City Council Meeting Erupts Over Plan To Scrap WWII Monument

A Florida city council meeting erupted in August as residents fought to save a World War II monument slated for removal in favor of a redevelopment project.

Boca Raton is considering moving forward with the redevelopment of a 30-acre lot, which would include residential buildings, a new city hall, a hotel, and shops in place of Memorial Park, according to WPEC. Boca Raton residents Jon Pearlman and Buffy Tucker, who were among those who spoke out against the project at an August town hall, appeared on “Fox and Friends First” Tuesday to discuss the matter. (RELATED: Ex-Fire Chief Sues Mayor Who Fired Her Over Wildfire Response)

“Memorial Park is such an important landmark to our city, it’s named after World War II veterans,” Pearlman told “Fox and Friends First” co-host Carly Shimkus. “It’s a huge park, 17 acres in the downtown of our city, which gives us huge open green spaces, so many rec facilities, there’s a tennis center, baseball field, amazing children’s playground I go to with my kids.”

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“People in Boca did not know what was happening. In the beginning of the year, the city of Boca Raton was presenting a project that they refer to as ‘a government campus redevelopment.’ And I myself, like the rest of the citizens in Boca Raton, thought they were revamping and redoing city hall,” Pearlman said. “But as we did more digging, it soon came out they were planning to destroy Memorial Park and to put it into the hands of a private developer to build high-rise apartment buildings, high-rise condos, high-rise office buildings and a hotel on top of the World War II Memorial park.”

Over 5,000 residents of Boca Raton have signed a petition opposing the plan, calling for voters to approve any land transfer, WPTV reported.

“I understand some of you want us to say stop today,” Mayor Scott Singer of Boca Raton said during the contentious Aug. 26 city council meeting. “I think for the good of the process, there are people who aren’t in this room who are supportive. No decision has been made tonight. I don’t think anyone has made up his or her mind. I won’t speak for everyone else, but I know I haven’t.”

“I feel like, at bare minimum, they should have — even at that meeting — put the entire project on pause. They actually did not do that, which was very surprising to me,” Tucker said when Shimkus asked about the mayor’s comments. “I think the whole project needs to be scrapped, and we need to start over on this. It needs to go to the public for a vote.”

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