IF YOU LIVE IN BOCA RATON, DELRAY BEACH, BOYNTON BEACH, OR PALM BEACH COUNTY, DO THIS NOW…
BOCA RATON, FL (BocaNewsNow.com) (Copyright © 2025 MetroDesk Media, LLC) — Hurricane Season 2025 is officially underway, and there is one thing that you must do right now to prepare. BocaNewsNow.com is amazed each and every year by the number of people who have absolutely no idea where they live. These tend to be new residents who have moved from the northeast and believe that they live in “Boca Raton,” “Delray Beach,” or “Boynton Beach” because that’s the city name used in their address. It’s also what they say when they’re bragging to their friends and neighbors up north about their move to Florida. “I live in Boooooca.”
These residents frequently find out — often when they are in need of services — that they are actually residents of unincorporated Palm Beach County, and do not receive services from the City of Boca Raton, the City of Delray Beach, or the City of Boynton Beach. To new residents: if you live in a community built by G.L. Homes (amost all of the Valencias, Lotus, Dakota, Lotus Edge, Bridges, Seven Bridges, Boca Bridges), you live in unincorporated Palm Beach County. If you live in new construction, you almost assuredly live in Unincorporated Palm Beach County. If you see police vehicles that say “Sheriff” far more than police vehicles that say “Delray Beach,” “Boca Raton,” or “Boynton Beach,” you almost assuredly live in Unincorporated Palm Beach County.
(If you’re a celebrity like Taylor Swift, Travis Kelce, or Billy Joel, you actually do live in the City of Boca Raton. If you’re Alicia Keys, you’re oddly going to be living in Unincorporated Palm Beach County).
Why does it matter? Because when you’re preparing for a storm, or dealing with the aftermath of a storm, it’s important to know where to seek help. If you think you live in “Boca Raton,” but actually live in Unincorporated Palm Beach County, seeking help from the City of Boca Raton Fire Department — for example — is only going to cause a delay. Seeking sand bags or water at a City of Boca Raton distribution site is likely going to lead to you being turned away. The same is true for Delray Beach and Boynton Beach addresses.
Fortunately, there are maps. Lots of them. And using those maps, you can figure out where you live — city or county. Roughly speaking — and there are exceptions to the rule — you live in a “city” if you are east of Military Trail, and you live in Unincorporated Palm Beach County if you live west of Military Trail.
We encourage you to visit and bookmark the following sites. The first is the evacuation zone map. Prepared by Palm Beach County, this map asks you to enter an address. It will tell you when you need to evacuate as a storm approaches. The next is a general Palm Beach County data map that will pinpoint your home or business and tell you what you need to know. It is not the slickest map, but it works. Again, if your “dot” is in a color, you live in a city. If it’s not, you live in Unincorporated Palm Beach County. If you have a Boynton Beach address, use this map to enter your address to determine if you are “city” or “county.”
We will separately be publishing a guide with phone numbers and other emergency information that you should bookmark for use if a storm approaches. For now, we really do encourage you to make sure that you know where you live. It will help you if you need emergency assistance.
