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Boca Raton CRA lowers pre‑permit urban design deposits for small projects, effective Oct. 1
Summary
The Boca Raton Community Redevelopment Agency on Sept. 8 approved a revision to its application fee schedule, cutting the pre‑permit urban design deposit from $2,500 to $500 for smaller projects and $1,000 for larger projects; change takes effect Oct. 1, 2025.
The Boca Raton Community Redevelopment Agency on Sept. 8 approved a change to its application fee schedule that reduces the pre‑permit urban design review deposit from $2,500 to a tiered amount based on project value, effective Oct. 1, 2025.
The change, adopted as Resolution No. 2025‑04 CRA, sets a $500 deposit for lower‑value projects and a $1,000 deposit for projects above the stated threshold. The agency’s planning staff said the tiered approach is intended to ease the upfront cost burden on small applicants and reduce administrative refunds.
Arlene Chees Nelson, DDRI planning analyst, presented the resolution and explained the practical reason for the change: many small projects found the $2,500 deposit onerous, and staff time spent returning partial refunds created extra work. “We have a number of very small projects coming in, and the $2,500 has been difficult for some of our applicants,” Chees Nelson said. She described the urban design pre‑permit review as relatively brief and noted that lowering the deposit reduces the need for refunds and associated staff processing.
Brown, a city staff member, confirmed the administrative effort involved in calculating and returning overpayments and supported the change as a way to reduce those burdens. No members of the public spoke during the item’s public hearing.
The motion to adopt Resolution No. 2025‑04 CRA passed on a roll call vote, 5‑0. Commissioners recorded in the roll call concurred; the resolution repeals the prior fee resolution to create a consolidated schedule and sets the new effective date at Oct. 1, 2025.
The resolution applies only to the CRA application review and processing fee schedule and does not change the substance of the urban design review itself, which staff said remains the same.
