(Redirected from Miami)
'Miami' is a major city in southeastern
Florida, in the
United States. It is the
county seat of
Miami-Dade County. Miami is a
gamma world city with an estimated population of 404,048. It is the largest city within the
South Florida metropolitan area, which is the largest metropolitan area in the
Southeastern United States with 5.4 million people. Miami and its surrounding cities make up the fifth largest
urban area in the United States.
[1]
Miami's importance as an international financial and cultural center has elevated Miami to the status of
world city. Because of Miami's cultural and linguistic ties to
North,
South, and
Central America, as well as the
Caribbean, Miami is many times referred to as "The Gateway of
the Americas." Florida's large Spanish-speaking population and strong economic ties to
Latin America also make Miami and the surrounding region an important center of the
Hispanic world.
Miami is also home to one of the largest, most influential ports in the United States, the
Port of Miami. The port is often called the "Cruise Capital of the World" and the "Cargo Gateway of the Americas". It has retained its status as the number one cruise/passenger port in the world for well over a decade accommodating the largest cruise ships and the major cruise lines.
Today, Miami is undergoing a massive building boom that ranks second worldwide (and first in the
United States) for the most buildings under construction that will be over , with over 24 of such buildings currently under construction. Miami's skyline also currently ranks third in the U.S. behind
Chicago and
New York City, and (18th in the world) according to the 2006 Almanac of Architecture and Design.
[ Is Miami World Class? ] Including other nearby neighborhoods and cities, the Miami area has over 80 highrise towers under construction, such as the
Biscayne Wall in
Downtown Miami, a row of skyscrapers being built along the west side of
Biscayne Boulevard. Miami currently has the five tallest skyscrapers in the state of Florida with the tallest being the
Four Seasons Hotel & Tower.
[ Miami:High rise buildings–Completed ]
At of land area, Miami is the second smallest primary city of an urban area of one million or more in the U.S. (after
Providence,
Rhode Island, at ).
[2] This represents a major gap in the rank of the city, and urban area: The Urban Area is ranked at #5, the city is ranked 38 places lower at #43. The difference between the Urban and Metro population is very small, only 544,821. This is mainly due to the fact that Miami's urban area is built on a very narrow, linear area, and is blocked on the east and west by ocean and national park, respectively.
History
Main articles: History of Miami, Florida
Miami was officially incorporated as a city on
July 28 1896,
[3] though the area was first inhabited for more than a thousand years by the
Tequesta Indians and was claimed for
Spain in 1566 by
Pedro Menéndez de Avilés. A Spanish
mission was established a year later in 1567. In the mid-1800s
Fort Dallas was built and subsequently, was a site of fighting during the
Second Seminole War. In the 1920s, Miami prospered through the
Florida Land Boom of the 1920's with an increase in population and infrastructure. By 1940, 172,172 people lived in the city and Miami had grown to become a large, growing city.
The Miami area was better known as “Biscayne Bay Country” in the early years of its growth. Some published reports described the area as a promising wilderness.
[4] The area was also characterized as “one of the finest building sites in Florida.”
[5] However, the
Great Freeze of 1894 changed all that, and the crops of the Miami area were the only ones in Florida that survived.
Julia Tuttle, a local
citrus grower, convinced
Henry Flagler, a railroad tycoon, to expand his
Florida East Coast Railroad to Miami. On
July 28 1896, Miami was officially incorporated as a city with a population of just over 300.
Miami prospered during the 1920s but weakened after the collapse of the
Florida land boom of the 1920's, the
1926 Miami Hurricane and the
Great Depression in the 1930s. When
World War II began, Miami, well-situated due to its location on the southern coast of Florida, played an important role in the battle against
German submarines. The war helped to expand Miami's population to almost half a million. After
Fidel Castro rose to power in 1959, many
Cubans emigrated to Miami, further increasing the population. In the 1980s and 1990s, various crises struck South Florida, among them the
Arthur McDuffie beating and the subsequent riot, drug wars,
Hurricane Andrew, and the
Elián González uproar. Miami remains a major international financial and cultural center.
Geography
Miami and its suburbs are located on a broad plain between the
Florida Everglades to the west and
Biscayne Bay to the east that also extends from
Florida Bay north to
Lake Okeechobee. The elevation of the area never rises above 40 ft (12 m)
[6] and averages at around 6 ft (2 m)
[7] above mean sea level in most neighborhoods, especially near the coast. The highest undulations are found along the coastal
Miami Rock Ridge, whose substrate underlies most of the eastern Miami metropolitan region. The main portion of the city lies on the shores of Biscayne Bay which contains several hundred natural and artificially-created
barrier islands, the largest of which contains the city of
Miami Beach and its famous
South Beach district. The
Gulf Stream, a warm
ocean current, runs northward just 15 miles (24.1 km) off the coast, allowing the city's climate to stay warm and mild all year.
Geology
View from one of the high points in Miami, west of downtown from SW 9th Street. The western part of the city (
Little Havana) has points as high as 40' above sea level.
Photo: Marc Averette
The surface bedrock under the Miami area is called ''Miami
oolite'' or ''Miami
limestone''. This bedrock is covered by a thin layer of soil, and is no more than 50 feet (15 m) thick. Miami limestone formed as the result of the drastic changes in sea level associated with recent
glaciations or ''
ice ages''. Beginning some 130,000 years ago the
Sangamon interglacial raised sea levels to approximately 25 feet (7.5 m.) above the current level. All of southern Florida was covered by a shallow sea. Several parallel lines of reef formed along the edge of the submerged Florida
plateau, stretching from the present Miami area to what is now the
Dry Tortugas. The area behind this reef line was in effect a large lagoon, and the Miami limestone formed throughout the area from the deposition of
oolites and the shells of
bryozoans. Starting about 100,000 years ago the
Wisconsin glaciation began lowering sea levels, exposing the floor of the lagoon. By 15,000 years ago, the sea level had dropped to 300 to 350 feet below the contemporary level. The sea level rose quickly after that, stabilizing at the current level about 4000 years ago, leaving the
mainland of South Florida just above sea level.
Beneath the plain lies the
Biscayne Aquifer,
[8] a natural underground source of fresh water that extends from southern
Palm Beach County to
Florida Bay, with its highest point peaking around the cities of
Miami Springs and
Hialeah. Most of the
South Florida metropolitan area obtains its drinking water from this aquifer. As a result of the aquifer, it is not possible to dig more than 15 to 20ft (4.57 to 6.1 m) beneath the city without hitting water, which impedes underground construction. For this reason there is no subway system in Miami.
Most of the western fringes of the city extend into the
Everglades, a
subtropical marshland located in the southern portion of the U.S. state of
Florida. This causes occasional problems with local wildlife such as
alligators venturing into Miami communities and major highways.
In terms of land area, Miami is one of the smallest major cities in the United States. According to the
US Census Bureau, the city encompasses a total area of 55.27
mi² (143.15
km²). Of that area, 35.67 mi² (92.68 km²) is land and 19.59 mi² (50.73 km²) is water. That means Miami comprises over 400,000 people in a mere 35 square miles, making it one of the most densely populated cities in the United States, along with
New York City,
San Francisco, and
Chicago among others. Miami is located at .
Climate
Typical summer afternoon shower rolling in from the
Everglades.
Photo: Marc Averette
Miami has a true
tropical climate (
Köppen climate classification Aw),
[9] with hot, humid summers, and warm, dry winters. The city does experience cold fronts from November through March. However, the average monthly temperature for any month has never been recorded as being under 64.4°F (January averages 67°F).
[10] Most of the year is warm and humid, and the summers are almost identical to the climate of the Caribbean tropics. In addition, the city gets most of its rain in the summer (wet season) and is relatively dry in winter (dry season). The wet season, which is hot and humid, lasts from May to September, when it gives way to the dry season, which features mild temperatures with some invasions of colder air, which is when the little winter rainfall occurs — with the passing of a front. The
hurricane season largely coincides with the wet season.
In addition to its sea-level
elevation, coastal location and position just above the
Tropic of Cancer, the area owes its warm, humid climate to the
Gulf Stream, which moderates climate year-round. A typical summer day does not have temperatures below 75 °F (24 °C). Temperatures in the high 80s to low 90s (30-35 °C) accompanied by high humidity are often relieved by afternoon
thunderstorms or a
sea breeze that develops off the Atlantic Ocean, which then allow lower temperatures, although conditions still remain very muggy. During winter, humidity is significantly lower, allowing for cooler weather to develop. Average minimum temperatures during that time are around 59 °F (15 °C), rarely dipping below 40 °F (4 °C), and the equivalent maxima usually range between 65 and 75 °F (18-24 °C).
The 1997 Miami tornado
Miami has never recorded a triple-digit
temperature; the highest temperature recorded was .
[11] However, extreme summer humidity often boosts the
heat index to around . The coldest
temperature ever recorded in the city of Miami was 30 °F (-1 °C) on several occasions.
[12] Miami has only once recorded
snowfall, on
January 20,
1977. Weather conditions for the area around Miami were recorded sporadically from 1839 until 1900, with many years-long gaps. A cooperative temperature and rainfall recording site was established in what is now downtown Miami in December, 1900. An official
Weather Bureau Office was opened in Miami in June, 1911.
[13]
Miami receives abundant rainfall, one of the highest among major U.S. cities. Most of this rainfall occurs from mid-May through early October. It receives annual rainfall of 58.6 inches (1488 mm)
[14], whereas nearby
Fort Lauderdale and Miami Beach receive 63.8 in (1621 mm) and 48.3 in (1227 mm), respectively, which demonstrates the high local variability in rainfall rates.
Hurricane season officially runs from
June 1 through
November 30, although hurricanes can develop beyond those dates. The most likely time for Miami to be hit is during the peak of the
Cape Verde season which is mid August through the end of September.
[15] Due to its location between two major bodies of water known for tropical activity, Miami is also statistically the most likely major city in the world to be struck by a hurricane, trailed closely by
Nassau, Bahamas, and
Havana,
Cuba. Despite this, the city has been fortunate in not having a direct hit by a hurricane since
Hurricane Cleo in 1964.
[16] However, many other hurricanes have affected the city, including
Betsy in 1965,
Andrew in 1992,
Irene in 1999, and Hurricanes
Katrina and
Wilma in 2005. In addition, a tropical depression in October of 2000 passed over the city, causing record rainfall and flooding. Locally, the storm is credited as the
No Name Storm of 2000, though the depression went on to become Tropical Storm Leslie upon entering the Atlantic Ocean.
Economy
Miami is one of the country's most important financial centers. It is the major center of regional commerce, and boasts a strong international business community. According to the ranking of world cities undertaken by the Globalization and World Cities Study Group & Network (GaWC) and based on the level of presence of global corporate service organizations, Miami is considered a "Gamma
World City."
Because of its proximity to Latin America, Miami serves as the headquarters of Latin American operations for over 1400 multinational corporations, including
American Airlines,
Cisco,
Disney,
Exxon,
FedEx,
Microsoft,
Oracle,
SBC Communications,
Sony, and
Visa International. Several large companies are headquartered in or around Miami, including but not limited to:
Alienware,
AutoNation,
Bacardi,
Brightstar Corporation,
Burger King,
Carnival Cruise Lines,
Citrix Systems,
DHL,
Norwegian Cruise Lines,
Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines,
Ryder Systems, and
Spirit Airlines.
Miami International Airport and the
Port of Miami are among the nation's busiest ports of entry, especially for cargo from South America and the Caribbean. Additionally, downtown Miami has the largest concentration of international banks in the country. Miami was also the host city of the 2003
Free Trade Area of the Americas negotiations, and is one of the leading candidates to become the trading bloc's headquarters.
The
Port of Miami, the largest container port in Florida, as well as the "Cruise Capital of the World" and "Cargo Gateway of the Americas".
Tourism is also an important industry: the beaches of Greater Miami draw visitors from across the country and around the world, and the
Art Deco nightclub district in
South Beach (in
Miami Beach) is widely regarded as one of the most glamorous in the world. However, it is important to note that Miami Beach is not a part of the city of Miami. Even major TV networks sometimes forget this, as when
Good Morning America visited Miami Beach and
Charles Gibson thanked the mayor of Miami (but he was standing next to the mayor of Miami Beach). In addition to these roles, Miami is also an industrial center, especially for stone quarrying and warehousing.
Miami is the home to the
National Hurricane Center and the headquarters of the
United States Southern Command, responsible for military operations in Central and South America.
Miami has also served as host venue for legendary legal proceedings, most notably the $145 Billion verdict leveled against the nation's 5 largest cigarette manufacturers. This case was a class action on behalf of all afflicted Florida smokers and their families, represented by a prominent and successful Miami-raised husband and wife legal team, Stanley and Susan Rosenblatt.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, in 2004, Miami had the third highest incidence of family incomes below the federal
poverty line in the United States, making it the third poorest city in the USA, ahead only by
Detroit, Michigan(ranked #1) and
El Paso, Texas (ranked #2.) In 2002, Miami had the highest poverty rate. Miami is also one of the very few cites where its local government went bankrupt, in 2001.
[17]
Miami is also one of the least affordable places to live, with the median percentage of housing costs as a percentage of income was 42.8%; the national average was 27%. Miami ranks twelfth among least affordable cities for home
ownership.
[18]
In
2005, the Miami area witnessed its largest
real estate boom
since the 1920s. The newly created
Midtown Miami, having well over a hundred approved construction projects is an example of this.
[19] As of 2007, however, the housing market, more specifically the 2005 condo boom, has crashed and more than 23,000 condos are for sale and/or foreclosed.
[20]
In August 2007, the
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development attempted to take control of Miami-Dade County's housing agency, citing mismanagement of housing programs and a poor record keeping of the agency's finances.
[21] These attempts are halted, pending a ruling on a preliminary injunction request by the county; non-binding mediation has also been mandated over the issue.
[22]
:''See also:
List of foreign consulates in Miami.''
People and culture
Population
A map of Miami from 1955
Miami is the 43rd most populous city in the U.S. The
metropolitan area, which includes
Miami-Dade,
Broward and
Palm Beach counties, with a combined population of more than 5.4 million people, ranks sixth in the United States,
behind
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX and is the largest metropolitan area in the
Southeastern United States. As of the census of 2000, there were 362,470 people, 134,198 households, and 83,336 families residing in the city. The
population density was 10,160.9/mi² (3,923.5/km²), making Miami one of the more densely populated cities in the country. There were 148,388 housing units at an average density of 4,159.7/mi² (1,606.2/km²). The racial makeup of the city is as follows:
★ 66.6%
White
★ 22.3%
African American
★ 0.2%
Native American
★ 0.7%
Asian
★ less than 0.1%
Pacific Islander
★ 5.4% from
other races
★ and 4.7% from two or more races
★ 65.8% of the population were
Latino of any race.
[23]
★ Non-Hispanic whites make up 11.8% of the city's population.
[24]
In terms of national origin and/or ethnic origin, the city is 34.1%
Cuban, 22.3%
African American, 5.6%
Nicaraguan, 5.0%
Haitian, 3.6%
Puerto Rican and 3.3%
Honduran. In 2004, the
United Nations Development Program (UNDP) ranked Miami first in terms of percentage of residents born outside of the country it is located in (59%), followed by
Toronto (43%).
There were 134,198 households out of which 26.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 36.6% were
married couples living together, 18.7% have a female head of household with no husband present, and 37.9% were non-families. 30.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.61 and the average family size was 3.25.
The age distribution was 21.7% under the age of 18, 8.8% from 18 to 24, 30.3% from 25 to 44, 22.1% from 45 to 64, and 17.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 98.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.3 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $23,483, and the median income for a family was $27,225. Males had a median income of $24,090 versus $20,115 for females. The
per capita income for the city was $15,128. About 23.5% of families and 28.5% of the population were below the
poverty line, including 38.2% of those under age 18 and 29.3% of those age 65 or over.
Based on the
FBI's Uniform Crime Reports Program, Miami ranks as the second most dangerous metropolitan area in the United States, based on the number of murders, rapes, robberies, aggravated assaults, burglaries and motor vehicle thefts that have occurred in the metropolitan area. The city proper ranks 14th.
[25]
Miami's explosive population growth in recent years has been driven by internal migration from other parts of the country as well as by
immigration. Greater Miami is regarded as a cultural
melting pot, while still maintaining some of their
cultural traits. The overall culture of Miami and
Miami-Dade are heavily influenced by its large population of
ethnic Latin Americans and cultures from
Caribbeans from islands such as
Jamaica,
The Bahamas,
Cuba and more (many of whom spoke
Spanish or
Haitian Creole).
Languages
A wide variety of languages are commonly spoken throughout the city. The City of Miami has three official languages:
English,
Spanish, and
Haitian Creole (French Creole). Miami has the largest Spanish-speaking population in the
western hemisphere outside Spain and Latin America.
[26]
As of 2000, speakers of
Spanish as their
first language accounted for 66.75% of residents, while the
English was spoken by 25.45%,
French Creole by 5.20%, and
French speakers comprised 0.76% of the population.
[27]
Other languages that were spoken throughout the city include
Portuguese at 0.41%,
German at 0.18%,
Italian at 0.16%,
Arabic at 0.15%,
Chinese at 0.11%, and
Greek at 0.08% of the population. Miami also has one of the largest percentage populations in the U.S. that have residents who speak
first languages other than English at home (74.54%.)
27
Today there are sizable permanent resident and undocumented populations of
Argentines,
Bahamians,
Brazilians,
Canadians,
Chileans,
Chinese,
Colombians,
Cubans,
Dominicans,
Ecuadorans,
French,
German,
Greeks,
Haitians,
Hondurans,
Jamaicans,
Indians,
Italians,
Mexicans,
Nicaraguans,
Russians,
Trinidadians and Tobagonians,
Turks,
South Africans, and
Venezuelans, as well as a sizeable
Puerto Rican population throughout the metropolitan area. While commonly thought of as mainly a city of
Hispanic and
Caribbean immigrants, the Miami area is home to large
French,
French Canadian,
German,
Italian, and
Russian communities. The communities have grown to a prominent place in Miami and its suburbs, establishing area neighborhoods such as
Little Haiti,
Little Havana,
Little Managua, and
Little San Juan.
Media
Miami is served by two major English-language newspapers, ''
The Miami Herald'' and ''
South Florida Sun-Sentinel'', as well as two major Spanish-language newspapers, ''
El Nuevo Herald'' and ''
Diario Las Americas''.''The Miami Herald'' is Miami's primary newspaper with over a million readers focusing mainly on issues that affect the Miami and Miami-Dade area. It also has news bureaus in
Broward County,
Monroe County, and
Nassau, Bahamas. It publishes daily Monroe County, Nassau, and International Editions along with the daily Miami-Dade edition.
Miami is the 12th largest radio market and the 17th largest television market in the U.S. Television stations serving the Miami area include
WAMI (
Telefutura),
WBFS (
My Network TV),
WSFL (
The CW),
WFOR (
CBS),
WHFT (
TBN),
WLTV (
Univision),
WPLG (
ABC),
WPXM (
ION),
WSCV (
Telemundo),
WSVN (
FOX),
WTVJ (
NBC),
WPBT (
PBS),
WLRN (also PBS) and
WSBS Mega TV
Sports
The
Miami Heat is the only major league team that plays its games in Miami's city limits. The team won the
2006 NBA Finals, winning the series 4-2 over the
Dallas Mavericks. The
Miami Dolphins and the
Florida Marlins both play their games in the suburb of
Miami Gardens. The
Orange Bowl, a member of the
Bowl Championship Series, hosts their college football championship games at
Dolphin Stadium. The stadium has also hosted the
Super Bowl; the Miami metro area has hosted the game a total of nine times (four Super Bowls in Dolphin Stadium, including
Super Bowl XLI, five at the
Miami Orange Bowl), tying
New Orleans for the most games.
Miami FC, Florida's only professional soccer team, plays at Tropical Park in Miami. Miami signed world famed soccer player
Romario in March 2006 to a one year deal, and possibly longer. The
Florida Panthers NHL team plays in neighboring
Broward County, Florida at the
BankAtlantic Center in the city of
Sunrise. Miami is also the home of the
Florida International University Golden Panthers at
FIU Stadium and the
University of Miami Hurricanes at the
Miami Orange Bowl. Miami is also home to Paso Fino horses, where competitions are held at Tropical Park Equestrian Center.
A number of defunct teams were located in Miami, including the
Miami Floridians (
ABA),
Miami Matadors (
ECHL),
Miami Manatees (
WHA2),
Miami Gatos (
NASL),
Miami Screaming Eagles (
WHA),
Miami Seahawks (
AAFC),
Miami Sol (
WNBA),
Miami Toros (
NASL),
Miami Tropics (
SFL), and the
Miami Hooters (
Arena Football League). The
Miami Fusion, a defunct
Major League Soccer team played at
Lockhart Stadium in nearby
Broward County.
Professional wrestlers living in Miami include
Hulk Hogan,
Carlos Colón, Jr.,
Hazem Ali,
Antonio Banks and
The Rock.
Education
Miami is served by Miami-Dade County Public Schools, which is the largest school district in Florida and the fourth largest in the
United States. As of
February 15,
2006 it has a student enrollment of 414,128. The district is also the largest minority public school system in the country, with 52% of its students being of Hispanic origin, 25%
African American, and 6% non-white of other minorities. M-DCPS is also one of a few public school districts in the United States to offer optional
bilingual education. Miami also has several
Catholic and
Jewish private schools throughout the area.
The city ranks second-to-last in people over 18 with a high school diploma, with 47% of the population not having that degree.
[28]
Colleges and universities in the city proper:
★
Florida International University Metropolitan Center in
Downtown Miami (Public)
★
Miami-Dade College (Public)
★
Miami International University of Art and Design (Private)
Other colleges and universities in the county:
★
Florida International University (Public)
★
University of Miami (Private)
★
Barry University (Roman Catholic)
★
Florida Memorial University (Private/Historically
Black)
★
St. Thomas University (Roman Catholic)
★
Johnson and Wales University (Private)
Transportation
Air travel
Miami International Airport, one of the busiest international airports in the world, is the main airport serving the Miami metropolitan area, catering to over 35 million passengers a year. Identifiable locally, as well as several worldwide authorities, as MIA or KMIA, the airport is a major hub and the single largest international gateway for
American Airlines, the world's largest passenger air carrier. Miami International is the United States' third largest international port of entry for foreign air passengers (behind New York's
John F. Kennedy International Airport and
Los Angeles International Airport), and is the seventh largest such gateway in the world. The airport's extensive international route network includes non-stop flights to over seventy international cities in North and South America, Europe, and the Middle East. Alternatively, nearby
Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL) also serves the metropolitan area, and statistically handles more passengers originating or terminating their travel in
South Florida.
Miami's busy port as seen from
Miami Beach showing 6 cruise ships docked 3/25/2007. Photo: Marc Averette
Seaports
Miami is home to the
Port of Miami, the largest cruise ship port in the world. In 2005, the port served 3,605,201 passengers. Additionally, the port is one of the nation's busiest cargo ports, importing nearly ten million tons of cargo annually. Among North American ports, it ranks second only to the
Port of South Louisiana in
New Orleans in terms of cargo tonnage imported/exported from Latin America. The port is on 518 acres and has 7 passenger terminals. The top port imports are cargo, stone/clay/cement/tile/bricks/concrete, and alcoholic beverages. The most common exports of the Port of Miami are cargo, paper/newsprints/towels, and textiles. China number 1 import country of the port, and Honduras is the number 1 export country. Eight cruise lines sail from the port of Miami:
Carnival Cruise Lines,
Celebrity Cruises,
Costa Cruises,
Crystal Cruises,
Norwegian Cruise Line,
Oceania Cruises,
Royal Caribbean International, and
Windjammer Barefoot Cruises.
[29]
Public transportation
Local public transportation includes
Metrobus,
Metromover, and
Metrorail—an elevated
rapid transit system—each operated by
Miami-Dade Transit. Furthermore,
Tri-Rail, a
suburban rail system, connects the major cities and airports of the
South Florida metropolitan area. Several transit expansion projects are being funded by a transit development sales tax surcharge throughout Miami-Dade County. The
Metrobus system is also an option for those looking to reach destinations not served by the main transit lines.
A new light rail system is proposed and is called BayLink. BayLink will connect
Downtown Miami with the
South Beach district of
Miami Beach.
Road and rail
Miami is the southern terminus of
Amtrak's Atlantic Coast services, with its final station located in the suburb of
Hialeah, Florida.
Miami-Dade County is served by four Interstate Highways (
I-75,
I-95,
I-195,
I-395) and several U.S. Highways including
U.S. Route 1,
U.S. Route 27,
U.S. Route 41, and
U.S. Route 441.
For information on the
street grid, see
Miami-Dade County, Florida#Street grid.
Some of the major
Florida State Roads (and their common names) serving the county are:
★
SR 112 (Airport Expressway) Downtown to
MIA
★
SR 821 (The
HEFT or Homestead Extension of the
Florida Turnpike:
SR 91/
Miami Gardens to
U.S. Route 1/
Florida City)
★
SR 826 (Palmetto Expressway)
Golden Glades Interchange to U.S. Route 1/
Kendall
★
SR 836 (Dolphin Expressway) Downtown to
Turnpike via
MIA
★
SR 874 (Don Shula Expressway) 826/Bird Road to 878
★
SR 878 (Snapper Creek Expressway)
Kendall to
Turnpike/
Homestead
★
SR 924 (Gratigny Parkway)
Miami Lakes to
Opa-locka
In 2007, Miami was identified as having the rudest drivers in the United States, the second year in a row to have been cited, in a poll commissioned by automobile club AutoVantage.
[30] Miami is also consistently ranked as one of the most dangerous cities in the United States for pedestrians.
[31]
Miami in popular culture
Portion of the Miami skyline showing the
Bank of America tower lit hot neon pink, one of the colors that has become the epitome of Miami's fashion nostalgia.
Photo: Marc Averette
There are many television shows set in Miami. The controversial
Emmy winning drama ''
Nip/Tuck'',
CBS's '', and Showtime's ''
Dexter'' all take place in Miami. ''
The Jackie Gleason Show'' was taped in
Miami Beach from 1964 to 1970. In the 1980s, the popular series ''
Miami Vice'' was film in and around the city. The NBC show ''
Good Morning, Miami'' was fictionally based around the workings of a Miami television station. The popular sitcoms ''
The Golden Girls'' and ''
Empty Nest'', as well as the detective series ''
Surfside 6'' were also based in the Miami area, although they were not actually taped in the city but in the
Los Angeles area. Keeping with its modern music tradition, the city has recently hosted the 2004 and 2005 ''
MTV Video Music Awards''. A recent show to be set in Miami is the
USA Network's ''
Burn Notice'', which is filmed on location and in film studios located in Miami.
In the mid-2000s, Miami started to become a popular backdrop for reality television shows. Reality programming set in the city include the
TLC show ''
Miami Ink'';
Discovery Channel's ''After Dark'';
Animal Planet's ''
Miami Animal Police'';
MTV's ''
8th & Ocean,
Room Raiders, and ;
Bravo's ''
Top Chef'';
VH-1's
Hogan Knows Best;
Court TV's ''Bounty Girls: Miami'', ''Vice Squad Miami'', and ''Beach Patrol Miami''; and the
Discovery Times Channel's ''Real Miami Cops''.
Video games '' and '' take place in
Vice City a fictional city inspired by Miami, including some of the same architecture and geography. There were also people and gangsters in the game who speak
Haitian Creole and
Spanish.
Miami is a center for Latin television and film production. As a result, many Spanish-language programs are filmed in the many television production studios, predominantly in
Hialeah and
Doral. This includes gameshows, variety shows, news programs, and
telenovelas like ''Morelia'' and ''La Mujer de Mi Vida''. Arguably, the most famous Miami-filmed programs are ''
Sábado Gigante'', a Saturday night variety show seen throughout the United States, South America and Europe, and the daytime talk shows ''
Cristina Saralegui''
and ''
El Gordo y la Flaca''.
Miami has acted as the backdrop for several movies, including ''
There's Something About Mary'', ''
Wild Things'', '', ''
2 Fast 2 Furious'', ''
Bad Boys &
Bad Boys II'', ''
Transporter 2'', ''
The Birdcage'', ''
The Substitute'', ''
Blow'', ''
True Lies'', '', ''
Quick Pick'', ''
Miami Vice'' (based on the 1980s television series of the same name), ''
Cocaine Cowboys'', 1983's ''
Scarface'', and the
James Bond films ''
Goldfinger'', ''
Thunderball'', and ''
Casino Royale''.
Music
Miami music is varied.
Latin American Immigrants brought the
conga and
rumba to Miami from their homelands instantly popularizing it in
American culture, as well as
salsa music,
bachata,
merengue,
vallenato, and most recently,
reggaeton.
West Indians and
Caribbean people have brought
reggae,
soca,
kompa,
zouk,
calypso, and
steel pan to the area as well.
The Four Seasons Hotel and Tower in
Downtown Miami, the tallest skyscraper in Florida.
In the early-1970s, the Miami
disco sound came to life with
TK Records, featuring the music of
KC and the Sunshine Band, with such hits as "Get Down Tonight", "(Shake, Shake, Shake) Shake Your Booty" and "That's the Way (I Like It)"; and the Latin-American disco group,
Foxy (band), with their hit singles "Get Off" and "Hot Number". Miami-area natives
George McCrae and
Teri DeSario were also popular music artists during the 1970s disco era.
Miami-influenced,
Gloria Estefan and the
Miami Sound Machine, hit the popular music scene with their Cuban-oriented sound and had huge hits in the 1980s with "Conga" and "Bad Boys".
Notable hip-hop artists from the Miami area consist of
2 Live Crew,
Dre,
J.T. Money (of
Poison Clan),
Poison Clan,
Pretty Ricky,
Trick Daddy,
Trina,
Pitbull, and
Rick Ross.
Miami is also considered a "hot spot" for
Freestyle, a style of dance music popular in the 80's and 90's heavily influenced by
Electro, hip-hop, and disco. Many popular Freestyle acts such as
Pretty Tony,
Debbie Deb,
Stevie B, and
Exposé, originated in Miami.
Indie/
folk acts
Cat Power and
Iron & Wine are based in the city,
[32] while
alternative hip hop artist
Sage Francis,
electro artist
Uffie, and the
electroclash duo
Avenue D were born in Miami, but musically based elsewhere. Also,
punk band
Against All Authority is from Miami, and
metal band
Nonpoint and originally the formation of the band
Marilyn Manson (band) is from neighboring Fort Lauderdale.
Miami is also home to a vibrant music scene and hosts the
Winter Music Conference and many
electronica music-themed celebrations and festivals. Along with neighboring
Miami Beach, Miami is home to some famous nightclubs, such as Space, Mansion, Twilo, Ink, Cameo,and Opium Garden, and is also the site of the annual
Winter Music Conference - the largest dance music event in the world. The city is known to be part of
clubland, along with places such as
Mykonos,
Ibiza and
Ayia Napa.
Mayors of the City of Miami
★ 1896-1900 - John B. Reilly
★ 1900-1903 - J. E. Lemus
★ 1903-1907 -
John Sewell
★ 1907-1911 - F.H. Wharton
★ 1911-1912 - S. Rodman Smith
★ 1912-1913 - J.W. Watson, Sr. (Acting)
★ 1913-1915 - J.W. Watson, Sr.
★ 1915-1917 - P.A. Henderson
★ 1917-1919 - J.W. Watson, Sr.
★ 1919-1921 - W.P. Smith
★ 1921-1923 - C.D. Leffler
★ 1923-1925 - P.A. Henderson
★ 1925-1927 - Edward C. Romfh
★ 1927-1929 - E.G. Sewell
★ 1929-1931 - C.H. Reeder
★ 1931-1933 - R.B. Gautier
★ 1933-1935 - E.G. Sewell
★ 1935-1937 - A.D.H. Fossey
★ 1937-1939 - Robert R. Williams
★ 1939-1940 - E.G. Sewell
★ 1940-1941 - Alexander Orr Jr.
★ 1941-1943 - C.H. Reeder
★ 1943-1945 - Leonard K. Thomson
★ 1945-1947 - Perrine Palmer Jr.
★ 1947-1949 - Robert L. Floyd
★ 1949-1951 - William M. Wolfarth
★ 1951-1953 - Chelsie J. Senerchia
★ 1953-1955 - Abe Aronovitz
★ 1955-1957 - Randy Christmas
★ 1957-1967 -
Robert King High
★ 1967-1970 - Stephen P. Clark
★ 1970-1973 - David T. Kennedy
★ 1973 -
Maurice Ferre
★ 1973 - David T. Kennedy
★ 1973-1985 -
Maurice Ferre
★ 1985-1993 -
Xavier Suarez
★ 1993-1996 - Stephen P. Clark
★ 1996 - Willy Gort (Acting)
★ 1996-1997 -
Joe Carollo
★ 1997-1998 -
Xavier Suarez
★ 1998-2001 -
Joe Carollo
★ 2001- -
Manny Diaz
Sister cities
Miami has 10
sister cities[33]
★
Bogotá,
Colombia
★
Buenos Aires,
Argentina
★
Kagoshima,
Japan
★
Lima,
Peru
★
Madrid,
Spain
★
Port-au-Prince,
Haiti
★
Qingdao,
China
★
Salvador,
Brazil
★
Santiago,
Chile
★
Santo Domingo,
Dominican Republic
See also
★
Miami-Dade County, Florida
★
List of people from Miami, Florida
★
Miami Beach, Florida
★
Miami International Airport
★
Miami Police Department
★
South Florida metropolitan area
★
South Beach
★
Neighborhoods of Miami, Florida
★
Miami Seaquarium
★
Florida International University
★
University of Miami
★
List of tallest buildings in Miami
★
City of Miami Cemetery
★
List of radio stations in Florida
References
1. List of Population of Urbanized Areas
2. United States -- Places and (in selected states) County Subdivisions with 50,000 or More Population; and for Puerto Rico
3. The Birth of Miami, part 3 Wiggins, Larry
4. "The Day in St. Augustine — The Hack Line to Biscayne Bay", ''The Florida Times-Union'', 1893-01-10. Retrieved on 2007-08-25.
5. "A Trip to Biscayne Bay," The Tropical Sun, 1893-03-09. Retrieved on 2006-01-22.
6. Miami Environment
7. Miami, Florida metropolitan area as seen from STS-62
8. USGS GROUND WATER ATLAS of the UNITED STATES
9. Köppen Climate Classification Map:
10. Miami's monthly temperature means
11. Highest Temperature of Record
12. Lowest Temperature of Record]
13. History of National Weather Service Forecast Office-Miami, Florida
14. NWS Miami Normals and Records Page
15. Vulnerable cities: Miami, Florida
16. Miami, Florida's history with tropical systems
17.
18. Where’s the least expensive place to own a home? G. Scott Thomas
19. Miami:High rise buildings–All. Emporis. Retrieved on 2007-08-25.
20. Boom of condo crash loudest in Miami Maya
21. Federal Government Takes Over Miami-Dade Housing Authority
22. Judge orders mediation between county, HUD Matthew I Pinzur
23. QuickFacts for Miami (city), Florida
24. Miami Demographics
25. Seventh Annual America's Safest (and Most Dangerous) Cities
26. Where is Spanish Spoken Outside Spain? Gerald Erichson
27. Data Center Results - Miami, Florida]
28. Miami lags in brainpower rankings G. Scott Thomas
29. Port of Miami Official Site. Miami-Dade County. Retrieved on 2007-08-25.
30. Miami drivers named the rudest Patricia Reaney
31. Dangerous Pedestrian Cities
32. Interview: Cat Power. Pitchfork Media (2006-11-13). Retrieved on 2007-08-25.
33. Mayor's International Council Sister Cities Program
Extended Information
★
U.S. Census Bureau - Census 2000 Demographic Profile Highlights for City of Miami
★
Jeff, Ripple (1995). ''The Florida Keys: the Natural Wonders of an Island Paradise'', Photographs by Bill Keogh, Stillwater, Minnesota: Voyageur Press. ISBN.
External links
★
★
Greater Miami Convention and Visitors Bureau
★
City of Miami, Florida - Official Site
★
Miami Photos by Miami Residents
★
Miami Photos
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