Heated public comment at Boca Raton council focuses on downtown campus, ballot language and 'Save Boca' petition

Dozens of residents and stakeholders testified at the Boca Raton City Council meeting on Dec. 16 about the proposed downtown government campus and the citizen‑led Save Boca petitions challenging aspects of the plan and ballot language.

The meeting's public‑comment block ran for multiple hours and featured a mix of complainants and proponents. Opponents asked for more rigorous independent fiscal analysis, questioned the appraisal methodology and discount rates used in the city's PFM financial model, and objected to a 99‑year lease term for 7.8 acres of city property. Supporters of the project said the plan will protect green space in some areas and bring needed downtown investment.

Financial and legal questions dominated much of the testimony. Michelle Grau, a CPA who said she consulted a nationally recognized P3 expert, urged the council to use higher, industry‑standard discount rates when evaluating the public benefit of public‑private partnerships. "When projections fail, taxpayers bear the cost," Grau said, recommending discount rates between 7% and 12% for commercial real‑estate P3 projects. Using a more conservative discount rate, she argued, would dramatically reduce the…