ZIP Code 33431

Boca Raton is a city in Palm Beach County, Florida. It was first incorporated on August 2, 1924, as "Bocaratone" The city is home to the main campus of Florida Atlantic University and the corporate headquarters of Office Depot. Boca Town Center, an upscale shopping center in central BocaRaton, is one of the largest indoor mall in Palm beach County. The city has a strict development code for the size and types of commercial buildings, building signs, and advertisements that may be erected within the city limits. The population was 97,422 in the 2020 census, and it was ranked as the 344th largest city in America in 2022. It is 45 miles (72 km) north of Miami and is a principal city of the Miami metropolitan area, which had a population of 6,012,331 people as of 2015. The true meaning of the word "ratones" for the area is more uncertain. Some claim that the word appears in old Spanish maritime dictionaries referring to "rugged rocks or stony ground on the bottom of some ports and coastal outlets, where the cables rub against." Thus, one possible translation of "Boca raton" is "rugged inlet". Still other people claim that "Ratones" referred to pirates who hid out in the area, and thus the name could translate to "pirates' inlet", which would illustrate why there is a pirate ship in the city seal. A common mispronunciation outside of the city is.

Etymology

Boca Raton is the primary city name, but also Highland Bch, Highland Beach are acceptable city names or spellings. The official name is City of Boca Raton. Boca Ratón translates to English literally as Mouse Mouth. Its name was originally labeled in the first European maps of the area as "Boca de Ratones" The true meaning of the word "ratones" for the area is more uncertain. City residents pronounce the "Raton" in Boca Raton as. A common mispronunciation outside of the city is. The name could translate to "pirates' inlet", which would illustrate why there is a pirate ship in the city seal. It is also known as Boca de Boca, which means "mouth" in Spanish, and "Bocas" in English. It was a common term to describe an inlet on maps by sailors. The city is named after the town of Bocas, which is in the province of Córdoba, in the state of Buenos Aires. It has a population of around 2,000,000 people, making it one of the largest cities in Argentina. It also has the second largest economy in the country, after Buenos Aires, with a GDP of around $1.2 billion. The name is Spanish for "mound" or "mouth", and means "to eat" or to "to drink" in the Spanish language. It means "boca" in Italian, "boccas" means mouth, "raton" means to eat, "ratón" means "eat" or "raton" means to drink.

History

Boca Raton was originally occupied by the Glades culture, a Native American tribe of hunter/gatherers. The area remained largely uninhabited for long afterwards, during the early years of Florida's incorporation in the United States. Early settlement in the area increased shortly after Henry Flagler's expansion of the Florida East Coast Railway, connecting West Palm Beach to Miami. In 1925, architect Addison Mizner announced his plan for "the foremost resort city on the North American continent,":4 "a new exclusive social capital in America" The city was incorporated in 1924; the city immediately appointed Mizner Town Planner. The city's main street, the main street in Mizner's Boca was to be El Camino Real, 20 lanes wide, which Mizner fancifully translated as "The Royal Highway",:39 referring to Spain's road network and the road to the Spanish missions in California. The name Botafogo, a beach and neighborhood in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, was inspired by Mizner, who never went to Brazil, nor knew it, because it was simply made up because it made up a name for a gondola for pleasure boats in the center of the city's lagoon. The town's name was originally "Boca de Ratones," but was changed to Boca Ratone Sounde by mistake during the 19th century. The first significant European settler to this area was Captain Thomas Moore Rickards in 1895, who resided in a house made of driftwood on the east side of the East Coast Canal.

Politics

The City of Boca Raton has a Council-Manager form of government. The Mayor has been chosen through a direct election since 1978. The offices of the city council and the mayor are nonpartisan. The previous mayor was Susan Haynie. As of January 2021, Democrat Ted Deutch represents Florida's 22nd congressional district. In the 2016 and 2020 General Presidential Elections, Republican Donald Trump won in Bocas Raton by a majority. The current mayor is Scott Singer, who was elected outright as mayor in a special election on August 28, 2018. The city is located in Palm Beach County and Broward County and is located on the Florida Turnpike, which runs from Doral to Fort Lauderdale. The mayor's office is housed in the Boca Grande Hotel, which was built in the early 1900s. It is located near the intersection of Interstate 95 and State Road 441. The Boca River runs through the city, and the city is part of the South Florida Water Management Agency. The City is also home to the South Doral Water Management Authority, which manages the city's water and sewer system. The water system is owned by the Florida Department of Health and Human Services, which has a contract with the city to manage the water system. It also manages the water supply for the city of Doral, which is located just south of the Turnpik, and other communities in South Florida. The town has a population of about 3,000. The average income is about $50,000, and it has a median household income of about $40,500.

Geography

Boca Raton has a tropical rainforest climate (Köppen climate classification Af), as its driest month (December) averages 62.5mm of precipitation. In general the climate is warm and sunny much of the year, although daily thundershowers occur in the hot season from June through September. The warm tropical climate supports the growth of tropical trees and plants. Winter high temperatures are typically in the 7583 degrees range, while summer high temperature are about 8793 degrees.Pearl City is a neighborhood in Boca Rat on May 30, 1915 for the blue-collar African Americans employed in the area farms, in construction, and various other jobs. The highest point in this area is the guard shack at Camino Gardens, which is 24 ft (7.3 m) above sea level. The city has a water table that does not permit building basements, however plumbing and sewage is constructed underneath the homes and streets, in addition to electrical systems in some areas. Several small tunnels run under roads in the city, but the roads are built up several feet at these locations, or are on dunes. Several of these tunnels are under State Road A1A at Spanish River Park, from the west side of the road where parking is available to beachgoers, to the east side ofthe road, where the beach is located. BocaRaton is a "principal city" (as defined by the Census Bureau) of the Miami metropolitan area. Approximately 1 square mile is on the barrier island Deerfield Beach Island.

Demographics

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 97,422 people, 40,845 households, and 23,211 families residing in the city. The median age was approximately 48 years old and the median household income was $88,828. English was the only language spoken at home by 74.9% of the population, while Spanish was spoken by 11.6%. According to Forbes, Boca Raton has three of the ten most expensive gated communities in the U.S. The Royal Palm Yacht and Country Club holds the #1 spot, The Sanctuary takes #6, and Le Lac takes the #8 spot. The employment rate was 54.4% and 56.1%of the population had a bachelor's degree or higher. The city has a significant Jewish population. Certain areas of outside of the city limits, such as the Sandalfoot Cove community, have significant populations of Brazilian and other Latino immigrants. The average household income in BocaRaton is approximately $87,000 per year, according to the city's 2010 census. The unemployment rate is 54% and the average household household income is $86,000. The population has a median age of 48 years. The area is known for its affluent and educated social community and high income demographic. It has a high percentage of people with bachelor's degrees or higher and a high unemployment rate of 54%. The city is located in Palm Beach County, Florida. It is located on the Florida Turnpike.

Culture and attractions

The Boca Raton Bowl is a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) sanctioned Division I college football bowl game. The town hosts the "Festival of the Arts BOCA" annually during the spring, and the Brazilian Beat Festival in the fall. Old Floresta Historic District has several historic houses listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Red Reef Park has the Gumbo Limbo Environmental Complex, an environmental education center. Town Center at BocaRaton is an upscale super-regional shopping center that is the third largest by square feet in South Florida, behind Sawgrass Mills and Aventura Mall. The city's eastern coast has two miles of beaches, notably Red reef Park and South Inlet Park. It contains the Children's Science Explorium, the Sunset Cove Amphitheater, the Coconut Cove Waterpark, the Daggerwing Nature Center, and Sugar Sand Park. The Town Center Mall is the largest enclosed and conventional shopping mall within Palm Beach County, and is set to be expanded in the future with a new Restaurant Row near the mall. It is home to the Wick Theatre & Costume Museum and the Center for the Arts at Mizner Park, which includes the Museum of Art and the Count de Hoernele Amphitheaters. It also houses a research facility run by FAU where students study coral reefs, sea turtles, sharks, sea grass and other marine-related subjects. It has several parks, including the Osprey Point Golf Course, a dog park, and Spanish River Park along the Intracoastal Waterway.

Economy

Office Depot, Friend Finder Networks, Jarden, Vitacost and BMI Gaming are also based in Boca Raton. According to the City's 2017 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the top employers in the city are: Office Depot, The GEO Group, and Jarden. The city's unemployment rate is currently at 4.7 per cent, according to the city's employment statistics. The unemployment rate in the United States is currently 4.1 per cent. The U.S. economy is expected to grow at a rate of 2.7 percent in the next three years. The economy is projected to grow by 2.4 per cent in the year ahead. The United States economy is predicted to grow 2.5 per cent by the end of the year. The global economy is forecast to grow 1.8 per cent over the next two years, the city says. The growth rate is the highest since the city recorded 2.9 per cent growth in the same period in 2010. The economic growth rate was 2.6 per cent from 2010 to 2012. The City's unemployment rates are currently at 2.8per cent, the lowest since the start of the recession in 2008. The national unemployment rate has been at 1.7per cent since the beginning of the decade. The number of jobs created by the city has grown by 1.2 per cent since 2010. In the last year, the unemployment rate dropped to 1.9per cent. It has been the lowest level since the early 2000s.

Education

Boca Raton is home to four public high schools and five public middle schools. The area is also home to several notable private and religious schools. Florida Atlantic University (FAU), founded in 1961, is the largest university in the city. The city has recently been referred to as a "burgeoning college town" The city's public library system has sixteen branches and access to e-books and audio books. It is the thirteenth-largest public school district in the U.S., after Miami-Dade and Broward counties. The Boca Rat on Public Library serves city residents and those who live outside the city limits. The Glades Road Branch Library and the West Boca Branch Library of the Palm Beach County Library System serve residents outside of the city's city limits and outside of Boynton Beach and Delray Beach. The City of BocaRaton is the home of Everglades University and Palm Beach State College, both of which have their main campuses in Boca raton. It also has a number of private schools, including Don Estridge High Tech Middle School, a technology magnet school named for the leader of a small group of engineers who developed the IBM Personal Computer in Bocas Raton. The town is the site of the Florida Atlantic Atlantic University School District #72, under the College of Education's administrative oversight. It has also been the home to the Lynn University Digital Media Arts College, which offers bachelor's and master's degrees in computer animation and graphic design.

Crime

The City of Boca Raton is one of the safest cities in Palm Beach County, with a crime rate 38% lower than the entire state of Florida. It is known as a popular hangout for many suspected Mafia members. The Sopranos featured the city in its plot ("Boca" and "...To Save Us All From Satan's Power") Joey Merlino, the reputed head of the Philadelphia crime family, also resides in northern BocaRaton. As of the end of 2019, the crime rate in the city was down 26% over the preceding 13 years. The Pearl City neighborhood has been known to be a drug trafficking hub in the past. In recent years, the city, like most of the county (especially neighboring Delray Beach) has experienced a steady rise in heroin and opioid overdoses. The city is located on the Florida Turnpike, which runs from Miami to Fort Lauderdale. The turnpike was built in the early 1900s and was the first major highway through the city. It was also the site of the Battle of the Bulge, which was fought between the U.S. Army and the Florida National Guard in the 1950s and 1960s. The town is home to the Florida Museum of Natural History, which houses a collection of historical photographs of the area. The museum is also home to a museum of Florida history, which dates back to the 18th century. The Museum of Florida History is located in the Town Center Mall, which opened in the late 1800s.

Air Quality, Water Quality, Superfund Sites & UV Index

The Air Quality index is in Boca Raton, Palm Beach County, Florida = 92. These Air Quality index is based on annual reports from the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The number of ozone alert days is used as an indicator of air quality, as are the amounts of seven pollutants including particulates, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, lead, and volatile organic chemicals. The Water Quality Index is 30. A measure of the quality of an area’s water supply as rated by the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The EPA has a complex method of measuring the watershed quality, using 15 indicators such as pollutants, turbidity, sediments, and toxic discharges. The Superfund Sites Index is 50. Higher is better (100=best). Based upon the number and impact of EPA Superfund pollution sites in the county, including spending on the cleanup efforts. The UV Index in Boca Raton = 6.3 and is a measure of an area's exposure to the sun's ultraviolet rays. This is most often a combination of sunny weather, altitude, and latitude. The UV Index has been defined by the WHO (www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/radiation-the-ultraviolet-(uv)-index) and is uniform worldwide.

Employed

The most recent city population of 97,422 individuals with a median age of 45.4 age the population grows by 4.26% in Boca Raton, Palm Beach County, Florida population since 2000 and are distributed over a density of 3,338.77 residents per square mile of area. There are average 2.27 people per household in the 32,963 households with an average household income of $72,275 a year. The unemployment rate in Alabama is 8.10% of the available work force and has dropped -5.18% over the most recent 12-month period and the projected change in job supply over the next decade based on migration patterns, economic growth, and other factors will increase by 21.54%. The number of physicians in Boca Raton per 100,000 population = 264.

Weather

The annual rainfall in Boca Raton = 59.8 inches and the annual snowfall = 0 inches. The annual number of days with measurable precipitation (over .01 inch) = 120. The average number of days per year that are predominantly sunny = 231. 91 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily high temperature for the month of July and 57.8 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily low temperature for the month of January. The Comfort Index (higher=better) is 28, where higher values mean a more pleasant climate. The Comfort Index measure recognizes that humidity by itself isn't the problem. (Have you noticed nobody ever complains about the weather being 'cold and humid?) It's in the summertime that we notice the humidity the most, when it's hot and muggy. Our Comfort Index uses a combination of afternoon summer temperature and humidity to closely predict the effect that the humidity will have on people.

Median Home Cost

The percentage of housing units in Boca Raton, Palm Beach County, Florida which are owned by the occupant = 61.93%. A housing unit is a house, apartment, mobile home, or room occupied as separate living quarters. The average age of homes = 30 years with median home cost = $290,860 and home appreciation of -14.44%. This is the value of the years most recent home sales data. Its important to note that this is not the average (or arithmetic mean). The median home price is the middle value when you arrange all the sales prices of homes from lowest to highest. This is a better indicator than the average, because the median is not changed as much by a few unusually high or low values. The property tax rate of $13.37 shown here is the rate per $1,000 of home value. If for simplification for example the tax rate is $14.00 and the home value is $250,000, the property tax would be $14.00 x ($250,000/1000), or $3500. This is the 'effective' tax rate.

Study

The local school district spends $5,153 per student. There are 16.7 students for each teacher in the school, 465 students for each Librarian and 448 students for each Counselor. 6.87% of the area’s population over the age of 25 with an Associate Degree or other 2-year college degree, 27.18% with a master’s degree, Ph.D. or other advanced college degree and 16.99% with high school diplomas or high school equivalency degrees (GEDs).