We want to thank EVERYONE who helped with letting the City of Boynton Beach Commissioners know that they should not sell the Nickels Forest to a developer. Our voices were heard! The Commissioners received hundreds of emails from concerned people who understand the importance of our forest for the greenspace and its protected animals. We packed City Hall at the June 3rd meeting and the people who could not get in watched from outside either on TVs or on their phones.

The Commissioners voted to suspend negotiations with the developer while they conduct a 3rd party Environmental Impact Study. The city is also looking into the potential to turn the forest into a protected preserve, which would block future development.

Palm Beach County conveyed those parcels of property to the City of Boynton Beach in 1961 for Public Purposes. A letter was sent on June 10, 2025, from County Commissioner, Gregg Weiss, to the Boynton Beach Mayor, Rebecca Shelton. It states in part, “any conveyance by the City will be subject to this public purpose limitation.” “if the City intends to convey these properties to a developer or any other party for non-public purposes, it must first obtain a release of the use restriction that would need to be approved by the Palm Beach County Board of County Commissioners.”

We are hoping that the City of Boynton Beach Commissioners will pursue turning the forest into a protected nature preserve, possibly a protected Gopher Tortoise Preserve, once and for all. We need the greenspace, and the protected animals need their homes.