Ned Kimmelman Sues, Claims Boca Will “Descend Into Chaos” If Public Has Say.
BOCA RATON, FL (BocaNewsNow.com) (Copyright © 2025 MetroDesk Media, LLC) — A Boca Raton resident has filed an emergency lawsuit seeking to block two citizen-backed initiatives regarding the sale or lease of public land from appearing on the ballot. Ned Kimmelman, a “registered voter,” filed the complaint Friday against the group Save Boca, Inc., its president Jonathan Pearlman, the City of Boca Raton, and the Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections. The suit asks a judge to grant an injunction keeping the measures off the January 13, 2026, special election ballot or any future ballot.
The two initiatives, sponsored by Save Boca and Pearlman, aim to give voters final say over the use of public land. If passed, the ordinances would amend the City Charter and City Code to require a public referendum before the City Council could “alienate from the public, lease, or sell” any city-owned property larger than one-half acre. The City Clerk certified the petitions had sufficient signatures in September and October, and the City Council voted on October 28 to place them on the January ballot.
The lawsuit alleges the signature-gathering process was based on “egregious material falsehoods”. According to the complaint, the Charter Ordinance presented to voters included recitals, or “whereas” clauses, stating that a “majority of registered voters” had already found the amendment necessary for the “health, welfare and safety of the community”. Kimmelman’s suit calls these claims “outrageous falsehoods,” arguing there is “absolutely nothing factual or legal” to support them and alleging they were used to “induce” voters into signing the petition.
Beyond the allegedly false “recitals,” the complaint argues the core language of the ordinances is “ambiguous, misleading and confusing”. The suit attacks the phrase “greater than one-half (0.5) acre, or any part thereof” as contradictory, “hopelessly ambiguous,” and unintelligible. It also claims the term “alienate from the public” is a “complete mystery to the voter”. Furthermore, the suit points out the Charter Ordinance incorrectly references a “City Commission,” when Boca Raton operates under a City Council.
Kimmelman argues that if the “indecipherable” ordinances are allowed to pass, the city will “descend into chaos”. The lawsuit claims the measures would be “ruinous,” paralyzing the city’s ability to manage its properties and use its land. The complaint warns that routine leases for non-profits like the Boca Raton Museum of Art and Hospice by the Sea, as well as utility easements and even park pavilion rentals, would be subject to “multiple, expensive, unwieldy and unpredictable public votes”.
