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Downtown residents press Boca Raton leaders for safer streets, more trash bins and certainty on tennis courts
Summary
Multiple residents at public comment urged the council to improve downtown pedestrian safety through expanded enforcement and lower speed limits, add public trash receptacles along key corridors, and clarify plans for downtown tennis courts amid competing Tierra/Terra Frisbee redevelopment options.
Public comment at the strategic planning workshop focused on safety, downtown walkability, trash and active‑recreation amenities, with speakers asking the council to follow up during project planning.
Monique Grama, who identified her address as downtown, thanked the city for increased downtown speed enforcement but asked for more: “Boca continues to be a dangerous place to walk and bike,” she said, and urged “regular rigorous traffic enforcement downtown” as well as lower speed limits and “no right on red” at key intersections to protect pedestrians. She also asked the city to add trash bins along corridors such as Palmetto and A1A where people repeatedly litter, noting a recent bin at the downtown post office reduced waste in that pocket.
Robert Duquette urged expanded transparency and greater long‑range planning for public safety and rezoning notifications. He requested mailed notice for residents within 500 feet of significant rezonings or site‑plan amendments and urged caution about running a new four‑lane roadway through a 70‑acre park area next to a rail crossing, which he said raised safety concerns.
Jonathan Ungian and other commenters urged the council to empower city planners to manage development around the downtown and mall areas in ways that create walkable, mixed‑use neighborhoods rather than piecemeal residential insertions adjacent to older commercial uses.
Judy Morrow spoke for tennis players and nearby residents about the Tierra/ Terra Frisbee campus options. She said the February plan initially proposed removing 10 tennis courts downtown; later options showed eight, five or two replacement courts, and she asked the council to clarify whether eight courts would be guaranteed. “What guarantee do we have we’re gonna get 8?” she asked, citing concern among longtime players who walk or bike to downtown courts.
Mayor Mary Singer and the facilitators told public speakers that the workshop’s focus was high‑level strategy and that some site‑specific details — number of tennis courts, individual curb/stop‑sign changes — might be addressed in project‑level meetings and the campus master plan review. Staff and council later acknowledged the tennis issue and the recreation master plan will be part of the campus‑plus conversations.
Ending: Councilmembers and staff said they will incorporate public comments into the campus master plan review and encouraged residents to follow subsequent project workshops where site‑specific decisions will be considered.
