Boca Raton Looks to Crack Down on Charter Boats Using City Dock

The boat ramp and bulkhead at Silver Palm Park, Boca Raton, FL, Sept. 2025. (Photo: Boca Daily News)

Boca Raton officials have signaled an interest in developing a plan to stop the practice of charter vessels using the city’s dock at Silver Palm Park off Palmetto Park Road, which is also home to the municipal boat ramp.

“We’re concerned that this is a real issue right now,” said Deputy Mayor Fran Nachlas, during a discussion last week as to whether funds should have been placed into the city’s 2026 fiscal year budget to tackle the issue. Ultimately, city staff set aside $200,000 that could go toward hiring additional dockmasters, but said a new policy must be created to either allow and regulate the activity, or enforce its prohibition.

The issue, officials said, is the practice of privately-owned commercial charter vessels using the dock and bulkhead at the park as an access point for customers to embark and disembark. It is not uncommon to see fishing vessels, “tiki boat” operators, and for-hire pleasure craft loading and unloading passengers and supplies at the park. This practice is already prohibited by city ordinance, however it has become so widespread that code enforcement officers would need to be posted at the park all day long to prevent it. City officials said vessel traffic from charters has caused disruptions for residents trying to tie up to access the ramp, led to parking capacity being squeezed by people using the park as a meeting point to board charters, and presented a liability concern for the city.

The boat ramp and bulkhead at Silver Palm Park, Boca Raton, FL, Sept. 2025. (Photo: Boca Daily News)

The boat ramp and bulkhead at Silver Palm Park, Boca Raton, FL, Sept. 2025. (Photo: Boca Daily News)

“One of the issues at this location is the impact on the boaters who use the park,” said City Manager George S. Brown. “In other words, does the park start to become a commercial enterprise? Right now, the city code prohibits this activity. It’s commercial activity in a park. There is a suggestion is to make it a legitimate activity and charge a fee.”

The issue was first brought up by members of the city’s Marine Advisory Board, leading staff members to consider alternatives. One idea would have embarkations occur at the Red Reef West parking lot, but there were concerns that parking could become an issue given the number of people already using the lot for golf and to access the beach. That has left officials to contemplate how to accommodate everyone at Silver Palm Park, where worries linger about potential legal liability should someone get hurt jumping from the bulkhead onto a private vessel that is not permitted by the city to be there.

“If they don’t get on the boat the way they should, and they get hurt, we may have an issue,” said Brown, adding that Delray Beach had a similar issue at one of its boat ramps near Linton Boulevard.

“The dock that is there is not a traditional dock,” said Councilman Marc Wigder. “There’s no gang plank. When people are taking it upon themselves to embark on a craft, it’s not a normal embarking or debarking situation.”

“Jet-ski operators are doing the same thing,” added Councilman Andy Thomson. “They even advertise online that this is the place where you can do it.”

The boat ramp and bulkhead at Silver Palm Park, Boca Raton, FL, Sept. 2025. (Photo: Boca Daily News)

The boat ramp and bulkhead at Silver Palm Park, Boca Raton, FL, Sept. 2025. (Photo: Boca Daily News)

The council agreed to take a deeper dive into the issue and gather data that could help guide future policies – all of which will likely require more manpower. One option would be to more strictly enforce the prohibition on commercial operators using the park. Citations for such violations are generally issued by code enforcement officers. The alternative option would be to license a certain number of vessels to legally pick up and drop off passengers, and use the revenue to add dock staff and ensure the facilities are safe for such a use.

“I suggest we get some really hard data about what’s going on there from the rangers,” said Brown. “What is the frequency? What’s happening? Then we can have a policy discussion and say, ‘no, we cannot do this,’ or ‘yes, we can do this and activate the area.’ It is clear an issue in the park, based on the photographs we saw.”

In the mean time, Brown said, the aforementioned photographs have been reviewed by city staff, and charter operators have been contacted and told they are not permitted to use the park as a “base” for their business.