Community Background Report

Tamiami

County

Miami-Dade

Boundaries

North: S.W. 8th Street
South: S.W. 42nd Street
West: S.W. 142nd Avenue
East: Florida Turnpike (SR 821)

Community Type

Neighborhood

History

Tamiami is a neighborhood with boundaries similar to the census-designated place located south of Southwest 8th Street in Miami-Dade County. “Tamiami” is a name created by combining the names "Tampa" and "Miami". The Tamiami Trail, a roadway that connects the two cities, was the reason for this unique combination (Wikipedia: Tamiami). April 25, 2003 marked the 75th anniversary of the completion of the Tamiami Trail. The Trail was built through sandy pines, oak hammocks and finally the inhospitable swamps of the Everglades. Finishing the Trail required a dozen years, $8 million, and almost three million sticks of dynamite (Klinkenberg, 2003). Tamiami Trail has been under renovation since 1999, and has been the connecting road to the surrounding neighborhoods. Construction on the Tamiami Trail has been intense over the past years, as the Florida Department of Transportation's “Calle Ocho” project continues its eastward grind from the Palmetto Expressway through Coral Gables and into West Little Havana. The project’s goal is to restore what used to be a smooth and safe roadway. One source reports that “there were several gas stations along the Tamiami Trail that are not there anymore and, in the past, there was no environmental control . . . so many of their gas tanks had ruptured and their gas or diesel escaped into the water table.” (De Valle, 1999)

The neighborhood of Tamiami is also home to Florida International University (FIU). The University was founded by Charles Perry, who recruited the three co-founders, Butler Waugh, Donald McDowell and Nick Sileo. They decided to establish the University on the abandoned Tamiami Airport in the summer of 1969, and launched the monumental task of creating a new university. Alvah Chapman, former Miami Herald publisher and Knight Ridder Chairman, used his civic standing and media power to assist the effort (Ivonne, 1985). FIU was known as a commuter campus until the first dormitory building on its Tamiami campus was built, finished in 1985. The multi-building complex, located at 2800 NE 147th Street, cost nearly $10 million, paid for with bonds floated by the Dade County Educational Facilities Authority. These buildings dot the northeast corner of the campus at 107th Avenue and Southwest Eighth Street (Kelly Rovira, 1984). Much of the residential landscape is shaped around the neighborhood park.

Tamiami Park, located at 11201 SW 24th Street, Miami, features six lighted tennis courts and an Olympic sized pool (Miami-Dade: Parks and Recreation). The park used to be a 1.7 mile IndyCar track, used between 1985 and 1988 by IndyCar, and for the 1988 Marlboro Challenge. The races never attracted the anticipated crowds, which preferred to attend the downtown IMSA race. The races disappeared in 1989. Cars reached an impressive 116.6 mph (Silhouette.com: Racing). Tamiami Park's pool is the most modern, competition-size pool maintained by Miami-Dade County. The pool has been renovated in the past, in order to elevate the facility’s standards. Neighborhood residents who enjoy the pool voiced their impatience when the County closed the pool. “What's happening at the Tamiami pool is taking time, but a very positive thing for the community,” said Tamiami pool manager George Parrado. “It's not every day that we can upgrade our facilities like this. It’s the largest pool that the County operates, and the whole idea is to make it our showcase.” (De la Cruz, 1989)

Community Dynamics

Tamiami has a population of 57,796, with a median age of 43.9 and a median household income of $48,015. Between 2015 and 2016, the population of Tamiami grew from 57,195 to 57,796, a 1.05% increase, and its median household income grew from $46,449 to $48,015, a 3.37% increase.

The population of Tamiami is 93.5% Hispanic, 4.98% White, and 0.85% Asian. A non-English language is spoken by 93.5% of the population, and 77.9% are U.S. citizens.

The median property value in Tamiami is $233,600, and the homeownership rate is 74.6%. The economy of Tamiami employs 27,406 people.

Business Landscape

Each year, the Tamiami neighborhood welcomes the Miami-Dade County Fair and Exposition (”the Fair”). The Fair Expo Center is in the heart of southwest Miami-Dade County, adjacent to the beautiful Florida International University campus and Tamiami Park. The 80-acre plot of land where the Fair takes place serves the Miami community year round with events, youth programs, competitions and corporate functions, except for three weeks in the spring when the Fair takes place. One of the largest county fairs in the entire country, the Fair attracts nearly one million visitors each year, helping to put the neighborhood on the map.

Transportation

Bordered by Florida’s Turnpike, the Dolphin Expressway (State Rd 836), SW 137th Avenue, and Bird Road, (SW 42nd Street), with Tamiami SW 8th Street crossing through it, and larger employers nearby such as Florida International University and Kendall Regional Medical Center, Tamiami experiences some of the heaviest traffic in Miami-Dade County. Bus routes 51, 137 and 40 serve Tamiami, along with other private buses.