Boca Raton's Shocking Office Boom: What You Didn't Know Could Change Everything!

Boca Raton has officially broken ground on its first new office building in nearly two decades, signaling a shift for a city that has long been associated with retirement living. The project, known as The Aletto, is a 140,000-square-foot property located near Mizner Park and aims to attract high-end business tenants to the area.

The Aletto is set to feature a range of amenities designed to entice companies and their employees back to the workplace, including concierge service, a rooftop restaurant, and even a golf-cart shuttle for tenants. “There’s been a lack of quality office supply,” said Scott Brenner, a broker at Colliers managing leasing for the project. He noted that local demand has driven the initiative, with tenant commitments already secured for 65% of the building's space. “We’re missing the market, and we’re getting inquiries,” he added.

After a prolonged period of sluggishness, Boca Raton's office sector is showing signs of life. According to CBRE, over the past three years, more Class A office space was vacated than leased. However, this trend reversed in 2025, when net absorption turned positive, registering an increase of 34,900 square feet. Last year also saw leasing activity surge, with 970,900 square feet of office space leased, marking the second-highest volume on record.

As demand for office space increases, rents for prime buildings in Boca Raton have also seen significant growth. In the final quarter of 2025, asking rents for Class A offices in West Boca averaged $44.47 per square foot, representing a 29% increase from the end of 2021. In East Boca, where The Aletto is located, rents surged by 39% over the same period. “When you see what’s going on in West Palm Beach and the rents that office buildings are getting, Boca makes a lot of sense,” remarked Isaac Toledano, CEO of BH Group, which is part of the investment team redeveloping the former Office Depot headquarters in Boca Raton.

Toledano noted that when his group acquired the Office Depot campus in 2023, the 600,000-square-foot complex was largely empty. Now, the two remaining office buildings, rebranded as The Eclipse, are nearly fully leased at 98%. Rents at The Eclipse average $60 per square foot, demonstrating the rising demand in the area.

The Aletto, which is expected to be completed by the end of next year, represents the first new office building in Boca since the Lynn Financial Center was built in 2009. Space at The Aletto is being marketed at a premium rate of $95 per square foot. The building's emphasis on amenities—including a whiskey and bourbon bar on the ground floor and a Lebanese restaurant with a resident DJ on the rooftop—aims to cater to modern workforce expectations, which have evolved in the wake of the pandemic.

Among the early tenants committed to The Aletto are Slavic 401k, NSI Insurance, and coworking firm Industrious. The project occupies a pivotal location at 119 E. Palmetto Park Road, designed to keep pace with the changing landscape of corporate real estate in South Florida.

Moreover, the momentum for office space development does not appear to be slowing. Plans for another project, named Midtown Boca, are already in the works. This proposed five-story office building, boasting floor-to-ceiling glass windows and balconies on each of its five floors, is expected to deliver by 2028. Christina Stine Jolley, senior vice president at Blanca Commercial Real Estate, which is handling leasing for the project, noted that there is already interest from prospective tenants.

“There is room for more development,” emphasized Susan Bands, managing director for CBRE in Palm Beach County. “There’s certainly intense demand for space in that Class A sector.” As Boca Raton transforms, it appears poised to establish itself as a serious contender in the competitive South Florida office market, drawing interest from businesses looking for high-quality spaces within the region.