As a member of Boca Raton’s City Council, people often ask me what I think of statewide or national issues. A few years ago, my response was typically, “not much!” Things are actually quite good in Boca Raton, and we try to stay out of fights outside our boundaries.

A common-sense approach means we haven’t raised our millage rate in 10 years, and property value increases have outpaced inflation, indicating people like living here. I sure do!

Marc Wigder is a member of the Boca Raton City Council. (courtesy, Marc Wigder)

What’s not to like? People feel safe; we have amazing public safety and fire-rescue departments. Our children can play in neighborhood parks. Our beaches are beautiful. Boca has a rock-solid corporate tax base with high-paying jobs, incredible universities that are only gaining in stature, and a world-class hospital system with Baptist Health.

All of this success doesn’t mean there is nothing left to do. We continue to focus on public safety, roads, infrastructure and traffic improvements, such as AI-enabled signals that improve the flow of traffic. And in Boca Raton, we have our own water and wastewater utilities that we invest in wisely.

We are also fortunate to be able to provide state-of-the-art police and firefighting equipment that helps us deliver the best public safety at a good value for the services we deliver. We use a sharp budget pencil and plan ahead to safeguard our rainy-day funds.

Fully 50% of the housing in Boca falls under the homestead exemption, which means half the residents are capped at just 3% increases each year, rather than appreciating with market prices, which have risen much more steeply. Our growth rate averages a responsible 0.9% over the last decade as we carefully assess new projects. This is smart growth, not growth at all costs.

As the city considers opportunities for new potential revenue to create a very small transit-oriented neighborhood near the Brightline station, a few loud voices — including several that just moved here — claim that everything in the city is going wrong.

It would be more convincing if they could describe specific issues instead of ideological complaints, but they can’t. What don’t they like?

The stable growth rate we have? The stable tax base we have? The stable water system we have? The stable police and fire departments we have? The stable park system we have? Our stable building department, trash department, road maintenance department, sea-wall restoration fund and pension funds? Or is it the fact that we get some national attention for this success and progress?

The fact that we have separate enterprise funds for the capital improvements we need is absolutely not a bad thing; in fact, it’s a great thing. It means less tax hikes and less bond offerings. Neighboring cities are nowhere near as lucky and have to make tougher choices than we do in Boca.

The truth is, when people with their own agendas who have never bothered to join a city board or even vote in Boca try to tell me that everything is wrong, I don’t believe them. I know all 18,000 acres of Boca, and I really like it here. And I think they actually do, too.

These naysayers imply that Boca is wrapped in some sort of grand conspiracy because the city considers, subject to public vote, a new source of additional revenue measuring in the billions of dollars while improving our downtown. Frankly, it’s ridiculous. Their one issue isn’t a serious analysis of municipal operations in a complicated place like our city. And their mistaken analysis would lead us into drastic service cuts or double-digit tax hikes. I won’t let them play games with our city’s future, and neither should you.

Marc Wigder is an attorney, investor and adjunct professor of business law at Florida Atlantic University. He is running for re-election in Boca Raton City Council Seat B. 

https://www.sun-sentinel.com/2026/02/03/we-have-balanced-residents-needs-in-boca-opinion/