Aventura, Florida

City of Aventura, Florida
City
Official seal of City of Aventura, Florida Seal
Motto:  "City Of Excellence"
Location in Miami-Dade County and the state of Florida
U.S. Census Bureau map showing city limits
Country	United States
State	Florida
County	Miami-Dade
Incorporated	1995
Government
• Mayor	Susan Gottlieb
Area
• Total	3.5 sq mi (9.1 km2)
• Land	2.7 sq mi (7.0 km2)
• Water	0.8 sq mi (1.1 km2)
Elevation	3 ft (1 m)
Population  (2010)
• Total	35,762
• Density	13,245/sq mi (5,114/km2)
Time zone	UTC-5 (EST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-4 (EDT)
Zip Codes	33180-33162
Area code(s)	305, 786
FIPS code	12-02681Template:GR
GNIS feature ID	1777315Template:GR
Website	www.cityofaventura.com

Aventura is a planned, suburban city located in northeastern Miami-Dade County, Florida. 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.

History

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.

Geography and climate

Geography

Aventura is located at 25°57′52″N 80°08′09″W.Template:GR

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 3.5 square miles (9.1 km²). Of that, 2.7 square miles (7.0 km²) is land and 0.8 square miles (2.1 km²) of it (23.08%) is water.

Surrounding areas

  Hallandale Beach

  Hallandale Beach Hallandale Beach

  Ojus Golden Beach, Sunny Isles Beach

North Miami Beach Sunny Isles Beach

  North Miami Beach

Climate

Aventura has a tropical monsoon climate (Köppen climate classification Am) with hot and humid summers and short, warm winters, with a marked drier season in the winter. The city sees most of its rain in the summer (wet season) and is mainly dry in winter (dry season). The wet season, which is hot and humid, lasts from May to September, when it gives way to the dry season, which features mild temperatures with some invasions of colder air, which is when the little winter rainfall occurs-with the passing of a front. The hurricane season largely coincides with the wet season.

In addition to its sea-level elevation, coastal location and position just north of the Tropic of Cancer, the area owes its warm, humid climate to the Gulf Stream, which moderates climate year-round. A typical summer day does not see temperatures below 75 °F (24 °C). Temperatures in the high 80s to low 90s (30–35 °C) accompanied by high humidity are often relieved by afternoon thunderstorms or a sea breeze that develops off the Atlantic Ocean, which then allow lower temperatures, although conditions still remain very muggy. During winter, humidity is significantly lower, allowing for cooler weather to develop. Average minimum temperatures during that time are around 59 °F (15 °C), rarely dipping below 40 °F (4 °C), and the equivalent maxima usually range between 65 and 75 °F (18 and 24 °C).

Hurricane season begins June 1 and is officially over November 30. Aventura was severely hit by Hurricane Wilma on October 24, 2005 and was still undergoing recovery as of November 2011. The library was decimated and still yet to be rebuilt. Terraces flew off of highrises and condos on high floors were flooded with many of their walls exploding into next-door apartments and adjacent hallways. Countless highrise windows exploded and electricity stopped.

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1980	9,698		—
1990	14,914		53.8%
2000	25,267		69.4%
2010	35,762		41.5%
source:

As of the censusTemplate:GR of 2000, there were 25,267 people, 14,000 households, and 6,691 families residing in the city. The population density was 9,344.7 inhabitants per square mile (3,613.2/km²). There were 20,020 housing units at an average density of 7,404.2 per square mile (2,862.9/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 75% White (non-Hispanic), 20.65% Hispanic or Latino of any race, 1.70% Black or African American, 0.07% Native American, 1.22% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 1.45% from other races, and 1.77% from two or more races.

There were 14,000 households out of which 11.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 39.6% were married couples living together, 6.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 52.2% were non-families. 45.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 23.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.79 and the average family size was 2.45.

In the city the population was spread out with 10.1% under the age of 18, 4.6% from 18 to 24, 26.5% from 25 to 44, 23.6% from 45 to 64, and 35.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 53 years. For every 100 females there were 80.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 77.9 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $44,526, and the median income for a family was $59,507. Males had a median income of $50,791 versus $37,682 for females. The per capita income for the city was $41,092. About 5.6% of families and 9.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.5% of those under age 18 and 8.5% of those age 65 or over.

As of 2000, speakers of English as their first language accounted for 59.92% of the population, while Spanish accounted for 22.63% of residents. Those who spoke Hebrew were at 3.66%, and Yiddish was spoken 2.78% of the population. Other languages spoken include Portuguese 2.65%, French 2.40%, Russian 1.75%, and German at 1.46% of city residents.

Aventura is known for its substantial Jewish population, many of whom come from the Northeast (New York, Chicago, Boston, etc.) Besides American Jews, Aventura also has experienced a significant influx of Hispanic Jews (especially Argentine Jews, Cuban Jews, Colombian Jews, and Venezuelan Jews,) Brazilian Jews, French Jews, Russian Jews, Portuguese Jews, German Jews, Canadian Jews and Israelis also residing in the city.

As of 2000, Aventura had the seventeenth highest percentage of Brazilian residents in the US, with 1.9% of the US populace. The thirtieth highest percentage of Colombian residents in the US, at 4.25% of the city's population, and the ninety-second highest percentage of Cuban residents in the US, at 2.89% of the city's population. It also had the twelfth most Israelis in the US, at 2.4%, while it had the thirteenth highest percentage of Romanians (tied with Hartford, Ohio and Bern, Pennsylvania,) at 1.8% of all residents. Aventura's Russian community had the twenty-fifth highest percentage of residents, which was at 12.4%, while it was the thirteenth highest Venezuelan community in the US, which made up 1.31% of the population.

Transportation

See also: Transportation in South Florida

Early afternoon congestion in Aventura on Biscayne Boulevard (US-1)

Construction of a small office building with a large parking garage in 2011

The Aventura Express shuttle bus is a city run public bus service, free to Aventura residents. The Miami-Dade Transit, and Broward County transit bus systems also run through the city. The Metrorail and Metromover do, however, serve the city, but via Metrobus connections to Government Center via Biscayne Boulevard/US 1. Aventura is one of Miami-Dade's most car-centric neighborhoods, and due to the increasing population growth over a 25 year period, traffic has become congested, despite the fact that Biscayne Boulevard (US-1) is up to ten lanes wide through the city. The intersection where Ives Dairy Road meets US-1 has been raised, but still creates a back up. Buildings in Aventura have large parking lots or garages that are often free, encouraging car use. For example, Aventura Mall has nearly 10,000 free parking spaces.

The main north-south road in the city is Biscayne Bouelevard (US-1) and the main east-west route is the William H. Lehman Causeway. Although no interstates run through the city, I-95 is just five minutes away.

By 2015, Tri-Rail commuter rail service may run on the FEC line that runs parallel to Biscayne Boulevard through Aventura. Until then, Aventura has no other means of transportation other than roads. One of the proposed lines for the Miami Metrorail was a corridor that would follow US-1 from downtown Miami to the Dade-Broward County line between Aventura and Hallandale Beach.

Government

Aventura has a manager-commission form of city government. The City Commission is the city's legislature, while the city manager is the city executive.

The City Commission enacts local ordinances and laws, adopts resolutions authorizing actions on behalf of the city, reviews plans for development, and establishes the policies by which the city is governed. The City Commission comprises seven members—six commissioners and the mayor:

• Susan Gottlieb, Mayor
• Enbar Cohen, Commissioner
• Howard Weinberg, Commissioner
• Terry Holzberg, Commissioner & wife of one of the founders of Aventura and former commissioner, Harry Holzberg
• Billy Joel, Commissioner
• Michael Stern, Commissioner
• Luz Urbáez Weinberg, Commissioner

The City Commission also hires the City Attorney, City Clerk, and City Manager, who then hire all subordinate employees. The city manager oversees the day-to-day operations of the city government, administers the city's service providers, prepares long-range plans, and implements the policies established by the City Commission. Eric M. Soroka is the current City Manager, while Teresa M. Soroka is the current City Clerk.

Media

Aventura is served by the Miami–Ft. Lauderdale market for local radio and television. Aventura has its own newspaper, Aventura News, which is published weekly and is part of Miami's Community Newspapers, "The Voice of the Community". The city has a magazine named Aventura Magazine and is served by The Miami Herald and El Nuevo Herald.

Area attractions

The most famous shopping attraction is Aventura Mall, a 2,400,000 sq ft (222,967 m²) indoor shopping center. The outdoor malls are "Loehmann's Fashion Island", "Aventura Shopping Center", "Aventura Commons", "The Promenade Shops", and "The Shoppes at the Waterways".

The city also has its own exclusive parks and recreation department which operate Founders Park, Founders Park Bayside, Waterways Park, Waterways Dog Park, Veterans Park, The Community Recreation Center, and the new Liberal Arts theater.

In the center of the heart of Aventura is The Turnberry Golf Course encapsulated by Aventura's Country Club Drive Circle, a multimillion dollar horticultural three-mile walking/jogging paved promenade which overlooks lakes, opulent residential highrises, yachts and the Atlantic Ocean.

Education

Aventura is served by the Miami-Dade County Public Schools system.

The Aventura City of Excellence School was for years the only public school located within the City of Aventura. It is a K–8 charter school that is sponsored by the city. The Aventura City of Excellence School is operated by a private charter school company called Charter Schools USA. It is an award winning school despite the fact that it was built and opened in 2003. The school was ranked in the top 10 of all schools in Florida in 2006. Children who live in Aventura are given admission preference during the admission lottery held every year. The school has an enrollment cap of 100 students per grade so that the school will never be overcrowded. There is another public school that serves the residents of Aventura called Aventura Waterways K–8 center. It is not funded or run by the City of Aventura but by Miami-Dade public schools. The school is located outside of the city limits but all children that live in Aventura are in the boundary for that school. Dr. Michael Krop High School in unincorporated Miami-Dade County is currently the sole high school serving Aventura residents. Even though parts of Aventura are closer to Alonzo and Tracy Mourning Senior High Biscayne Bay Campus than to Krop, no Aventura residents were rezoned there after Mourning opened.

Regional universities and higher education institutions include:

• Florida International University: Biscayne Bay Campus (North Miami)

The Northeast Branch of the Miami-Dade Public Library System serves Aventura.

External links

• City of Aventura