Parkland

Heron Bay’s guard-gated landscape is a manicured vision of South Florida’s tropical beauty on the edge of the Everglades. Backyards open to glittering lakes while royal palms and live oaks shade the sidewalks. Waterways wind around the neighborhood, creating peninsulas out of many subdivisions. “It’s a gorgeous and huge master-planned community,” says Parkland native Melissa Hoff Roth, a local Realtor with Compass. “And there are plenty of amenities to match the scale.” More than 10,000 residents enjoy Heron Bay’s facilities, which include two clubhouses. Roth says the neighborhood’s ample amenities and walkability make it very attractive to families, as does the school district. Heron Bay may live in two cities — Parkland and Coral Springs — but it’s zoned for Parkland schools. On top of its excellent education, beautiful landscape and state-of-the-art facilities, Heron Bay also has a convenient location right off the Sawgrass Expressway. Heron Bay’s subdivisions were developed between the 1990s and 2023. They feature diverse housing options, from coach homes to waterfront estates. Despite the variety, curbside appeals maintain a cohesive aesthetic. The grand arches, earthy hues, stucco sidings and barrel roof tiles of the Spanish Revival style can be seen on every residence. Coach homes and townhouses list between $485,000 and $700,000. Three- to four-bedroom single-family properties start in the high $600,000s, maxing out around $950,000. Five- and six-bedroom houses climb to $2.5 million. "Home values consistently hold strong in Heron Bay and, away from the city, homebuyers can get more space for their money," says Jorge Perez, a local RE/MAX Experience Realtor who lived in the community for eight years. Lot sizes range from 5,000 square feet to just over a quarter acre. Deep-set verandas and in-ground pools are common backyard features. Garages and driveways are standard. The neighborhood is managed by the Heron Bay Community Association; monthly fees vary from subdivision to subdivision. Heron Bay students attend Broward County Public Schools, including Heron Heights Elementary, Park Trails Elementary and West Glades Middle — each earning an A-minus on Niche. Students graduate from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High, graded A-plus. The school’s dual enrollment program lets them complete diploma requirements while earning college credit without paying for books or tuition. Participating colleges are the University of Florida, Florida International University, and Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. While parents may have reservations about sending their kids to Stoneman Douglas after the mass shooting in 2018, Roth says the community’s close-knit nature has only strengthened since. “People don’t know how the community came together to support the students.” In addition to a small memorial and tribute garden on campus, a public memorial is currently being constructed along the Parkland-Coral Springs border. The site of the tragedy was demolished in June of 2024. Tree-lined sidewalks loop around all of Heron Bay, perfect for morning jogs and walking dogs. Plaza Del Lago is the neighborhood’s northern clubhouse, where kids can play on splash pads while parents lounge by the resort-style pool, enjoying the ambiance of a cascading waterfall. Other amenities at Plaza Del Lago include a fitness center, sauna, basketball courts and a sand volleyball court. Another sand volleyball court can be found on the neighborhood’s south side by The Commons. This clubhouse is a hub for racquet sports, home to a tennis shop, two full-time tennis pros, 10 clay tennis courts, and indoor racquetball courts. Rumor has it that pickleball facilities are coming soon. On top of that, The Commons is also a place to relax thanks to its pool, jacuzzi and tiki bar. Pine Trails Park is another nearby option for getting outdoors, just 2 miles away. Residents can head to play baseball, soccer, football, or any other sport on the park's multi-use grass and turf sports fields. This park also has a fishing pier and walking trails that pass by public fitness equipment. One glance at the community calendar shows there’s always something to do at the clubhouses, from ice cream parties and food truck socials to live shows with local comedians and musicians. The Heron Bay Farmers Market is a favorite, bringing fresh produce and artisan goods to the green lawns of Plaza Del Lago. Publix and Walmart sit across Nob Hill Road from each other in small shopping centers on the neighborhood’s south side. Aside from grocery stores, the plazas also have popular restaurants like Little Havana Bar and Grill, offering creative cocktails and classic Cuban cuisine. Heron Bay is a car-dependent area. To access the highway, residents take Heron Bay Boulevard to Nob Hill Road — which turns into Coral Ridge Drive — and head south. A ramp onto the Sawgrass Expressway is less than a mile away, making for simple 15-mile drives to Boca Raton. The closest airport, Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, is about 30 miles away. To get to the nearest hospital, residents can head to Broward Health Coral Springs, 5 miles down the road.

Easy, breezy, beautiful Boca Winds sits on the western side of Palm Beach County, offering suburban convenience, top-rated schools and a wide variety of housing options just a few miles from sunny beaches or wetland wilderness. The larger neighborhood of Boca Winds features several smaller subdivisions, each with its own style and community amenities. The namesake Boca Winds community is full of large Spanish-style homes surrounding a private lake, while the nearby development Loggers Run primarily features attached villas and town houses along a variety of wood- and plant-themed street names, as well as Windjammer Park, a residents-only green space with a playground, tennis courts and a fishing pier. Palmetto Pines offers a variety of single-family ranch-style homes and a unique layout, with neighborhood pods where streets all start with the same letter, so a home on Gantry Street might have neighbors on Galahad and Gable Street. In another section, take a walk down Emperor or Ember Streets before heading home on Eureka Street. If you’re looking for less square footage or only planning to live in Boca Winds part-time, Watergate Mobile Home Park offers manufactured homes and RV parking in the southeastern corner of the neighborhood. Due to the neighborhood’s varied makeup, home prices come in a wide range, with three-bedroom houses listing anywhere from the mid-$500,000s to upper $700,000s, while town houses and attached villas average in the upper $300,000s. Students in Boca Winds can attend Palm Beach County public schools, with all three stops on the educational journey within about 2 miles of the neighborhood. Students begin their journey at the highly rated Waters Edge Elementary School before moving on to Loggers Run Community Middle School, which offers four choice programs in performing arts, pre-culinary, pre-law, and pre-medical sciences. West Boca Raton Community High School offers another six choice programs for exploring a passion or kickstarting a career. Learn the software and technology behind CAD (computer-aided design) in the Drafting & Design Academy or get hands-on experience with industry equipment and practical aerodynamic principles in the Aviation & Technology Academy. All three schools have an A-minus or higher overall grade from Niche and an above-average rating from GreatSchools, with Waters Edge awarded a 10/10 overall and West Boca Raton High earning a 9/10 score in college readiness. Boca Winds has plenty of nearby options for residents that want to enjoy the Florida weather or explore the local environment. Head to public green spaces like Loggers’ Run Park, which has a playground, basketball courts, soccer fields and a covered skate park. The next-door Boca Raton Nature Preserve features walking trails for exploring the 54-acre natural area, complete with informative signs and fitness stations. The neighborhood also borders the Fran Reich Preserve, a 1,660-acre nature preserve named for a local community activist. This area serves as a wetland buffer to help maintain proper water levels and prevent drought or flooding by collecting and storing urban runoff. It sits right on the southern edge of the 145,000-acre Arthur R. Marshall Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge, one of the nation’s largest wildlife refuges available for hiking, biking, boating, hunting, bird watching and more. Residents can grab any groceries or household needs at the neighborhood Publix right next to the middle school, or head to other nearby shopping options like Target or Walmart.