Downtown Miami

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Downtown Miami seen from the north.

Skyscrapers in Downtown, as seen from the east.

Skyscrapers in Downtown, as seen from the northeast.

Downtown's Brickell Avenue is home to the largest concenctration of international banks in the U.S.

Downtown Miami is the central business district of South Florida, Miami-Dade County and Miami, Florida. Brickell Avenue/Biscayne Boulevard is the main north-south road in downtown, and Flagler Street is the main east-west road in the Central Business District. As of 2009, there are approximately 60,000 year-round residents in Downtown (including neighboring Brickell).^[1] As of 2009, over 190,000 office employees work in Downtown and Brickell.^[2]

Downtown, or sometimes referred to as the "Central Business District", is the area north of Broadway, east of I-95, and south of 17th Terrace.^[3]^[4] Inside of this area includes Park West, the area due west of Bicentennial Park and northern Brickell. Other areas that are many times adjoined with Downtown is the area to the north: Midtown, which is north of 17th Terrace and Brickell to the south.

[edit] Geography

High-rises in Brickell, the Downtown neighborhood south of the Miami River.

Downtown is generally and roughly bounded by NE 20th St to the north, Broadway (SE 15th Rd) to the south, Biscayne Bay to the east, and I-95 to the west. The Central Business District, or what is traditionally called "Downtown" is the area north of the Miami River and south of I-395. Within this area, is where the majority of Downtown's historical buildings are, the main shopping street, Flagler Street, as well as the vast majority of government offices and courthouses.

Although many times labeled under the umbrella term of "Downtown Miami", Brickell and Edgewater are two distinct neighborhoods. Brickell is south of the Miami River, and is a mixed upper-class residential neighborhood as well as Miami's major financial district. Edgewater is almost exclusively residential and is north of I-395 bound by Biscayne Bay to the east and NE 1st Ave. However, Edgewater is sometimes labeled as part of Midtown Miami.

[edit] Demographics

As of 2000, Downtown Miami had a population between 11,243^[5] and 13,932^[6] residents, with 6,397 households, and 2,633 families residing in the city. The median household income was $38,702.66. The racial makeup of the neighborhood was 64.27% Hispanic or Latino of any race, 9.17% Black or African American, 23.08% White (non-Hispanic), and 3.49% Other races (non-Hispanic).^[5]

The zip codes for the Downtown Miami include 33128, 33130, 33131, and 33132. The area covers 2.117 square miles. As of 2000, there were 6,451 males and 4,792 females. The median age for males were 34.5 years old, while the median age for females were 35.8 years old. The average household size had 1.9 people, while the average family size had 2.8 members. The percentage of married-couple families (among all households) was 25.5%, while the percentage of married-couple families with children (among all households) was 8.5%, and the percentage of single-mother households (among all households) was 5.8%. 15.3% of the population was in correctional institutions. 1.6% of the population was in other group homes. The percentage of never-married males 15 years old and over was 27.6%, while the percentage of never-married females 15 years old and over was 13.9%.^[5]

As of 2000, the percentage of people that speak English not well or not at all made up 23.1% of the population. The percentage of residents born in Florida was 26.9%, the percentage of people born in another U.S. state was 25.0%, and the percentage of native residents but born outside the U.S. was 6.4%, while the percentage of foreign born residents was 41.7%.^[5]

2009 Census projections indicate that the area’s residential base has increased from 40,000 to 60,000 since 2000, with more than 10,000 residents expected over the next six years. As of 2006, 189,164 residents live in the immediate Downtown/Brickell area.^[1]^[7]

[edit] Transportation

Government Center Station is the main station in Downtown and is served by Metrorail and the Metromover.

Public transportation in the Downtown area is used more than in any other part of Miami and is a vital part of Downtown life. Metrorail, Miami's heavy rail system, makes 3 stops in Downtown at the Historic Overtown/Lyric Theatre Station, Government Center Station, and the Brickell Station. In addition to Metrorail, the Metromover train system runs 3 lines (the Downtown Loop, the Omni Loop, and the Brickell Loop) with 22 stations throughout Downtown. The Metromover is free and stations can be found at roughly every two blocks in Downtown and Brickell.

Metrorail has stops throughout Miami with connections to Miami International Airport, all Miami-Dade County bus lines, Tri-Rail and Amtrak. The main bus station in Downtown is located next to the Arsht Center at the Adrienne Arsht Center Station.

[edit] Parks

Bayfront Park

Bayfront Park- Biscayne Blvd from NE 3rd St to SE 2nd St
Bicentennial Park- Biscayne Blvd from NE 8th St to NE 12th St
Fort Dallas Park- SE 4th St and SE 1st Ave
Lummus Park- NW North River Dr and NW 2nd St
Paul S. Walker Urbanscape- 46 W Flagler St
Joan Lehman Sculpture Plaza- Flagler St and SW 1st Ave
Robert F. Clark Plaza- NW 1st Ave and NW 1st St

[edit] Government and infrastructure

Downtown is home to many city, county, state, and federal courthouses, jails, judge offices, and law firms. Some of the courthouses in Downtown are the Dade County Family Court, U.S. Court of Appeals Judge, U.S. District Court Clerk, Miami-Dade County Courthouse, Federal Courthouse, U.S. Magistrate Judge, City of Miami courthouses and many others.

The United States Postal Service operates three post offices in Downtown. One on 200 South Biscayne Blvd, one on 36 NE 1st Street, and the third one on 500 NW 2nd Avenue.^[8]

[edit] Retail

Mary Brickell Village is a major nightlife area in Brickell with many bars and restaurants along Miami Avenue from SE 6th St to Broadway.

Flagler Street has been Downtown's main shopping street since the 1800s.

Historically, Flagler Street has been Downtown's major shopping street dating back to the 1800s. Today, it is still Downtown's major shopping street, with Florida's flagship Macy's (formerly Burdines) on Flagler Street and Miami Avenue, as well as Miami's own department store, La Epoca on Flagler Street and Second Avenue. After many years of decay, much focus has been placed on revitalizing Flagler Street to its former grandeur. In recent years, a renewed investment interest has been placed on Flagler Street, and many new restaurants and stores have opened up, new landscaping and pavers have been placed, as well as enforced security and tourist guides.

Besides Flagler Street, Downtown has two major shopping areas, Bayside Marketplace and Mary Brickell Village in Brickell. Bayside Marketplace was built in 1987, and is one of Miami's most visited tourist attractions averaging over 15 million visitors a year. It is an outdoor shopping mall overlooking Biscayne Bay at Bayfront Park. Bayside Marketplace has many national retail chains, as well as local Miami stores. Mary Brickell Village is on Miami Avenue and SE 10th Street in Brickell. Mary Brickell Village is a major nightlife area and has many of Miami's upscale bars and restaurants that stretch along Miami Avenue from around SE Sixth Street to Broadway (SE 15th Road).

[edit] Education and institutions

[edit] Elementary schools

Miami Art Museum

Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts, the second-largest performing arts center in the U.S.

St. Jude Catholic Church on the corner of Brickell Avenue and Broadway.

Miami-Dade County Public Schools operates area public schools:

Downtown Miami Charter School
Southside Elementary School
Ada Merritt Elementary School
Riverside Elementary School
Miami Children's Museum School

[edit] High schools

Miami-Dade County Public Schools operates area public schools:

Law Enforcement Officers Memorial High School
Young Women's Preparatory Academy
New World School of the Arts

[edit] Downtown Skyscrapers

The Metromover has three lines throughout Downtown and Brickell. There are Metromover stations at roughly every two blocks in the area, and is free.

An aerial view of Downtown, including the neighborhoods of Brickell and Edgewater.

[edit] Office towers

[edit] Residential towers

Freedom Tower

[edit] Hotel towers

[edit] Places of interest

The American Airlines Arena, home of the Miami Heat

[edit] Economy

The Dade County Courthouse built in 1925.

Before its dissolution, LTU International had its United States headquarters in Downtown Miami.^[9] Stanford Group Company and Stanford Fiduciary Investor Services, Inc., subsidiaries of Stanford Financial Group, had offices in Downtown Miami.^[10]

[edit] Diplomatic missions

Several countries have consulates- general based in Downtown, many of which are located along Biscayne Boulevard. They include those of: Argentina,^[11] , Bahamas,^[12], Brazil,^[13], Chile^[14], Dominican Republic,^[15], Ecuador,^[16], France,^[17], Germany,^[18], Guatemala,^[19], Haiti,^[20], Israel (Consulate-General of Israel to Florida & Puerto Rico),^[21], Jamaica,^[22], Japan,^[23], Netherlands,^[24], Consulate-General of Paraguay in Miami.^[25], Peru,^[26], United Kingdom,^[27], Venezuela.^[28]

[edit] Gallery

Bank of America Tower lit in pink	The Downtown Distributor aids the heavy traffic from I-95 with long ramps to various parts of downtown	Downtown skyline - September 2008	Downtown skyline- Dec. 2006
Biscayne Boulevard	Espirito Santo Plaza	Trinity Episcopal Cathedral, Miami	50 Biscayne Tower
Wachovia Financial Center	Marquis Miami on the Biscayne Wall	The tallest tower to the left is the Four Seasons Hotel Miami in Brickell. The tallest tower in the center is the Wachovia Financial Center in Downtown which borders Park West to the north, with the four towers. Park West leads into Midtown to the north where the large cluster of skyscrapers are to the far right.	Daytime view of downtown Miami looking South, 2008
Nighttime view of downtown Miami looking South, 2008