Boca Raton could get a new police station if voters approve a March 2026 ballot referendum question that would allow city officials to spend the money to do so.
The proposed police station could be built along Broken Sound Boulevard between Spanish River Library and the Boca Raton Innovation Campus. The city’s current police station is at 100 NW Boca Raton Blvd., just south of the Brightline station.
Though city staff presented a location to the City Council at a meeting Monday, the referendum question only involves the financing of the project, which, if approved, would come from $175 million of bond funds.
“A lot of progress has been made, but we’re still very early in the planning,” Deputy City Manager and the city’s Chief Financial Officer Jim Zervis said during the meeting.
Deputy City Manager and CFO Jim Zervis gives a presentation on a potential new police headquarters during a Boca Raton City Council meeting on Monday, Sept. 22, 2025. (Amy Beth Bennett / South Florida Sun Sentinel)
Zervis detailed to the council why a new police department is needed, which includes:
— The current facility isn’t big enough to hold the number of employees and amount of evidence and equipment.
— Significant repair and maintenance is needed on the current facility.
— Outdated technology in the current facility isn’t keeping up with policing needs, such as investigating cybercrime.
— The department’s detention and processing facility does not conform to state standards.
The police department facility at the site now was built in 1986, making it nearly 40 years old.
In that time, the city’s population increased from nearly 59,000 people to more than 103,000 people, and the police department employees went from 145 to 331, according to the city.
“For a number of reasons, it’s nearing its end of life,” Zervis said. “Our force has grown quite a bit in the last 39 years, and the needs of the police department have changed in that time as well.”
A plan to construct and relocate the city’s police department has been discussed for the past several years.
These conversations have often related to the overall government campus redevelopment plan, the fate of which also will be on the March 10 ballot. The redevelopment issue has been contentious, drawing opposition from many residents. City staff currently is preparing a referendum question for the election regarding resident approval of the government campus project.
If it moves forward, the upgraded police station “really hits on a portion of the city’s vision about safety and world-class community services,” Zervis said. “As we talk about how we ensure community safety in the city of Boca Raton for the future, that is really what this project is all about and to do that in a way that is fiscally sound.”
A rendering illustrates a proposed new police station in Boca Raton located in between the Spanish River Library and the Boca Raton Innovation Center. (City of Boca Raton)
Police Chief Michele Miuccio said during the meeting that relocating the station won’t alter the firm presence of police officers across the city, including the downtown.
“What people have to understand is our patrol officers are strategically placed in zones throughout the entire city, and they also have staggered start and stop times. So we always have police officers out on the road at any given moment,” she said. “This is not going to change operationally. We continue to do that. That’s the way you patrol.”
The council agreed to move forward with putting the referendum question on the ballot.
“I think the voters should strongly consider this. We’ve invested heavily in public safety. It’s about time that we brought up the facilities we need to plan for today and for our future. I think this is a very prudent plan,” Mayor Scott Singer said.
