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The area that was to become West Palm Beach was settled in the late 1870s and 1880s by a few hundred settlers who called the vicinity "Lake Worth Country." These settlers were a diverse community from different parts of the United States and the world. They included founding families such at the Potters and the Lainharts, who would go on to become leading members of the business community in the fledgling city. The first white settlers in Palm Beach County lived around Lake Worth, then an enclosed freshwater lake, named for Colonel William Jenkins Worth, who had fought in the Second Seminole War in Florida in 1842. Most settlers engaged in the growing of tropical fruits and vegetables for shipment the north via Lake Worth and the Indian River. By 1890, the U.S. Census counted over 200 people settled along Lake Worth in the vicinity of what would become West Palm Beach. The area at this time also boasted a hotel, the "Cocoanut House", a church, and a post office. The city was platted by Henry Flagler as a community to house the servants working in the two grand hotels on the neighboring island of Palm Beach, across Lake Worth in 1893, coinciding with the arrival of the Florida East Coast railroad. Flagler paid two area settlers, Captain Porter and Louie Hillhouse, a combined sum of $45,000 for the original town site, stretching from Clear Lake to Lake Worth.
On November 5, 1894, 78 people met at the "Calaboose" (the first jail and police station located at Clematis St. and Poinsettia, now Dixie Hwy.) and passed the motion to incorporate the Town of West Palm Beach in what was then Dade County (now Miami-Dade County). This made West Palm Beach the first incorporated municipality in Dade County and in South Florida. The town council quickly addressed the building codes and the tents and shanties were replaced by brick, brick veneer, and stone buildings. The city grew steadily during the 1890s and the first two decades of the 20th century, most residents were engaged in the tourist industry and related services or winter vegetable market and tropical fruit trade. In 1909, Palm Beach County was formed by the Florida State Legislature and West Palm Beach became the county seat. In 1916, a new neo-classical courthouse was opened, which has been painstakingly restored back to its original condition, and is now used as the local history museum.
The city grew rapidly in the 1920s as part of the Florida land boom. The population of West Palm Beach quadrupled from 1920 to 1927, and all kinds of businesses and public services grew along with it. Many of the city's landmark structures and preserved neighborhoods were constructed during this period. Originally, Flagler intended for his Florida East Coast Railway to have its terminus in West Palm, but after the area experienced a deep freeze, he chose to extend the railroad to Miami instead.
The land boom was already faltering when city was devastated by the 1928 Okeechobee hurricane. The Depression years of the 1930s were a quiet time for the area, which saw slight population growth and property values lower than during the 1920s. The city only recovered with the onset of World War II, which saw the construction of Palm Beach Air Force Base, which brought thousands of military personnel to the city. The base was vital to the allied war effort, as it provided an excellent training facility and had unparalleled access to North Africa for a North American city. Also during World War II, German U-Boats sank dozens of merchant ships and oil tankers just off the coast of West Palm Beach. Nearby Palm Beach was under black out conditions to minimize night visibility to German U-boats.
The 1950s saw another boom in population, partly due to the return of many soldiers and airmen who had served in the vicinity during the war. Also, the advent of air conditioning encouraged growth, as year-round living in a tropical climate became more acceptable to northerners. West Palm Beach became the one of the nation's fastest growing metropolitan areas during the 1950s; the city's borders spread west of Military Trail and south to Lake Clarke Shores. However, many of the city's residents still lived within a narrow six-block wide strip from the south to north end. The neighborhoods were strictly segregated between White and African-American populations, a legacy that the city still struggles with today. The primary shopping district remained downtown, centered around Clematis Street.
In the 1960s, Palm Beach County's first enclosed shopping mall, the Palm Beach Mall, and an indoor arena were completed. These projects led to a brief revival for the city, but in the 1970s and 1980s crime continued to be a serious issue and suburban sprawl continued to drain resources and business away from the old downtown area. By the early 1990s there were very high vacancy rates downtown, and serious levels of urban blight.
Since the 1990s, developments such as CityPlace and the preservation and renovation of 1920s architecture in the nightlife hub of Clematis Street have seen a downtown resurgence in the entertainment and shopping district. The city has also placed emphasis on neighborhood development and revitalization, in historic districts such as Northwood, Flamingo Park, and El Cid. Some neighborhoods still struggle with blight and crime, as well as lowered property values caused by the Great Recession, which hit the region particularly hard. Since the recovery, multiple new developments have been completed. The Palm Beach Mall, located at the Interstate 95/Palm Beach Lakes Boulevard interchange became abandoned as downtown revitalized - the very mall that initiated the original abandonment of the downtown. The mall was then redeveloped into the Palm Beach Fashion Outlets in February 2014. A station for All Aboard Florida, a high speed passenger rail service serving Miami, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, and Orlando, is under construction as of July 2015.
Credit for the data above is given to the following website:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_Palm_Beach,_Florida
© All Rights Reserved - you may not use this image in any form without my prior permission.
The Mega City of Miami, Florida, USA is a very eclectic place indeed, not only in its architecture style but in its lifestyles as well. The city offers the 3rd largest skyline in the United States after New York City and Chicago. The flavor of this city is international, thus a visitor will find all kinds of foods and cultures from all over the world here. Being that this city is situated at the southeastern tip of Florida it has a sub-tropical climate with mild winters and hot summers. The skyline of Miami is constantly growing outward and upward with every new skyscraper being built. The nickname of this exciting city is: “The Magic City”.
Aventura is a planned, suburban city located in northeastern Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. The city name is from the Spanish word for "adventure", and was named "Aventura" after one of the developers of the original group of condominiums in the area remarked to the others, "What an adventure this is going to be." The name predates the well known mall (Aventura Mall) built near the condominium developments. According to the U.S. Census estimates of 2010, the city had a population of 35,762. Aventura is located 18 miles north of the city of Miami.
Aventura began its development during the early 1970s. The area was initially referred to as Turnberry. Aventura became an incorporated city in 1995. The Aventura Police Department was formed in 1997.
Aventura is home to the luxury resort Turnberry Isle, where the yacht Monkey Business was docked during the Gary Hart/Donna Rice incident, which contributed to Hart ending his 1988 bid for presidency.
The Aventura Mall, the fifth-largest shopping mall in the US, is also located here.
In early 2001, Former President Bill Clinton delivered one of his first speeches after leaving the White House at Aventura-Turnberry Jewish Center.
Credit for the data above is given to the following website:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aventura,_Florida
© All Rights Reserved - you may not use this image in any form without my prior permission.
The Albert W. Gilchrist Bridge is a bridge in Charlotte County, Florida crossing the Peace River between Port Charlotte, Florida and Punta Gorda, Florida. The two-lane 45-foot-tall structure carries the southbound lanes of U.S. Route 41 (Tamiami Trail). US 41's northbound lanes are carried over the river on the adjacent Barron Collier Bridge. It was named for former Florida Governor Albert W. Gilchrist, who resided in Punta Gorda.
The Gilchrist Bridge opened for traffic on July 4, 1976. It was built to make U.S. 41 a four lane highway over the Peace River.
When the Gilchrist Bridge opened, the original Barron Collier Bridge was still in service, which was a low-level drawbridge. It carried one lane in each direction prior to the Gilchrist Bridge's completion, and then carried two lanes of northbound traffic afterward. The Gilchrist Bridge lands at Cross Street in Punta Gorda, which was a couple of blocks west of King Street (where the Barron Collier Bridge lands). As a result, US 41 is carried on two one-way streets through Punta Gorda.
Barron Collier Bridge (right) and Gilchrist Bridge (left) as seen from Harborwalk in Punta Gorda
The current Barron Collier Bridge was then built in 1983, eliminating the need for the drawbridge which continued to disrupt northbound traffic. The current Barron Collier Bridge was built right next to the original, and is identical to the Gilchrist Bridge.
Albert W. Gilchrist was not the only name in the running for the southbound bridge at the time of its construction. Naming the bridge after Juan Ponce de León was suggested at one point, as well as Phil Laishley, a former Punta Gorda mayor. "Bicentennial Bridge" was another suggested name due to the bridge opening in 1976, the bicentennial anniversary of the United States. Ultimately, Gilchrist was selected to be the bridge's namesake since he is a significant figure in area's history.
Along the beach side of the park can be found a most unique rock outcrop for the Sunshine State. These rocks are believed to be formed from either a submerged offshore bar or from a beach ridge.
The offshore bar was formed approximately 100,000 years ago during the last interglacial period of the Ice Age. At that time, sea level was about 25 to 30 feet higher than at present. When the sea level dropped during the following glacial period, the bar was exposed to air and weather. Rain water percolating down through the layer of sediment, dissolved calcium carbonate from the shell material, forming a matrix or cement, binding the loose sediment into coquina rock.
Once raised from the ocean, the bar stood above sea level for many thousands of years. It was not until about 5,000 years ago that the rising ocean would have started wearing away the rock to produce the beautiful formation we see today here at the park.
The Mega City of Miami, Florida, USA is a very eclectic place indeed, not only in its architecture style but in its lifestyles as well. The city offers the 3rd largest skyline in the United States after New York City and Chicago. The flavor of this city is international, thus a visitor will find all kinds of foods and cultures from all over the world here. Being that this city is situated at the southeastern tip of Florida it has a sub-tropical climate with mild winters and hot summers. The skyline of Miami is constantly growing outward and upward with every new skyscraper being built. The nickname of this exciting city is: “The Magic City”.
The St. Augustine Light Station is an active lighthouse in St. Augustine, Florida. The current lighthouse stands at the north end of Anastasia Island and was built in 1874; it is the most recent of a number of towers built in the area. The tower is owned by the St. Augustine Lighthouse & Museum, Inc. (SAL&M), a not-for-profit maritime museum and private aid-to-navigation. Open to the public, admission fees support continued preservation of the Lighthouse and fund programs in maritime archaeology and education.
Data above originated from the following website:
Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, is also known as The Guitar Hotel due to its tower constructed to resemble a guitar, is a hotel and casino resort in Hollywood, Florida, United States, located on 100 acres (40 ha) of the Hollywood Reservation of the Seminole Tribe of Florida. The property currently has one hotel tower, a 140,000 sq ft (13,000 m2) casino, a large poker room, a 4-acre (1.6 ha) lagoon-style pool facility with a center bar, and many private restaurants, shops, spa, cabanas, bars, and nightclubs, and the Hard Rock Event Center. A large expansion was completed in October 2019.
The resort currently has a 12-story "classic Hard Rock Hotel" with 469 guest rooms and suites. Guests are greeted by a 50-foot (15 m) tall signature Hard Rock guitar, (based on a famous Gibson electric guitar model) at the entrance of the hotel, along with a massive LED advertising screen at the front of the main parking garage. The resort has 120,000-square-foot (11,000 m2) of meeting space, including a 38,000-square-foot (3,500 m2) exhibit hall.
The Hard Rock's $1.5 billion property expansion project added a 450-foot (140 m) tower designed to appear as a guitar, with lights providing the imagery of guitar strings, and 638 rooms alongside a seven-story, 168-room "Oasis Tower" overlooking the pool cabanas— open on October 24, 2019, several months in advance of Super Bowl LIV being held in Miami on February 2, 2020. The expansion also included a 42,000-square-foot (3,900 m2) "Rock Spa", and over 20 new dining and nightlife destinations. Between the existing 12-story hotel, new Guitar Hotel, and new Oasis Tower, over 1,200 hotel rooms became available in October 2019.
On May 9, 2014, Seminole Chief Jim Billie announced a $100 million upgrade of the tribe's casinos, with much of that spent on the Hard Rock Hollywood location, including improved entryways, center pool bar, pool facility upgrades, updated hotel room, and suite interiors, and a new restaurant. As of March 2019, the tribe's upgrade budget was significantly increased to over $2.4 billion, split mainly between this location and the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino Tampa.
The current casino layout covers over 140,000 sq ft (13,000 m2) featuring slot machines and various table games including blackjack, baccarat, mini-baccarat, Pai Gow poker, Let It Ride, and three-card poker. The casino does not have live craps and roulette, although there are electronic versions of those games available. As of June 2018, the poker room is located in a former ballroom area, relocated from its prior venue due to ongoing construction work.
Blackjack is the most popular card game in the United States and was an addition to the casino. In a deal valued at $1.1 billion, former Governor Charlie Crist gave the Seminole Tribe a license for blackjack in its casinos. In exchange, The Seminole Tribe loaned the State of Florida $1.1 billion over the course of two years. On July 3, 2008, the Florida Supreme Court ruled that the governor's agreement was unconstitutional, but table games continue to operate because the Federal Department of the Interior approved the now-invalid pact with the state. The addition of blackjack to the Hard Rock casinos in Hollywood and Tampa gave credibility to its claim of being a major gambling destination.[
Hard Rock Live is a 7,000 seat multi-purpose theater, which opened on October 25, 2019, with a concert by Maroon 5. The theater replaced a 5,500 seat arena (razed in March 2018 as part of the property-wide expansion) of the same name, which hosted different types of events including musical acts, comedians, boxing, and other smaller events, along with a residency by Billy Joel. During construction of the new theater, events were held at the temporary 3,500 seat Hard Rock Event Center, which hosted acts including Britney Spears on her Piece of Me Tour.
The 69th edition of the Miss Universe competition was held on May 16, 2021, at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino where Zozibini Tunzi of South Africa crowned her successor Andrea Meza of Mexico at the end of the event.
Model Anna Nicole Smith, who was staying at the resort, died in her hotel suite on February 8, 2007. An autopsy ruled her death was caused by an accidental drug overdose from prescription drugs.
Credit for the data above is given to the following websites:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seminole_Hard_Rock_Hotel_%26_Casino...
www.seminolehardrockhollywood.com/hotel/hard-rock-hotel
www.booking.com/hotel/us/seminolehardrockhotelhollywood.h...
www.emporis.com/buildings/1276890/the-guitar-hotel-at-sem...
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Another beautiful sunrise over tugun beach.These are the best times of the day sunsets and sun rises, i always feel so chilled and relaxed as there are fewer people on the beaches.And as always my friends thanks for all your amazing comments and faves.
The area that was to become West Palm Beach was settled in the late 1870s and 1880s by a few hundred settlers who called the vicinity "Lake Worth Country." These settlers were a diverse community from different parts of the United States and the world. They included founding families such at the Potters and the Lainharts, who would go on to become leading members of the business community in the fledgling city. The first white settlers in Palm Beach County lived around Lake Worth, then an enclosed freshwater lake, named for Colonel William Jenkins Worth, who had fought in the Second Seminole War in Florida in 1842. Most settlers engaged in the growing of tropical fruits and vegetables for shipment the north via Lake Worth and the Indian River. By 1890, the U.S. Census counted over 200 people settled along Lake Worth in the vicinity of what would become West Palm Beach. The area at this time also boasted a hotel, the "Cocoanut House", a church, and a post office. The city was platted by Henry Flagler as a community to house the servants working in the two grand hotels on the neighboring island of Palm Beach, across Lake Worth in 1893, coinciding with the arrival of the Florida East Coast railroad. Flagler paid two area settlers, Captain Porter and Louie Hillhouse, a combined sum of $45,000 for the original town site, stretching from Clear Lake to Lake Worth.
On November 5, 1894, 78 people met at the "Calaboose" (the first jail and police station located at Clematis St. and Poinsettia, now Dixie Hwy.) and passed the motion to incorporate the Town of West Palm Beach in what was then Dade County (now Miami-Dade County). This made West Palm Beach the first incorporated municipality in Dade County and in South Florida. The town council quickly addressed the building codes and the tents and shanties were replaced by brick, brick veneer, and stone buildings. The city grew steadily during the 1890s and the first two decades of the 20th century, most residents were engaged in the tourist industry and related services or winter vegetable market and tropical fruit trade. In 1909, Palm Beach County was formed by the Florida State Legislature and West Palm Beach became the county seat. In 1916, a new neo-classical courthouse was opened, which has been painstakingly restored back to its original condition, and is now used as the local history museum.
The city grew rapidly in the 1920s as part of the Florida land boom. The population of West Palm Beach quadrupled from 1920 to 1927, and all kinds of businesses and public services grew along with it. Many of the city's landmark structures and preserved neighborhoods were constructed during this period. Originally, Flagler intended for his Florida East Coast Railway to have its terminus in West Palm, but after the area experienced a deep freeze, he chose to extend the railroad to Miami instead.
The land boom was already faltering when city was devastated by the 1928 Okeechobee hurricane. The Depression years of the 1930s were a quiet time for the area, which saw slight population growth and property values lower than during the 1920s. The city only recovered with the onset of World War II, which saw the construction of Palm Beach Air Force Base, which brought thousands of military personnel to the city. The base was vital to the allied war effort, as it provided an excellent training facility and had unparalleled access to North Africa for a North American city. Also during World War II, German U-Boats sank dozens of merchant ships and oil tankers just off the coast of West Palm Beach. Nearby Palm Beach was under black out conditions to minimize night visibility to German U-boats.
The 1950s saw another boom in population, partly due to the return of many soldiers and airmen who had served in the vicinity during the war. Also, the advent of air conditioning encouraged growth, as year-round living in a tropical climate became more acceptable to northerners. West Palm Beach became the one of the nation's fastest growing metropolitan areas during the 1950s; the city's borders spread west of Military Trail and south to Lake Clarke Shores. However, many of the city's residents still lived within a narrow six-block wide strip from the south to north end. The neighborhoods were strictly segregated between White and African-American populations, a legacy that the city still struggles with today. The primary shopping district remained downtown, centered around Clematis Street.
In the 1960s, Palm Beach County's first enclosed shopping mall, the Palm Beach Mall, and an indoor arena were completed. These projects led to a brief revival for the city, but in the 1970s and 1980s crime continued to be a serious issue and suburban sprawl continued to drain resources and business away from the old downtown area. By the early 1990s there were very high vacancy rates downtown, and serious levels of urban blight.
Since the 1990s, developments such as CityPlace and the preservation and renovation of 1920s architecture in the nightlife hub of Clematis Street have seen a downtown resurgence in the entertainment and shopping district. The city has also placed emphasis on neighborhood development and revitalization, in historic districts such as Northwood, Flamingo Park, and El Cid. Some neighborhoods still struggle with blight and crime, as well as lowered property values caused by the Great Recession, which hit the region particularly hard. Since the recovery, multiple new developments have been completed. The Palm Beach Mall, located at the Interstate 95/Palm Beach Lakes Boulevard interchange became abandoned as downtown revitalized - the very mall that initiated the original abandonment of the downtown. The mall was then redeveloped into the Palm Beach Fashion Outlets in February 2014. A station for All Aboard Florida, a high-speed passenger rail service serving Miami, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, and Orlando, is under construction as of July 2015.
Credit for the data above is given to the following website:
Sunset at Pier 60 ~ Gulf Coast ~ Clearwater Beach, Florida
Nikon D7500, Sigma 18-300, ISO 200, f/7.1, 165mm, 1/800s
Miami (/maɪˈæmi/; Spanish pronunciation: [miˈami]) is a seaport city at the southeastern corner of the U.S. state of Florida and its Atlantic coast. As the seat of Miami-Dade County, the municipality is the principal, central, and the most populous city of the Miami metropolitan area and part of the second-most populous metropolis in the southeastern United States.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Miami's metro area is the eighth-most populous and fourth-largest urban area in the U.S., with a population of around 5.5 million.
Miami is a major center, and a leader in finance, commerce, culture, media, entertainment, the arts, and international trade. In 2012, Miami was classified as an Alpha−World City in the World Cities Study Group's inventory. In 2010, Miami ranked seventh in the United States in terms of finance, commerce, culture, entertainment, fashion, education, and other sectors. It ranked 33rd among global cities. In 2008, Forbes magazine ranked Miami "America's Cleanest City", for its year-round good air quality, vast green spaces, clean drinking water, clean streets, and citywide recycling programs.
According to a 2009 UBS study of 73 world cities, Miami was ranked as the richest city in the United States, and the world's fifth-richest city in terms of purchasing power. Miami is nicknamed the "Capital of Latin America" and is the largest city with a Cuban-American plurality.
Miami has the third tallest skyline in the U.S. with over 300 high-rises. Downtown Miami is home to the largest concentration of international banks in the United States, and many large national and international companies. The Civic Center is a major center for hospitals, research institutes, medical centers, and biotechnology industries.
For more than two decades, the Port of Miami, known as the "Cruise Capital of the World", has been the number one cruise passenger port in the world. It accommodates some of the world's largest cruise ships and operations, and is the busiest port in both passenger traffic and cruise lines.
Metropolitan Miami is the major tourism hub in the American South, number two in the U.S. after New York City and number 13 in the world, including the popular destination of Miami Beach.
Credit for the data above is given to the following website:
The area that was to become West Palm Beach was settled in the late 1870s and 1880s by a few hundred settlers who called the vicinity "Lake Worth Country." These settlers were a diverse community from different parts of the United States and the world. They included founding families such at the Potters and the Lainharts, who would go on to become leading members of the business community in the fledgling city. The first white settlers in Palm Beach County lived around Lake Worth, then an enclosed freshwater lake, named for Colonel William Jenkins Worth, who had fought in the Second Seminole War in Florida in 1842. Most settlers engaged in the growing of tropical fruits and vegetables for shipment the north via Lake Worth and the Indian River. By 1890, the U.S. Census counted over 200 people settled along Lake Worth in the vicinity of what would become West Palm Beach. The area at this time also boasted a hotel, the "Cocoanut House", a church, and a post office. The city was platted by Henry Flagler as a community to house the servants working in the two grand hotels on the neighboring island of Palm Beach, across Lake Worth in 1893, coinciding with the arrival of the Florida East Coast railroad. Flagler paid two area settlers, Captain Porter and Louie Hillhouse, a combined sum of $45,000 for the original town site, stretching from Clear Lake to Lake Worth.
On November 5, 1894, 78 people met at the "Calaboose" (the first jail and police station located at Clematis St. and Poinsettia, now Dixie Hwy.) and passed the motion to incorporate the Town of West Palm Beach in what was then Dade County (now Miami-Dade County). This made West Palm Beach the first incorporated municipality in Dade County and in South Florida. The town council quickly addressed the building codes and the tents and shanties were replaced by brick, brick veneer, and stone buildings. The city grew steadily during the 1890s and the first two decades of the 20th century, most residents were engaged in the tourist industry and related services or winter vegetable market and tropical fruit trade. In 1909, Palm Beach County was formed by the Florida State Legislature and West Palm Beach became the county seat. In 1916, a new neo-classical courthouse was opened, which has been painstakingly restored back to its original condition, and is now used as the local history museum.
The city grew rapidly in the 1920s as part of the Florida land boom. The population of West Palm Beach quadrupled from 1920 to 1927, and all kinds of businesses and public services grew along with it. Many of the city's landmark structures and preserved neighborhoods were constructed during this period. Originally, Flagler intended for his Florida East Coast Railway to have its terminus in West Palm, but after the area experienced a deep freeze, he chose to extend the railroad to Miami instead.
The land boom was already faltering when city was devastated by the 1928 Okeechobee hurricane. The Depression years of the 1930s were a quiet time for the area, which saw slight population growth and property values lower than during the 1920s. The city only recovered with the onset of World War II, which saw the construction of Palm Beach Air Force Base, which brought thousands of military personnel to the city. The base was vital to the allied war effort, as it provided an excellent training facility and had unparalleled access to North Africa for a North American city. Also during World War II, German U-Boats sank dozens of merchant ships and oil tankers just off the coast of West Palm Beach. Nearby Palm Beach was under black out conditions to minimize night visibility to German U-boats.
The 1950s saw another boom in population, partly due to the return of many soldiers and airmen who had served in the vicinity during the war. Also, the advent of air conditioning encouraged growth, as year-round living in a tropical climate became more acceptable to northerners. West Palm Beach became the one of the nation's fastest growing metropolitan areas during the 1950s; the city's borders spread west of Military Trail and south to Lake Clarke Shores. However, many of the city's residents still lived within a narrow six-block wide strip from the south to north end. The neighborhoods were strictly segregated between White and African-American populations, a legacy that the city still struggles with today. The primary shopping district remained downtown, centered around Clematis Street.
In the 1960s, Palm Beach County's first enclosed shopping mall, the Palm Beach Mall, and an indoor arena were completed. These projects led to a brief revival for the city, but in the 1970s and 1980s crime continued to be a serious issue and suburban sprawl continued to drain resources and business away from the old downtown area. By the early 1990s there were very high vacancy rates downtown, and serious levels of urban blight.
Since the 1990s, developments such as CityPlace and the preservation and renovation of 1920s architecture in the nightlife hub of Clematis Street have seen a downtown resurgence in the entertainment and shopping district. The city has also placed emphasis on neighborhood development and revitalization, in historic districts such as Northwood, Flamingo Park, and El Cid. Some neighborhoods still struggle with blight and crime, as well as lowered property values caused by the Great Recession, which hit the region particularly hard. Since the recovery, multiple new developments have been completed. The Palm Beach Mall, located at the Interstate 95/Palm Beach Lakes Boulevard interchange became abandoned as downtown revitalized - the very mall that initiated the original abandonment of the downtown. The mall was then redeveloped into the Palm Beach Fashion Outlets in February 2014. A station for All Aboard Florida, a high-speed passenger rail service serving Miami, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, and Orlando, is under construction as of July 2015.
Credit for the data above is given to the following website:
New Smyrna Beach is a city in Volusia County, Florida, United States, located on the central east coast of the state, with the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Its population was estimated to be 23,230 in 2013 by the United States Census Bureau. The downtown section of the city is located on the west side of the Indian River and the Indian River Lagoon system. The Coronado Beach Bridge crosses the Intracoastal Waterway just south of Ponce de Leon Inlet, connecting the mainland with the beach on the coastal barrier island.
Facts courtesy of: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Smyrna_Beach,_Florida
This is a 7-story, 3-bay domestic building in the Art Deco style built in 1937. The structural system is fireproof. The foundation is reinforced concrete. The exterior walls are stucco. The building has a flat parapet roof. Windows are replacement aluminum casements. Unique octagonal porthole windows just above "Park Central Hotel" signage on the central bay of east elevation and at the same height on the easternmost part of the south elevation; Continuous band of windows rounded at corners wraps around northeast and southeast corners of building There is a single-story, full-span open porch characterized by an integrated (under the main) roof. Simple full-span porch with aluminum railings; Multi-colored terrazzo floor design; Extends slightly out from building set back Primary entryway is centered on east elevation; Glass double-door framed by dark wood; Terrazzo floor design on the porch points directly towards the primary door, which is also ornamented on the interior by different multi-colored terrazzo floor designs.
Symmetrical tripartite design on the primary facade; Round masonry porthole design at cornice; Octagonal porthole windows directly above first-floor level; Horizontal banding at building's corners; Multi-colored terrazzo floor designs; Neon "Park Central Hotel" signage centered directly above the porch on the east elevation; "Park Central Hotel" signage painted vertically on the east corner of the south elevation; Stepped ziggurat parapet roofline on east elevation; Streamlined vertical design with a recessed central section; Rounded corner windows on northeast and southeast corners just above porch level; Lightly ribbed vertical pilasters ornamented with spandrels; on either side of central bay form an inverted "L" design; Aluminum railings.
Credit for the data above is given to the following website:
www.ruskinarc.com/mdpl/all/4630-640%20Ocean%20Dr/view
© All Rights Reserved - you may not use this image in any form without my prior permission.
Atlantic coast, Washington Oaks Gardens State Park - Flagler County, Florida
Morning suft sprays a coquina rock lined shore in Palm Coast, Florida.
©2012 Nature's Spectrum, For review purposes only. All Rights Reserved..
Miami is a global seaport city at the southeastern corner of the U.S. state of Florida and its Atlantic coast. As the seat of Miami-Dade County, the municipality is the principal, central, and the most populous city of the Miami metropolitan area and part of the second-most populous metropolis in the southeastern United States.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Miami's metro area is the eighth-most populous and fourth-largest urban area in the U.S., with a population of around 5.5 million.
Miami is a major center, and a leader in finance, commerce, culture, media, entertainment, the arts, and international trade. In 2012, Miami was classified as an Alpha−World City in the World Cities Study Group's inventory. In 2010, Miami ranked seventh in the United States in terms of finance, commerce, culture, entertainment, fashion, education, and other sectors. It ranked 33rd among global cities. In 2008, Forbes magazine ranked Miami "America's Cleanest City", for its year-round good air quality, vast green spaces, clean drinking water, clean streets, and citywide recycling programs.
According to a 2009 UBS study of 73 world cities, Miami was ranked as the richest city in the United States, and the world's fifth-richest city in terms of purchasing power. Miami is nicknamed the "Capital of Latin America" and is the largest city with a Cuban-American plurality.
Miami has the third tallest skyline in the U.S. with over 300 high-rises. Downtown Miami is home to the largest concentration of international banks in the United States, and many large national and international companies. The Civic Center is a major center for hospitals, research institutes, medical centers, and biotechnology industries.
For more than two decades, the Port of Miami, known as the "Cruise Capital of the World", has been the number one cruise passenger port in the world. It accommodates some of the world's largest cruise ships and operations and is the busiest port in both passenger traffic and cruise lines.
Metropolitan Miami is the major tourism hub in the American South, number two in the U.S. after New York City and number 13 in the world, including the popular destination of Miami Beach.
Credit for the data above is given to the following websites:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edgewater_(Miami)
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St. Petersburg is a city situated on Florida's gulf coast. It's known for its pleasant weather (hence its “Sunshine City” nickname), making it popular for golfing, boating, fishing and beachgoing. Its waterfront parks host the Dali Museum, featuring surrealist works of art; the Museum of Fine Arts, with works ranging from ancient to contemporary; and Mahaffey Theater, home of the Florida Orchestra.
Facts courtesy of: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Petersburg,_Florida
it took 400 photos and 8 years to get my million views and want to thank all my friends that have helped me..another sunrise over the gold coast..queensland.australia.
Dawn, Atlantic Coast - Flagler County, Florida.
Storm clouds move across the sky along the Atlantic coast on a winter morning.
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Florida Keys Seven-Mile Historic Bridge - only for fisherman!
Overseas Heritage Trail.
picture used in:
intelligenttravel.nationalgeographic.com/2014/04/17/road-...
Fort Lauderdale is a city in the U.S. state of Florida, 25 miles (40 km) north of Miami. It is the county seat of Broward County. As of the 2019 census, the city has an estimated population of 182,437. Fort Lauderdale is a principal city of the Miami metropolitan area, which was home to an estimated 6,198,782 people in 2018.
The city is a popular tourist destination, with an average year-round temperature of 75.5 °F (24.2 °C) and 3,000 hours of sunshine per year. Greater Fort Lauderdale which takes in all of Broward County hosted 12 million visitors in 2012, including 2.8 million international visitors. The city and county in 2012 collected $43.9 million from the 5% hotel tax it charges, after hotels in the area recorded an occupancy rate for the year of 72.7 percent and an average daily rate of $114.48. The district has 561 hotels and motels comprising nearly 35,000 rooms. Forty six cruise ships sailed from Port Everglades in 2012. Greater Fort Lauderdale has over 4,000 restaurants, 63 golf courses, 12 shopping malls, 16 museums, 132 nightclubs, 278 parkland campsites, and 100 marinas housing 45,000 resident yachts.
Fort Lauderdale is named after a series of forts built by the United States during the Second Seminole War. The forts took their name from Major William Lauderdale (1782–1838), younger brother of Lieutenant Colonel James Lauderdale. William Lauderdale was the commander of the detachment of soldiers who built the first fort. However, development of the city did not begin until 50 years after the forts were abandoned at the end of the conflict. Three forts named "Fort Lauderdale" were constructed; the first was at the fork of the New River, the second at Tarpon Bend on the New River between the Colee Hammock and Rio Vista neighborhoods, and the third near the site of the Bahia Mar Marina.
The area in which the city of Fort Lauderdale would later be founded was inhabited for more than two thousand years by the Tequesta Indians. Contact with Spanish explorers in the 16th century proved disastrous for the Tequesta, as the Europeans unwittingly brought with them diseases, such as smallpox, to which the native populations possessed no resistance. For the Tequesta, disease, coupled with continuing conflict with their Calusa neighbors, contributed greatly to their decline over the next two centuries. By 1763, there were only a few Tequesta left in Florida, and most of them were evacuated to Cuba when the Spanish ceded Florida to the British in 1763, under the terms of the Treaty of Paris (1763), which ended the Seven Years' War. Although control of the area changed between Spain, the United Kingdom, the United States, and the Confederate States of America, it remained largely undeveloped until the 20th century.
The Fort Lauderdale area was known as the "New River Settlement" before the 20th century. In the 1830s there were approximately 70 settlers living along the New River. William Cooley, the local Justice of the Peace, was a farmer and wrecker, who traded with the Seminole Indians. On January 6, 1836, while Cooley was leading an attempt to salvage a wrecked ship, a band of Seminoles attacked his farm, killing his wife and children, and the children's tutor. The other farms in the settlement were not attacked, but all the white residents in the area abandoned the settlement, fleeing first to the Cape Florida Lighthouse on Key Biscayne, and then to Key West.
The first United States stockade named Fort Lauderdale was built in 1838, and subsequently was a site of fighting during the Second Seminole War. The fort was abandoned in 1842, after the end of the war, and the area remained virtually unpopulated until the 1890s. It was not until Frank Stranahan arrived in the area in 1893 to operate a ferry across the New River, and the Florida East Coast Railroad's completion of a route through the area in 1896, that any organized development began. The city was incorporated in 1911, and in 1915 was designated the county seat of newly formed Broward County.
Fort Lauderdale's first major development began in the 1920s, during the Florida land boom of the 1920s. The 1926 Miami Hurricane and the Great Depression of the 1930s caused a great deal of economic dislocation. In July 1935, an African-American man named Rubin Stacy was accused of robbing a white woman at knife point. He was arrested and being transported to a Miami jail when police were run off the road by a mob. A group of 100 white men proceeded to hang Stacy from a tree near the scene of his alleged robbery. His body was riddled with some twenty bullets. The murder was subsequently used by the press in Nazi Germany to discredit US critiques of its own persecution of Jews, Communists, and Catholics.
When World War II began, Fort Lauderdale became a major US base, with a Naval Air Station to train pilots, radar operators, and fire control, operators. A Coast Guard base at Port Everglades was also established.
On July 4, 1961, African Americans started a series of protests, wade-ins, at beaches that were off-limits to them, to protest "the failure of the county to build a road to the Negro beach". On July 11, 1962, a verdict by Ted Cabot went against the city's policy of racial segregation of public beaches.
Today, Fort Lauderdale is a major yachting center, one of the nation's largest tourist destinations, and the center of a metropolitan division with 1.8 million people.
Credit for the data above is given to the following website:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Lauderdale,_Florida
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Opa-locka station is a Tri-Rail commuter rail station in Opa-locka, Florida. Parking is available at this station, which is located near the intersection of Ali Baba Avenue and Sharazad Boulevard. It was opened to service in 1996, adjacent to the former Opa-locka Seaboard Air Line Railway Station, which has since 1987 been listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Credit for the data above is given to the following website:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opa-locka_station_(Tri-Rail)
Miami, at Florida's southeastern tip, is a vibrant city whose Cuban influence is reflected in the cafes and cigar shops that line Calle Ocho in Little Havana. Miami Beach, on barrier islands across the turquoise waters of Biscayne Bay, is home to glamorous South Beach, famed for its colorful art deco buildings, white sand, surfside hotels and trendsetting nightclubs.
The area that was to become West Palm Beach was settled in the late 1870s and 1880s by a few hundred settlers who called the vicinity "Lake Worth Country." These settlers were a diverse community from different parts of the United States and the world. They included founding families such at the Potters and the Lainharts, who would go on to become leading members of the business community in the fledgling city. The first white settlers in Palm Beach County lived around Lake Worth, then an enclosed freshwater lake, named for Colonel William Jenkins Worth, who had fought in the Second Seminole War in Florida in 1842. Most settlers engaged in the growing of tropical fruits and vegetables for shipment the north via Lake Worth and the Indian River. By 1890, the U.S. Census counted over 200 people settled along Lake Worth in the vicinity of what would become West Palm Beach. The area at this time also boasted a hotel, the "Cocoanut House", a church, and a post office. The city was platted by Henry Flagler as a community to house the servants working in the two grand hotels on the neighboring island of Palm Beach, across Lake Worth in 1893, coinciding with the arrival of the Florida East Coast railroad. Flagler paid two area settlers, Captain Porter and Louie Hillhouse, a combined sum of $45,000 for the original town site, stretching from Clear Lake to Lake Worth.
On November 5, 1894, 78 people met at the "Calaboose" (the first jail and police station located at Clematis St. and Poinsettia, now Dixie Hwy.) and passed the motion to incorporate the Town of West Palm Beach in what was then Dade County (now Miami-Dade County). This made West Palm Beach the first incorporated municipality in Dade County and in South Florida. The town council quickly addressed the building codes and the tents and shanties were replaced by brick, brick veneer, and stone buildings. The city grew steadily during the 1890s and the first two decades of the 20th century, most residents were engaged in the tourist industry and related services or winter vegetable market and tropical fruit trade. In 1909, Palm Beach County was formed by the Florida State Legislature and West Palm Beach became the county seat. In 1916, a new neo-classical courthouse was opened, which has been painstakingly restored back to its original condition, and is now used as the local history museum.
The city grew rapidly in the 1920s as part of the Florida land boom. The population of West Palm Beach quadrupled from 1920 to 1927, and all kinds of businesses and public services grew along with it. Many of the city's landmark structures and preserved neighborhoods were constructed during this period. Originally, Flagler intended for his Florida East Coast Railway to have its terminus in West Palm, but after the area experienced a deep freeze, he chose to extend the railroad to Miami instead.
The land boom was already faltering when city was devastated by the 1928 Okeechobee hurricane. The Depression years of the 1930s were a quiet time for the area, which saw slight population growth and property values lower than during the 1920s. The city only recovered with the onset of World War II, which saw the construction of Palm Beach Air Force Base, which brought thousands of military personnel to the city. The base was vital to the allied war effort, as it provided an excellent training facility and had unparalleled access to North Africa for a North American city. Also during World War II, German U-Boats sank dozens of merchant ships and oil tankers just off the coast of West Palm Beach. Nearby Palm Beach was under black out conditions to minimize night visibility to German U-boats.
The 1950s saw another boom in population, partly due to the return of many soldiers and airmen who had served in the vicinity during the war. Also, the advent of air conditioning encouraged growth, as year-round living in a tropical climate became more acceptable to northerners. West Palm Beach became the one of the nation's fastest growing metropolitan areas during the 1950s; the city's borders spread west of Military Trail and south to Lake Clarke Shores. However, many of the city's residents still lived within a narrow six-block wide strip from the south to north end. The neighborhoods were strictly segregated between White and African-American populations, a legacy that the city still struggles with today. The primary shopping district remained downtown, centered around Clematis Street.
In the 1960s, Palm Beach County's first enclosed shopping mall, the Palm Beach Mall, and an indoor arena were completed. These projects led to a brief revival for the city, but in the 1970s and 1980s crime continued to be a serious issue and suburban sprawl continued to drain resources and business away from the old downtown area. By the early 1990s there were very high vacancy rates downtown, and serious levels of urban blight.
Since the 1990s, developments such as CityPlace and the preservation and renovation of 1920s architecture in the nightlife hub of Clematis Street have seen a downtown resurgence in the entertainment and shopping district. The city has also placed emphasis on neighborhood development and revitalization, in historic districts such as Northwood, Flamingo Park, and El Cid. Some neighborhoods still struggle with blight and crime, as well as lowered property values caused by the Great Recession, which hit the region particularly hard. Since the recovery, multiple new developments have been completed. The Palm Beach Mall, located at the Interstate 95/Palm Beach Lakes Boulevard interchange became abandoned as downtown revitalized - the very mall that initiated the original abandonment of the downtown. The mall was then redeveloped into the Palm Beach Fashion Outlets in February 2014. A station for All Aboard Florida, a high-speed passenger rail service serving Miami, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, and Orlando, is under construction as of July 2015.
Credit for the data above is given to the following website:
Aventura is a planned, suburban city located in northeastern Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. The city name is from the Spanish word for "adventure", and was named "Aventura" after one of the developers of the original group of condominiums in the area remarked to the others, "What an adventure this is going to be." The name predates the well known mall (Aventura Mall) built near the condominium developments. According to the U.S. Census estimates of 2010, the city had a population of 35,762. Aventura is located 18 miles north of the city of Miami.
Aventura began its development during the early 1970s. The area was initially referred to as Turnberry. Aventura became an incorporated city in 1995. The Aventura Police Department was formed in 1997.
Aventura is home to the luxury resort Turnberry Isle, where the yacht Monkey Business was docked during the Gary Hart/Donna Rice incident, which contributed to Hart ending his 1988 bid for presidency.
The Aventura Mall, the fifth-largest shopping mall in the US, is also located here.
In early 2001, Former President Bill Clinton delivered one of his first speeches after leaving the White House at Aventura-Turnberry Jewish Center.
Credit for the data above is given to the following website:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aventura,_Florida
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