Miami's Often Forgotten High-Rise History

[dave8721]

Cool old picture of Miami. Notice the Port of Miami hasn't been built yet and the land where Bayfront Park is to go is underwater!!! Bicentennial park was a port back then.

[spellbound]

I think Bayfront Park may well have already been filled-in by the time of that photo (I don't believe the Freedom Tower predates it and the vast majority park would be south of the photo), but the area that became Bicentennial Park certainly hadn't.

Love these great old photos...please keep 'em coming!

[Pablo63090]

Miami Skyline, 1981


Brickell & Metrorail, 1984

[spellbound]

The old Metrorail shots remind me of when the system first opened (was it around late 1983?). Did anybody else here take that free ride the very first day?

I remember the trains being packed to the gills...standing room only...and everyone excited to check out this new entry in to "big leagues."

Well, the system may not have worked out as originally envisioned (at least not ridership-wise) but that very first day remains a really great memory.

Hopefully, as the system expands (and we all grow old in the process) Metrorail will fulfill the potential it has---even if getting people out of their cars in South Florida is like pulling teeth.

Then again, they might be paying 17 bucks a gallon in 2030 to keep those cars running.

But I digress...thanks for yet more great old photos. Love that stuff!

[Pablo63090]

Metrorail opened on May 20, 1984. It only ran from Government Center to Dadeland South. I hope Metrorail doesn't grow to the level were everyone's is packed like a sardine. It's nice having a whole seat to yourself.

[spellbound]

Originally Posted by Pablo63090

Metrorail opened on May 20, 1984. It only ran from Government Center to Dadeland South. I hope Metrorail doesn't grow to the level were everyone's is packed like a sardine. It's nice having a whole seat to yourself.

I don't think there's any chance Metrorail will ever see that kind of ridership.

I WOULD, however, like to see it grow from being one of the least-utilized systems in the country into something much more successful...but that can only happen with a LOT of expansion (which may or may not happen given the mood in Washington towards federal funding of mass transit).

It's still baffling how they could have designed the original line without a stop anywhere near the airport. Beyond idiotic.

[Pablo63090]

Ronald Reagan said that it would have been cheaper to buy everyone in Dade County a limo, instead of a billion dollar monorail system.

Here comes the math:
20 stations/21 miles: $1.1 billion
Dade County Pop., 1980: 1,639,000; A limo back in 1980 was about $50,000; Total Cost: 81.5 billion!

[spellbound]

Originally Posted by Pablo63090

Ronald Reagan said that it would have been cheaper to buy everyone in Dade County a limo, instead of a billion dollar monorail system.

Here comes the math:
20 stations/21 miles: $1.1 billion
Dade County Pop., 1980: 1,639,000; A Limo Back In 1980 Was About $50,000; Total Cost: 81.5 billion!

Yep...I remember that quote from Reagan.

People latched onto it, too, despite how moronic and detached from reality it was.

Not that I'm sugarcoating Metrorail. By and large, it HAS been a huge failure financially and ridership-wise.

But that's mostly because it was poorly designed in many ways has always been FAR too puny a system to have a real chance to thrive. Atlanta had the same problems until MARTA finally expanded enough to be considered a genuine urban rail system.

Obviously, there's going to be tremendous opposition to spending money on a system that bleeds cash...but big-time expansion is the ONLY way Metrorail will fulfill its potential.

[ChuckScraperMiami#1]

Pablo and Spell bound , IMO, 2010 Miami-Dade population, 2,639,000 . Average riders on MetroRail, 39,000 rider counts per day . That counts riders going to work, then coming back home, makes two counts per rider, lol.

[Roark]

Originally Posted by Pablo63090

Ronald Reagan said that it would have been cheaper to buy everyone in Dade County a limo, instead of a billion dollar monorail system.

Here comes the math:
20 stations/21 miles: $1.1 billion
Dade County Pop., 1980: 1,639,000; A limo back in 1980 was about $50,000; Total Cost: 81.5 billion!

Correction: When discussing the RIDERSHIP of the Metrorail, Reagan said that it would be cheaper to give everyone that RIDES IT a Limo.
That certainly isn't moronic, or detached from reality.
The earliest ridership figures that I could find were 26,231 in 1989. That's $41,935 per rider for the captial costs to build it and that number does not include the operating funds to operate the system. I suspect that ridership was even less 4 years before 1989.

[ChuckScraperMiami#1]

Originally Posted by Roark

Correction: When discussing the RIDERSHIP of the Metrorail, Reagan said that it would be cheaper to give everyone that RIDES IT a Limo.
The earliest ridership figures that I could find were 26,231 in 1989. That's $41,935 per rider for the captial costs to build it and that number does not include the operating funds to operate the system.

ROARK , well that's true my friend , It was about 1985 , when our president Ronald " Actor " Reagan said that to our County Manager back then, remember he was the head of the county, Merritt Stierhiem . I was about 5 years working for Miami-Dade county when Reagan said that comment .

p.s., does anyone know the ridership total around these days lately ???

[Roark]

Originally Posted by ChuckScraperMiami#1

ROARK , well that's true my friend , It was about 1985 , when our president Ronald " Actor " Reagan said that to our County Manager back then, remember he was the head of the county, Merritt Stierhiem . I was about 5 years working for Miami-Dade county when Reagan said that comment .
p.s., does anyone know the ridership total around these days lately ???

Ahhh yes....i was still in high school, but do you remember who Reagan's Urban Mass Transit Administration advisor was?? The Honorable Arthur Teele.
Metrorail Ridership Total for FY 2005 was 17,034,513. Source

[Toucano]

I think the original projections for Metrorail ridership were ridiculously inflated...It may have had that potential to carry that many riders had companies not started springing for the suburban office complexes in doral, blue lagoon, and downtown coral gables...

[Pablo63090]

According to the Miami Herald, "March 4, 1985: President Ronald Reagan criticizes Dade's Metrorail system, saying "It would have been cheaper to buy everyone a limousine"."

[Rx727sfl2002]

i love the projects that have popped up around the metrorail
it looks like rideship might just increase soon enough when we get more density miami needed to go vertical and now we are doing so...

[Roark]

Originally Posted by Pablo63090

According to the Miami Herald, "March 4, 1985: President Ronald Reagan criticizes Dade's Metrorail system, saying "It would have been cheaper to buy everyone a limousine"."

Yes...I read the Miami Herald's account in that little time capsule.
Not surprisingly, the Herald didn't give the whole story. What you are referring to did not put that quote in context Pablo. Reagan wasn't referring to "everyone" in the universe, or "everyone" in the world, or "everyone" in Dade County. He was referring to "everyone" that rode the Metrorail. I know the issue well. While in college, we studied the biggest government spending blunders...Detroit's People Mover and Miami's Metrorail were case studies of ill conceived wastes of money, and of course the politcs were considered in our education.
I am a big fan of the Metromover and the Metrorail, and I ride them frequently. I am also a big fan of the government incentives to encourage development on those lines of transportation. In fact, that is why I bought, and encouraged everyone I knew to buy on the highrise that is next door to the Metrorail, Brickell on the River. It would be great if everyone who whines about transportation and gas prices put their money where there mouthes are and live near transportation and minimize the use of their cars.
The current ridership is pretty impressive.

[Pablo63090]

I agree with your statement. I just wanted to bring more detail to when R.R. made his little statement. The Herald is kind of sloppy with facts.

[logybogy]

1984 flashback....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S2q-FfOYhp4&search=WSVN

[Pablo63090]

Awesome, but it's from 1985-1986. The CenTrust Tower was being topped out and WSVN was the NBC affiliate back then.

[ChuckScraperMiami#1]

Originally Posted by logybogy

1984 flashback....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S2q-FfOYhp4&search=WSVN

Logy Bogy , my friend ,
You've done it again ,
GREAT Video, WOW !!!

Peter Ford and Sally Fitz , I liked that woman as the news lady back then now, lol.

Remember the show , " LIVE at 5 " in many places of the south florida area, showing the art and culture of Miami in the news LIVE !!!