Feeding iguanas, rats, mice or pigeons in Boca now carries a minimum $100 fine
Plus the tax brochure hitting mailboxes, a Vision Zero comment window, and Sunday bowling for KidsPack.
A short Saturday edition: a new feeding ban with teeth, a property tax brochure arriving next week, two items still moving through City Hall, and one Sunday fundraiser worth the drive to Commercial Trail.
Boca Raton now has a rule about who gets fed outdoors. City Council this week passed an ordinance prohibiting the feeding of iguanas, rats, mice and pigeons in a way that attracts or encourages them to gather, along with a companion resolution setting a minimum civil penalty of $100 for violations. Both passed by majority vote. The city tied the change to nuisance and public health concerns associated with feeding these animals. The resolution matters as much as the prohibition itself: it allows Code Enforcement officers to address violations through direct citations. The prohibition is Ordinance No. 5792, and the penalty is Resolution 79-2026.
State senators brief Council on preemptions and a property tax amendment
State Senators Lori Berman and Tina Polsky gave City Council an update on the most recent Florida legislative session, including funding secured for Boca Raton and new laws affecting local governments. The briefing also covered state preemptions and a proposed constitutional amendment related to property taxes that could affect local revenues and city services. It was a presentation and discussion item rather than a vote.
A city brochure explaining your property tax bill starts arriving next week
Property owners in Boca Raton begin receiving the city's Your Property Taxes Explained brochure in the mail the week of Sept. 1. It covers proposed tax rates and how tax dollars are distributed. The figure most residents will not expect: Boca Raton residents paid $693,362,086 in annual property taxes, and the City of Boca Raton receives about $150 million of that, or 21.67%. The other 78.33% goes to other taxing agencies in Palm Beach County. The city puts its property tax rate at 3.66 and describes it as one of the lowest for a full service city in Florida. Printed copies are available on request at City Hall, 201 West Palmetto Park Road.
Bowling for Bread takes over Lucky Strike on Sunday
- When
- Sunday, August 30, 2026 · Noon to 2:30 p.m.
- Where
- Lucky Strike
- Address
- 21046 Commercial Trail, Boca Raton, FL 33486
- Price
- $100 child sponsorship; $500 lane sponsorship
Boca Helping Hands holds its 2026 Bowling for Bread event Sunday from noon to 2:30 p.m. at Lucky Strike, 21046 Commercial Trail. Lanes are bowled by children from participating charities, and proceeds support the KidsPack Weekend Meals program. In 2025 that program provided 288,546 weekend meals to 1,962 children from 15 schools and five summer camps, covering the days when school meals are not available. Sponsorships run $100 for a child and $500 for a lane. The event is held in conjunction with Boca Chamber Festival Days. Contact the event organizer for tickets and details.
Council introduces an update to the condo recertification program
City Council introduced Ordinance No. 5794, which updates Boca Raton's Building Recertification Inspection Program to align with recent changes to Florida law. The revisions clarify inspection, reporting and repair requirements while keeping the city's 25 year recertification requirement for condominium and cooperative buildings within three miles of the coast. Council introduced the ordinance rather than adopting it. Two other ordinances were introduced alongside it: an amendment to the Police and Firefighters Pension Plan that could allow refunds for previously purchased service credit for as many as five current members, and updates to the city's Procurement Code.
The city's Vision Zero crash safety plan is open for public comment
City Council received an update on Boca Raton's Vision Zero Action Plan, a data driven effort to reduce fatal and serious injury crashes and improve safety for drivers, pedestrians and bicyclists. The plan identifies priority roadways and intersections for safety improvements. It is now available for public review and comment, with Council adoption anticipated as the next step, which puts the comment window ahead of the vote rather than after it.
The 1150 Innovation Center decision slides to October
City Council postponed consideration of the 1150 Innovation Center proposal to a later date in October at the applicant's request. The item involves special approval for warehouse, showroom and wholesale uses as part of a proposed mixed use development at 1150 NW Broken Sound Parkway. It is a quasi judicial hearing, and Council members filed written disclosures of potential ex parte communications on the item.