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Council approves 243‑unit CIMD project at Park of Commerce with recreation space and affordable units
Summary
The City Council unanimously approved a CIMD site plan to convert an existing office building and add an eight‑story residential tower, townhomes and a 72,428 sq ft ‘sports garden,’ including 25 affordable units and 13 workforce units protected by a 30‑year covenant.
The Boca Raton City Council voted unanimously April 8 to approve two resolutions clearing the way for a commercial‑industrial‑multifamily development (CIMD) at the Arvida Park of Commerce.
Heather Hanson, senior planner with Development Services, told the council the proposal converts an existing approximately 130,510‑square‑foot office building to a mix of uses, adds an eight‑story, 226‑unit residential tower, and constructs 17 three‑story townhomes. The plan includes a 72,428‑square‑foot amateur recreation facility with indoor courts and activity areas, and an 11,447‑square‑foot fast‑casual restaurant with outdoor seating.
"The project will provide an additional 243 rental units in the city, with 25 being affordable and 13 workforce units," Hanson said, and noted staff included a condition requiring a restrictive covenant to ensure those affordable and workforce units remain available for 30 years after certificate of occupancy.
Applicant Ellie Zacharaitis described the design as an adaptive reuse of underused surface parking and said the plan adds sidewalks, street trees and bus shelters while supplying more parking than code requires. "We're proposing 62 parking spaces in surplus of what code requires today," she said, adding the project team expects the recreation facility to attract weekend visitors and planned a parking strategy to serve both residents and visitors.
Several council members and members of the public asked about traffic, preservation of nearby open space and screening for the parking structure; staff said the plan includes screening, lighting controls and landscape buffering recommended by the Community Appearance Board. Jonathan Unjin, who spoke during the hearing, urged careful design of the parking garage façade on Congress Avenue.
Council adopted Resolution 45‑2025 (conditional use for the amateur recreation facility) and Resolution 46‑2025 (CIMD site plan and technical deviation for parking row length) on separate roll calls; clerks recorded the motions as passing five votes to zero.
The approvals direct the applicant to execute the required restrictive covenant guaranteeing the 10% affordable units (25 units) and 5% workforce units (13 units) for 30 years. Staff said final site‑plan conditions from the Community Appearance Board, including added screening and decorative features, remain to be finalized in building permit review.
Next steps: the applicant will return with final permit applications and covenant documentation before construction begins.
