Gentrification of Miami

Bahamians were some of the first settlers in Coconut Grove before it was annexed by the city. They began settling in the 1800s, many immigrating from Key West in pursuit of jobs and sustained their heritage and culture there. The original Bahamian settlement grew to incorporate African American settlers in the 1920s. At that time, the area was segregated to split it from nearby Coral Gables. These settlers constructed the first black church, cemetery and library, which survive.[4] The community has remained cohesive through continued efforts to separate it from the rest of Coconut Grove and Coral Gables, including the West Grove trolley garage. The community resisted city zoning and redevelopment that would have adversely impacted their community via historic district and neighborhood conservation district classifications. The Miami 21 Zoning Code refers to the West Grove as being “of special and substantial interest due to the unique Caribbean and Bahamian character and heritage”. Nevertheless, some politicians and developers circumvent these regulations. Community Benefits Agreements allowed developers to engage directly with the community, attempting to expedite gentrification.[5]

Haitians began arriving in Miami in the 1960s, culminating peaking at 25,000 refugees in 1980. Many Haitians were sent back, lacking the favorable status granted to Cuban immigrants. Using the Cuban/Haitian immigration disparity to unite Haitians, Viter Juste, Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer for the Miami Herald, coined the phrase “Little Haiti”.[6] Gentrification in Wynwood and the Miami Design District is spilling over into Little Haiti and displacing Haitians. Haitian communities are some of the poorest in Miami-Dade County, and the relocation of wealthy residents to other areas has not helped their plight. The Creole language keeps them further isolated from the outside world. The social cohesion of language and culture in the community intensifies the disruptive effects of gentrification.[5] Meanwhile, studies predict that Little Haiti will gentrify more rapidly than any other south Florida city.[7] Community leaders aim to target this problem by encouraging and assisting home ownership by locals.[5]

Overtown was established as the central African-American neighborhood in segregated Miami during the Jim Crow era. Originally labeled, “Colored Town”, it soon grew to incorporate immigrants from the Caribbean, such as Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago. These immigrants established some of the first African-American owned businesses in South Florida.[8] By the 1960s, it had become a thriving musical culture known as “The Harlem of the South”, catering to artists such as B. B. King and Aretha Franklin. The construction of I-95 in the 1960s was blamed as the biggest factor in the demise of Overtown. The highway tore the community into four quadrants that complicate efforts by community developers to unify it. From 1960 to 1970 the population decreased by 50%, due to the destruction of homes and businesses.[9] Today, Overtown’s cityscape is one of deterioration and misfortune. Efforts to restore it include renovations of the Lyric Theater and the Miami Greenway River Action Plan of 2001.[9]