 4-1 vote approved a master partnership agreement with Terra/Frisbie, a 99-year lease of 7.8 acres of city-owned land, and a management and construction agreement.
The deal will take effect only if city voters approve it in the March 10 election. A majority “no” vote will kill it.
Council members, under pressure from the Save Boca residents group that opposes the downtown campus project, promised residents in September they would get that vote.
But Save Boca founder Jon Pearlman doesn’t trust council members to keep that promise. He fears they will cancel the March 10 vote and vows not to let that happen.
The day after the council’s Jan. 20 vote, Save Boca members began circulating petitions calling for council members to repeal the ordinance that approves the agreements and lease.
If the council does not do so, the City Charter allows residents to vote on the matters, Pearlman contends. So a vote would be held even if the scheduled one is eliminated.
“What we are doing is to guarantee that the people will have the ability to vote and this is the only way to ensure that,” Pearlman told The Coastal Star in a text message.
But City Attorney Joshua Koehler said what Pearlman seeks would cause voter confusion, potentially create two elections that duplicate each other and turn the March 10 vote into an inconclusive result.
Volunteers for Save Boca count signatures in front of the Downtown Library recently. The group is asking residents to sign a petition to undo the City Council’s agreement with Terra and Frisbie Group, saying the city might cancel the March 10 vote. However, council members say the vote will be held and is binding, so the petition is unnecessary. Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star
Backlash to petition
Pearlman’s actions prompted the City Council to hold a special meeting on Jan. 27 where members passed a resolution directing the City Clerk not to accept any petitions collected by Save Boca.
In February, they are scheduled to pass a measure that affirms that voters will have the final say on the redevelopment project.
“If voters say ‘no,’ there is no deal,” Koehler said.
But Pearlman insisted at the special meeting that the council can’t be trusted. “We are up against deep pockets and very motivated politicians,” he said.
“Shame on you,” Mayor Scott Singer told Pearlman. “Please, for the love of the community… please stop the misstatements.”
Everything “is contingent on the vote of residents,” Singer said. “There are no tricks, no funny business.”
In a surprising turn of events, some Save Boca supporters criticized Pearlman’s actions.
The ordinance and related documents state they are null and void if voters don’t approve the redevelopment project. So if the ordinance is repealed, that protection disappears, they said.
Two vocal Save Boca members, Joe Majhess and Richard Warner, voiced objections to Pearlman’s stance at the special meeting.
Majhess said the ordinance includes a “binding contract” to allow residents to vote on March 10. “Stop trying to undermine it,” he said.
The notion that the city is trying to scuttle the vote, he said, “is a lie.”
“I don’t understand the need for this petition,” Warner said.
Speaking after the meeting, Majhess referred to a recent Save Boca email that said in part, “This is our recourse to guarantee we can vote on this.”
“The implication is somehow you don’t have the right to vote yet,” Majhess said. “And that is incorrect.”
The successful Save Boca fight to give residents a vote “is a huge win,” he said. But the petition now in circulation is “not taking a win.”
He and another Save Boca member, who declined to be interviewed at this time, have been blocked from posting on Save Boca’s Facebook and Instagram pages since opposing the ordinance repeal, he said.
Asked if Save Boca is fractured, Majhess said, “I don’t necessarily think it is. I think it is a superficial wound. I think the fundamental mission is still there,” which is the protection of public land and having a March 10 vote.
Pearlman acknowledged taking down social media comments. “If there are attacks on Save Boca … we usually remove that because… we want to have things that are positive to the movement there.”
But he denied any friction. “Save Boca has thousands of supporters across the whole city. Everyone is behind what we are doing. …”
The project includes five residential buildings, a hotel and an office building. The residential would include 77 workforce housing units. Rendering provided
Downtown transformation
Before these events, council members on Jan. 20 explained why they are for or against the development project.
“I am optimistic this plan meets the best vision of what we can achieve and the moment is now,” said Singer, who voted in favor of the ordinance with three council members who strongly support the project.
He cited “the way this opportunity has to transform the downtown” just as Mizner Park did 35 years ago.
Singer also cited revised calculations by the city’s consultants that the project will generate more than $4 billion in revenue for the city over the course of the 99-year land lease.
And he got in a dig at Pearlman, who is running for a council seat in March.
“There have been a lot of comments about saving Boca,” he said, “some from an individual who has yet to vote in a city election.”
Deputy Mayor Fran Nachlas, though, thanked Save Boca members. “You pushed and pushed and helped make this project a better project,” said Nachlas, who is running for mayor March 10. Singer could not run again because he was term limited.
In extensive comments, Council member Andy Thomson, who is also running to become mayor, noted that the city will have to pay upfront the $201 million cost of a new City Hall, Community Center, police substation and other improvements on the west side of the city land and will not recoup that money for many years from the revenue generated by the land lease.
A more typical public-private partnership requires the developer to pay those costs, said Thomson, who has opposed the project from the start and voted against the ordinance.
This creates too much risk for the city, he said. “I don’t believe this plan constitutes a responsible use of the city’s resources.”
Are the changes enough?
He also criticized the project’s density, which has changed little even though Terra/Frisbie has scaled the project back several times in response to Save Boca opposition.
Now, it will be 1.2 million square feet of development squeezed on to 7.8 acres, down from 1.5 million distributed throughout the downtown campus, he said.
The project originally was to encompass the entire downtown campus. But after Save Boca opposed that, Terra/Frisbie agreed to leave nearly 17.3 acres west of Northwest Second Avenue largely as recreation and park space, although it would also include a new City Hall, Community Center and police substation.
Much remains to be decided about what happens with that land. If the city agrees, Terra/Frisbie is willing to go ahead with its plans that include creating a memorial for military service members.
But there is also strong support for the city’s taking the reins on the west side land. If that happens, the Terra/Frisbie plans for that side could be scrapped with the city taking over the design and likely building less expensive buildings.
The 7.8 acres the developers would lease are on the east side of Second Avenue, also called Boca Raton Boulevard. Another 6.7 acres on the east side would remain in city control.
Terra/Frisbie would build seven buildings — five residential (including one condo), a hotel and an office building. The residential would include 77 workforce housing units for those who earn no more than 120% of the county’s average median income.
The city would build a $30 million garage with about 600 parking spaces.
No plans have been announced for privately owned parcels that flank those buildings.
One Boca
Terra/Frisbie has branded itself as One Boca for its role in the project. Over the past two months, it has become much more active in communicating directly with residents and promoting the benefits of the public-private partnership with the city.
In January, One Boca released new conceptual renderings of its proposed buildings on the east side of Second Avenue which will include restaurant and other retail on the ground floors along with a pedestrian promenade, protected bike lanes and shaded sidewalks.
The renderings proposed contemporary architectural styles for its buildings in response to some residents who wanted them based on those created by celebrated architect Addison Mizner. They are “modern Mizner,” “modern Mediterranean” and “modern mid-century modern.”
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