Lazy River rides that replace roads and get Boca residents to wherever they need to go? Sure! It sounds fun. Doesn’t it?
If you’re looking for the lazy river in Boca today you’re probably looking for the Boca Resort. They just added a new lazy river to their pool area. This article is about turning the entire city into a giant lazy river connected municipality.
Would any city ever do this? Could any city ever replace a portion of its roads and create a practical lazy river infrastructure? If any city could do it, it’s likely it’s Boca.
This idea originally came from a Boca kid named Jonathan Kolbe in some local political group on Facebook that I’m likely blocked from now. I’ll give him credit for getting me excited about the idea. Here are some AI generated images that tap into the soulful imagination of machines to help us envision the concept.
What’s important to point out, how this would be different from what’s happening in the Intracoastal is:
the water would be treated, clarified and sterilized in a system engineered to minimize water loss
vehicles allowed in the water cannot have heads, combustion motors or carry business to business shipping
there would be no giant fish like hammerhead sharks (I seen em) and larger unidentified sea-monster type beasts (I seen it too) but alligators would probably need to be removed from time to time
Residents and visitors would use the lazy river infrastructure to come and go from their single family homes, townhomes and condos.
The river would be close enough to everyone’s homes that walking barefoot to it is no problem.
Wouldn’t we all be better people if we had this?
A real estate agent shows a new couple some homes.
A beautiful view from your float as you are carried down the river.
Some existing canals get converted.
Kids love to paddle, kick and splash in an effort to go faster.
Lazy riverways would pass under existing roads in certain places.
A fancier electric watercraft.
Water taxis and ferries are convenient ways that people keep their feet dry.
Jaw dropping opulence in art and architecture will be visible in whole new ways.
Only electric boats are tolerated – but cost lots to license.
Tiny motors that attach to floats become very popular.
Boca Raton:: A City Within a Lazy River
Sunset on a westbouund lazy riverway.
Park your car and jump in!
Traditional boats will be replaced with all-electric newer models. This is a ferry.
An autonomous water taxi heading to pick up a new passenger.
A kayaker getting to work.
Bridges and walkways cross over riverways.
Underwater lighting highlights the beauty of homes on the lazy river.
Nobody can hide in their cars, so looking fabulous is necessary.
Floats parked waiting for their owners to return.
Bumpers help in areas where the current is fast and tubes need protection.
Some kids commuting to school.
The only thing to fish for will be smiles.
Riverway designs are fun below water and above.
Literally bumping into friends a lot.
LED lights on the bottom of floats add a cool effect.
A school pickup.
Riverfront residence takes on a new meaning.
An Intra-Intracoastal Waterway for tubes and swimmers
Who’s driving? Nobody! It’s awesome.
A float with a motor dares to oppose the flow.
Some people make out on floats – that gets the old folks upset.
Getting interiors as close to the river as possible is popular in new homes.
Separate directions with separate currents are necessary.
Floating around town with your friend is almost as easy as staying home.
A lone float breaks free but will be rounded up by the end of the day.
Newer homes leave big areas on the ground floor to store floats and rafts.
Getting lost in new neighborhoods won’t just be fun – it will be unavoidable. Just be cool about it.
Some people just float around all day pretending they’re running errands.
It’s easier to keep it real in this deal.
New styles of architecture will be designed for ultra-low perspective viewing.
Sometimes a part of the river gets roped off to make a chill zone.
You can float here, and go there.
A serene riverway through a neighborhood west of the Turnpike
Everyone loves straight-aways where the current s are strong.
People hang on tight when the water jets fast.
City clarification plants keep the water clean with the use of minimum chlorination.
Just let the current pull you along.
Aesthetically designed piping helps move the high pressure flows necessary .
Waterproof bags, accessories and skin products will be more in demand.
Shopping would be a little different – so would parking – if people used lazy rivers instead of roads in Boca.
For some people floating is a way of life.
Students in an FAU Orientation Day event.
Float stores are all over the place.
Places where the rivers begin will be referred to as the river heads, like springs, but artificial.
Waterlifts are like reverse waterfalls and propel tubes and riders upwards.
A mom heads out to pick up her kid from school and then to Publix.
Float on up for a hot dog. Yum!
This place is known for its chunky smoothies.
Friends going out to lunch together in Boca.
Floating through the mall on a Sunday afternoon.
Turning this corner, the smell of pizza is overwhelming.
Look at that gold float! You want one!
Vend-o-mats become more and more popular along lazy riverways.
You better bring a cool hat because you won’t want to get out of the river.
People won’t go to amusement parks any more. They’ll just spend all their money here.
There was an ice cream place down this way.
Bring on the fancy waterfall elements. We’re ready.
Local businesses, particularly hotels, devise clever ways for their guests to enter and exit the lazy rivers.
Shiny tubes and glowing tubes will be popular.
This is where we are going. Kick kick kick!
The flows are very calm inside the mall compared to outside.
Old guys who don’t want to get wet up to their shorts don’t have to.
A lone float waits patiently outside a convenience store while its owner gets some sunscreen.
Here we reach the end of a lazy river, a cul-de-sac of sorts.
New inland destinations will gain new life and new value on the tax rolls.
You better have a patch kit if your vinyl ain’t thicc.
You don’t really need a float to travel along nor does the float need to be a tube.
Some stores take advantage of the spots where people float the most.
Would you support the conversion of roads to lazy rivers if the issue comes up for a vote? Leave a comment below.
