Boca Raton’s First ‘Live Local’ Development Approved for 295 Units

Renderings of an apartment building approved for 1800 N Military Trail, Boca Raton, FL. (Photo: Boca Daily News)

A proposal to develop residential units at the Boca Center complex, advanced by the planning board last month, has gained final approval from the city council and will mark the first development of its kind under the auspices of the “Live Local Act” legislation.

The 295-unit complex will be constructed at 1800 N. Military Trail, on a now-vacant parcel that was once eyed for an office tower matching the UBS Financial building next door. With demand for office space on the decline – and housing on the upswing – the property owners proposed the luxury apartment complex as a unique alternative to the planned commercial space.

The development, now known as “Boca Center Residential,” is the first project to be approved under the guidelines set forth under Florida’s Live Local Act, which allows commercial-industrial multi-family developments, known as “CIMDs” in areas that are not normally zoned for residential space and do not neighbor single-family homes. Enabling codes adopted by the city earlier this year require CIMDs to include 10 percent of the units to be designated as affordable housing. In the case of Boca Center Residential, 30 units will be designated as affordable while 15 units will be designated as “workforce housing,” which expands the availability of rent subsidies to a wider array of income groups.

The building will stand six stories tall, at 66 feet in height, and comprise 363,851 square feet of space. A five-level parking facility will also be constructed as part of the development.

Renderings of an apartment building approved for 1800 N Military Trail, Boca Raton, FL. (Photo: Boca Daily News)

The location of an apartment building approved for 1800 N Military Trail, Boca Raton, FL. (Photo: Boca Daily News)

The new apartment complex will include a clubroom and lounge, co-working space, and a gym on the first floor. The gym includes a mezzanine that is also accessible from the second floor, plus two outdoor pickleball courts that will also be accessible from the second floor. An outdoor area with covered seating areas and a planter is proposed on the sixth floor. A pool, pavilion, and outdoor kitchen will be located at ground level on the south side of the building.

Two bicycles lanes and a walking path will be constructed the site in addition to the interior improvements. Trees, plantings and other aesthetic features will also be added.

Peter Begovich, senior planner for the city, said 1.4 acres of the property currently designated as an environmental preserve will remain, with better access for residents to enjoy the space.

“Eight parallel parking spaces will be added to the existing driveway on the site, and the existing conservation easement and scrub preserve area are proposed to remain on-site,” said Begovich.

A walking path will ring the complex, and will be extended to the open space.

“Now it will actually go somewhere and really be utilized,” said Eli Zachariades, representing the property owner, of the path to the conservation area. “We’ve pretty much doubled open space, and this is a perfect location.”

Renderings of an apartment building approved for 1800 N Military Trail, Boca Raton, FL. (Photo: Boca Daily News)

The location of an apartment building approved for 1800 N Military Trail, Boca Raton, FL. (Photo: Boca Daily News)

The project will include an 8-foot wide shared use walking path, with additional extensions to both the adjacent office building and Military Trail. A connection to a nearby McDonald’s restaurant will be eliminated. Last week, the developer obtained approval from Palm Beach County for a driveway connection on North Military Trail, based on trip generation numbers derived from a recent study.

Located adjacent to the UBS Financial building at Boca Center, the property had received approval for the construction of two office buildings, including a 149,500 square foot tower and parking structure which was intended to be a “mirror image” of the second office facility on the site. The first building – which currently houses UBS and several other tenants – was constructed in 2008 along with a parking deck, but the second was never built.

The proposal received unanimous approval at the Sept. 4 planning board meeting, and likewise, received unanimous approval from the council last week.