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.
Riverway designs are fun below water and above.
LED lights on the bottom of floats add a cool effect.
An Intra-Intracoastal Waterway for tubes and swimmers
The only thing to fish for will be smiles.
An autonomous water taxi heading to pick up a new passenger.
Floats parked waiting for their owners to return.
Everyone loves straight-aways where the current s are strong.
Some people just float around all day pretending they’re running errands.
Only electric boats are tolerated – but cost lots to license.
Underwater lighting highlights the beauty of homes on the lazy river.
Riverfront residence takes on a new meaning.
Newer homes leave big areas on the ground floor to store floats and rafts.
You can float here, and go there.
Waterproof bags, accessories and skin products will be more in demand.
Sometimes a part of the river gets roped off to make a chill zone.
Getting interiors as close to the river as possible is popular in new homes.
Bumpers help in areas where the current is fast and tubes need protection.
Nobody can hide in their cars, so looking fabulous is necessary.
A school pickup.
Literally bumping into friends a lot.
Floating around town with your friend is almost as easy as staying home.
Some existing canals get converted.
Kids love to paddle, kick and splash in an effort to go faster.
It’s easier to keep it real in this deal.
Some kids commuting to school.
Jaw dropping opulence in art and architecture will be visible in whole new ways.
Some people make out on floats – that gets the old folks upset.
Who’s driving? Nobody! It’s awesome.
People hang on tight when the water jets fast.
Bridges and walkways cross over riverways.
Lazy riverways would pass under existing roads in certain places.
Wouldn’t we all be better people if we had this?
Tiny motors that attach to floats become very popular.
Getting lost in new neighborhoods won’t just be fun – it will be unavoidable. Just be cool about it.
A kayaker getting to work.
Just let the current pull you along.
Park your car and jump in!
Water taxis and ferries are convenient ways that people keep their feet dry.
A serene riverway through a neighborhood west of the Turnpike
A real estate agent shows a new couple some homes.
City clarification plants keep the water clean with the use of minimum chlorination.
Traditional boats will be replaced with all-electric newer models. This is a ferry.
A fancier electric watercraft.
New styles of architecture will be designed for ultra-low perspective viewing.
The river would be close enough to everyone’s homes that walking barefoot to it is no problem.
A beautiful view from your float as you are carried down the river.
A float with a motor dares to oppose the flow.
A lone float breaks free but will be rounded up by the end of the day.
Aesthetically designed piping helps move the high pressure flows necessary .
Sunset on a westbouund lazy riverway.
Separate directions with separate currents are necessary.
Boca Raton:: A City Within a Lazy River
Shopping would be a little different – so would parking – if people used lazy rivers instead of roads in Boca.
Float on up for a hot dog. Yum!
This is where we are going. Kick kick kick!
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.
Here we reach the end of a lazy river, a cul-de-sac of sorts.
A mom heads out to pick up her kid from school and then to Publix.
Old guys who don’t want to get wet up to their shorts don’t have to.
This place is known for its chunky smoothies.
Shiny tubes and glowing tubes will be popular.
Waterlifts are like reverse waterfalls and propel tubes and riders upwards.
Turning this corner, the smell of pizza is overwhelming.
Float stores are all over the place.
Some stores take advantage of the spots where people float the most.
A lone float waits patiently outside a convenience store while its owner gets some sunscreen.
There was an ice cream place down this way.
People won’t go to amusement parks any more. They’ll just spend all their money here.
For some people floating is a way of life.
Students in an FAU Orientation Day event.
Friends going out to lunch together in Boca.
Places where the rivers begin will be referred to as the river heads, like springs, but artificial.
Look at that gold float! You want one!
The flows are very calm inside the mall compared to outside.
Floating through the mall on a Sunday afternoon.
You better bring a cool hat because you won’t want to get out of the river.
Local businesses, particularly hotels, devise clever ways for their guests to enter and exit the lazy rivers.
New inland destinations will gain new life and new value on the tax rolls.
Vend-o-mats become more and more popular along lazy riverways.
Bring on the fancy waterfall elements. We’re ready.
Would you support the conversion of roads to lazy rivers if the issue comes up for a vote? Leave a comment below.
