Community Background Report

City of Opa-locka

County

Miami-Dade

Boundaries

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Community Type

Municipality

History

It is hard to imagine that the City of Opa-Locka was once comparable to today's South Beach. Opa-Locka began as a vision of Glen Curtiss, the man responsible for developing the cities of Miami Springs and Hialeah. Occupying 4.2 square miles in northern Miami-Dade County, Opa-Locka is a page out of the Arabian Nights, boasting one of the greatest collections of Moorish architecture in the Western Hemisphere. Curtiss approached Bernhardt Muller in 1925 about helping him to create a city that was beautiful and unique, yet distinct from the Spanish Mediterranean architecture that dominated cities such as Coral Gables. While the 1926 Miami hurricane badly damaged the city and brought the Florida land boom to a halt, several Moorish-style buildings survived.[6][7] Twenty of the original Moorish Revival architecture buildings have been listed on the National Register of Historic Places as part of the Opa-Locka Thematic Resource Area.

The name Opa-Locka is an abbreviation of a Seminole place name, spelled Opa-tisha-wocka-locka. The original name probably signified a wooded hammock in a swamp

By 1921, Curtiss shortened the name to "Opa-Locka ". Curtiss wanted Opa-Lockato be the most perfect city that planning and engineering could achieve, with the most beautiful art man could conceive. The City of Opa-Locka was incorporated in 1926. Curtiss built more than 100 buildings with an array of domes, minarets, and outdoor staircases between 1925 and 1928, during Florida’s land boom years. The streets bore names of the characters from the Arabian Nights, such as Sharazad, Ali Baba, and Aladdin. In its early days, Opa-Locka was an all-white community that attracted middle-class homebuyers. The City had its own airport, zoo, golf course, archery club, and swimming pool.

Amelia Earhart launched her historic trip around the world from Miami Municipal Airport, just south of Opa- Locka. The famous German dirigible Graf Zeppelin visited Naval Air Station Miami, which later became Opa- Locka Airport, as a regular stop on its Germany-Brazil-United States-Germany scheduled route.

Shortly after the 1926 hurricane, which destroyed many of the structures, the US Navy opened a base at Opa- Locka Airport. The City began to decline during the 1950s, when the Navy pulled out following World War II. By the 1980s, the white middle class was moving out and the working middle class was moving in. The area was settled by black laborers who laid railroad tracks for the Seaboard rail line. Following this transition, the City has experienced a sharp decline, becoming one of the most violent and poverty-stricken communities in South Florida. The City has become a mix of residential, commercial and industrial zones, with the Opa-Locka Airport being its best-known landmark.

Despite the challenges, the City has regained the spirit it was founded with in 1926. Under the direction of Mayor Myra L. Taylor, city officials have vowed to turn the City around by focusing on crime prevention, cleaning up the City and maintaining financial stability. This drive has generated an increased sense of community pride among Opa-l Locka residents, and a major drop in crime. In keeping with that vow, and to advance community pride, the City became the first community in the United States to commemorate the first African-American President of the United States by renaming a mile-long section of Perviz Avenue from Oriental Boulevard to Ali Baba Avenue as Barack Obama Avenue on February 17, 2009.

Community Dynamics

Census data from 2000 shows that there was a decline in population of 2.2%, although the 2010 census shows that the City has regained its population of the 1990s, and the 2015 estimate shows a growth of 8.8% since 2010. According to the 2015 American Community Survey, the total population was 16,139, the median age was 33.3, and the median household income was $18,134. As of 2000, speakers of English as a first language accounted for 68.45%, while Spanish made up 28.30%, French Creole 2.78%, and French was at 0.48% of the population[16]

As of 2000, speakers of English as a first language accounted for 68.45%, while Spanish made up 28.30%, French Creole 2.78%, and French was at 0.48% of the population

As of 2000, Opa-Locka had the forty-sixth highest percentage of Cuban residents in the US, with 9.58% of its populace. It had the forty-ninth highest percentage of Dominican residents in the US, at 2.59% of the city's population and the fifty-second highest percentage of Haitian residents in the US, at 2.90% of the its population (tied with four other areas, including Palm Springs, Florida). It also had the forty-third most Jamaicans in the US, at 3.00% (tied with Margate, while it had the nineteenth highest percentage of Nicaraguans, at 2.22% of all residents

The City has experienced high unemployment, poverty, and illiteracy rates. In 2004, Opa-Locka had the highest rate of violent crime for any city in the United States. Calvin Godfrey wrote in a 2009 Miami New Times article that Opa-Locka was "mired in crime and sinking fast." Of the households with children in the City, fifty-one percent are led by single parent mothers. Nearly four out of five Opa-Locka households receive some form of government assistance. In a 2013 editorial, the Miami Herald called the City "crime-plagued" and the police department "deeply troubled." Opa-Locka crime statistics report an overall downward trend in crime, based on data from a 12-year period, with both violent crime and property crime decreasing.

Business Landscape

Despite the fact that the City of Opa-Locka has had the highest taxes in the county for the past six years, in 2002 the state took over Opa-Locka’s city budget after the City claimed it was in a financial emergency. Opa-Locka has not been able to find the funding to clean trash out of its canals or to buy basketballs for kids in city parks. The City was eventually forced to close its only library in 2003 because of financial troubles. Many of the City's past financial problems were due to the misuse of funds by past government officials, such as excessive raises and lavish personal expenses. Despite the plague of problems the City has encountered in the past, it is trying to regain the spirit it was founded with in the 1920s. Opa-Locka has increased the sense of community and pride among its residents. The City offers programs that promote homeownership, improvement of the public schools, and repairs to public infrastructure. The City has also capitalized on its Arabian Nights theme with an annual celebration called the “Arabian Nights Festival”. At least 30 churches are crowded into the small city. Opa-Locka residents have access to three parks and recreation facilities The City was used as a backdrop for the movies “Texas Justice”, “Bad Boyz II”, and “2 Fast 2 Furious”.

Opa-locka Hialeah Flea Market with its mix of small business and light entertainment features is a well-known attraction in the county. For the near future, the city will be host to a county-owned business park being built for various tenants including an Amazon fulfillment center employing 1,000 full-time workers.

Transportation Characteristics

Opa-Locka is served by the Opa-Locka Executive Airport, owned and operated by the Miami-Dade County Aviation Department. Additionally, Opa-Locka is served by Miami-Dade Transit buses and by Tri-Rail, via the Opa-Locka Station.

Five state roads, including SR 916/ NW 135th Street, SR 953/ Lejeune Road, SR 924/ Gratigny Parkway, SR 817/ NW 27th Avenue, and SR 9 go through Opa-Locka, as well as six other major roadways. These include NW 151st Street, Ali Baba Avenue, Sharazad Avenue, Perviz Avenue, NW 42nd/37th Avenue, and NW 135th Street. The City is focusing on improvement of bicycle and pedestrian facilities. Future improvements, including bicycle lanes recommended by Miami-Dade LRTP 2035, include NW 22nd Avenue between NW 36th Street and NW 183rd Street, and NW 17th Avenue between NW 36th Street and NW 183rd Street. Eleven pedestrian crossings with missing crosswalks and countdown timers on the state and major roads will also be included in the City’s future master plan for improvement.