Miami metropolitan area

The Miami metropolitan area is defined by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget as the Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA),[12] with a 2019 population of 6,166,488. The MSA is in turn made up of three "metropolitan divisions"

• Miami-Miami Beach-Kendall, FL Metropolitan Division, coterminous with Miami Dade County (2019 population 2,716,940)
• Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach-Sunrise, FL Metropolitan Division, coterminous with Broward County (2019 population 1,952,778)
• West Palm Beach-Boca Raton-Boynton Beach, FL Metropolitan Division, coterminous with Palm Beach County (2019 population 1,496,770)

The MSA is the most populous metropolitan area in the Southeastern United States and has an area of 6,137 sq. mi (15,890 km²).

The Census Bureau also defines a wider commercial region based on commuting patterns or metropolis, the Miami-Port Saint Lucie-Fort Lauderdale, FL Combined Statistical Area (CSA), more commonly known as the Greater Miami Area, with an estimated population of 6,889,936 in 2019.[13]

The CSA consists of three component metropolitan areas:

• The Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach MSA (2019 pop. 6,166,488)
• The Port Saint Lucie, FL MSA (2019 pop. 489,297), consisting of:
  • Martin County, Florida (2019 pop. 161,000)
  • Saint Lucie County, Florida (2019 pop. 328,297)
• The Sebastian-Vero Beach, FL MSA, coterminous with Indian River County (2019 pop. 159,923)

The Miami metropolitan area is frequently named the "Gold Coast" in convention with Florida's other "coast" regions, such as the Space Coast, Treasure Coast, Sun Coast, Nature Coast, Forgotten Coast, Fun Coast, and First Coast. Like several of the others, it seems to have originated at the time the area first saw major growth. One of the best known of Florida's vernacular regions, the name is a reference to the wealth and ritzy tropical lifestyle that characterizes the area.[14][15]

Biscayne National Park in Miami-Dade County, April 2005

South Florida/Miami metropolitan area has a tropical climate, similar to the climate found in much of the Caribbean. It is the only metropolitan area in the 48 contiguous states that falls under that category. More specifically, it generally has a tropical monsoon climate (Köppen climate classification, Am).[16] The South Florida metropolis sees most of its rain in the summer (wet season) and is quite dry in the winter (dry season). The wet season, which is hot and humid, lasts from May to October, when daily thunderstorms and passing weak tropical lows bring downpours during the late afternoon. The dry season often starts in late October and runs through late April. During the height of the dry season from February through April, South Florida is often very dry, and often brush fires and water restrictions are an issue. At times cold fronts can make it all the way down to South Florida and provide some modest rainfall in the dry season. The hurricane season largely coincides with the wet season.[17]

In addition to its sea-level elevation, coastal location and position near the Tropic of Cancer and the Caribbean, 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, dry air often dominates as dew points are often very low. Average daily high temperatures across South Florida during the winter are around 74–77 °F (23–25 °C). Although daily highs can sometimes reach 82–85 °F (28–29 °C) even in January and February. Daily low temperatures during the winter are generally around 55–63 °F (13–17 °C). Each winter, cold fronts occasionally make their way down to the northern Bahamas and South Florida. As a result, daytime high temperatures in South Florida may only reach around 65 °F (18 °C). When this occurs low temperatures can dip into the 40s during the early morning hours before quickly warming-up toward late morning/early afternoon. It is rare for temperatures to drop below 40 °F (4 °C), however, low temperatures at or around 35 °F (2 °C) have occurred some years. South Florida only experiences these cold spells about twice each winter and they typically only last a day or two before temperatures return to the mid 70s. On average South Florida is frost-free, although there can be a light frost in the inland communities about once every decade or so.

Hurricane season officially runs from June 1 through November 30, although hurricanes can develop outside that period. The most likely time for South Florida to be hit is during the peak of the Cape Verde season, mid-August through the end of September.[18] Due to its location between two major bodies of water known for tropical activity, South Florida is also statistically the most likely major area to be struck by a hurricane in the world, trailed closely by Nassau, Bahamas, and Havana, Cuba. Many hurricanes have affected the metropolis, including Betsy in 1965, Andrew in 1992, Irene in 1999, Hurricanes Katrina and Wilma in 2005, and Irma in 2017. In addition, a tropical depression in October 2000 passed over the city, causing record rainfall and flooding. Locally, the storm is credited as the No Name Storm of 2000, though the depression went on to become Tropical Storm Leslie upon entering the Atlantic Ocean.

Downtown Miami

Fort Lauderdale

West Palm Beach

The following is a list of the twenty largest cities in the Miami metropolitan area as ranked by population.[29][30][31]

Aerial view of Downtown Miami, June 2008

The Miami area is a diverse community with a large proportion of foreign-born residents, in large part due to its close proximity to Latin America and the Caribbean.

Another factor is residents who were formerly snowbirds from the Northeast and, to a lesser extent, countries such as Canada.

As of the 2005 American Community Survey,[34][35] 5,334,685 people lived in the metropolis.

Geographic mobility: In 2005, 83% of the people at least one year old living in the Miami metro area were living in the same residence one year earlier; 12% had moved during the past year from another residence in the same county, 2% from another county in the same state, 2% from another state, and 1% from abroad.

Education: In 2005, 83% of people 25 years and over had at least graduated from high school and 30% had a bachelor's degree or higher. Among people 16 to 19 years old, 7% were dropouts; they were not enrolled in school and had not yet graduated from high school. The total school enrollment in the Miami Metro Area was 1.4 million in 2005. Nursery school and kindergarten enrollment was 170,000 and elementary or high school enrollment was 879,000 children. College or graduate school enrollment was 354,000.

Poverty and Participation in Government Programs: In 2005, 14% of people were in poverty. 19% of related children under 18 were below the poverty level, compared with 14% of people 65 years old and over. 11% of all families, and 26% of families with a female householder and no husband present had incomes below the poverty level.

As of the 2010 U.S. Census, there were 5,564,635 people. 2.8 million (52%) were females and 2.6 million (48%) were males. The median age was 38.6 years. 24% of the population were under 18 years and 15% were 65 years and older. There were 2,097,626 households, and 1,378,108 families residing in the Miami metropolitan area.

The racial makeup of the population of the Miami area [6,066,387] as of 2016:[36]

• White: 70%
  • White Hispanic: 31.1%
  • White Non-Hispanic: 39.2%
• Black or African American: 21.1%
• Native American and Alaskan Native: 0.2%
• Asian: 2.6%
• Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander: 0%
• Other races: 3.4%
• Two or more races: 2.6%
• Hispanic or Latino (of any race) were 46.1% of the population[37][38]

The Miami area has a large Jewish community; 10.2% of the population was Jewish in the 2000 Census.[39]

Of the people living in the Miami metro area in 2005, 63% were born in the United States (including 30% who were born in Florida) and 37% were foreign born. Among people at least five years old living in the region in 2005, 52% spoke English at home while 48% spoke some other language at home. Of those speaking a language other than English at home, 78% spoke Spanish and 22% spoke some other language (mainly Haitian Creole, but also French, German, Arabic, Hebrew, Italian, Portuguese, Russian or Yiddish).

Changes in house prices for the area are publicly tracked on a regular basis using the Case–Shiller index; the statistic is published by Standard & Poor's and is also a component of S&P's 10-city composite index of the value of the residential real estate market.

Housing characteristics: As of 2005, the Miami area had a total of 2.3 million housing units, 13% of which were vacant. Of the total housing units, 52% were in single-unit structures, 45% were in multi-unit structures, and 3% were mobile homes. 25% of the housing units were built since 1990. As of 2019, over 70% of Miami's residents are renters with median rent of $1,355, $180 over the national average.

Households and families: There were 2,338,450 households, The average household size was 2.6 people. Families made up 65% of the households in the Miami area. This figure includes both married-couple families (45%) and other families (20%). Nonfamily households made up 35% of all households in Miami. Most of the nonfamily households were people living alone, but some consisted of people living in households in which no one was related to the householder.

Occupied housing unit characteristics: In 2005, the Miami area had 2.0 million occupied housing units – 1.3 million (66%) owner occupied and 688,000 (34%) renter occupied.

Housing costs: In 2010, housing costs in the Miami area typically represented 40% of household income, compared to 34% nationwide.[40]

Property tax increase: In March 2009, Miami area lawmakers passed a 5–10% hike in property tax millage rates throughout the metropolitan area to fund the construction of new schools and to fund understaffed schools and educational institutions, resulting in an increase in residents' property tax bills beginning in the 2009 tax year.

The metropolitan area is governed by 3 counties. In total there are 107 municipalities or incorporated places in the metropolis. Each one of the municipalities has its own city, town or village government, although there is no distinction between the 3 names. Much of the land in the metropolis is unincorporated, which means it does not belong to any municipality, and therefore is governed directly by the county it is located in.

The Miami metropolitan area contains all or part of nine Congressional districts: the 18th, 20th, 21st, 22nd, 23rd, 24th, 25th, 26th, and 27th districts.[48] As of 2017 (the 113th Congress), the Cook Partisan Voting Index listed four as being Republican-leaning: the 18th, 25th, 26th, and 27th, with the 25th being the most Republican-leaning at R+5, and five as being Democratic-leaning: the 20th, 21st, 22nd, 23rd, and 24th, with the 24th being the most Democratic-leaning at D+34, making it the ninth-most Democratic-leaning district in the nation.[49]

In Miami-Dade County and Broward County and areas nearby, a unique dialect, commonly called the "Miami dialect", is widely spoken. The dialect developed among second- or third-generation Hispanics, including Cuban-Americans, whose first language was English (though some non-Hispanic white, black, and other races who were born and raised in Miami-Dade tend to adopt it as well.)[50] It is based on a fairly standard American accent but with some changes very similar to dialects in the Mid-Atlantic (especially the New York area dialect, Northern New Jersey English, and New York Latino English.) Unlike Virginia Piedmont, Coastal Southern American, and Northeast American dialects and Florida Cracker dialect (see section below), "Miami accent" is rhotic; it also incorporates a rhythm and pronunciation heavily influenced by Spanish (wherein rhythm is syllable-timed).[51] However, this is a native dialect of English, not learner English or interlanguage; it is possible to differentiate this variety from an interlanguage spoken by second-language speakers in that "Miami accent" does not generally display the following features: there is no addition of /ɛ/ before initial consonant clusters with /s/, speakers do not confuse of /dʒ/ with /j/, (e.g., Yale with jail), and /r/ and /rr/ are pronounced as alveolar approximant [ɹ] instead of alveolar tap [ɾ] or alveolar trill [r] in Spanish.[52][53][54][55]

Julia Tuttle Causeway, which connects Miami and Miami Beach, May 2008

The Miami metropolitan area is served by five interstate highways operated by the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) in conjunction with local agencies. Interstate 95 (I-95) runs north to south along the coast, ending just south of Downtown Miami at South Dixie Highway (US 1). I-75 runs east to west, turning south in western Broward County and connecting suburban north Miami-Dade to Naples on the Southwest Coast via Alligator Alley, which transverses the Florida Everglades before turning north. I-595 connects the Broward coast and Downtown Fort Lauderdale to I-75 and Alligator Alley. In Miami, I-195 and I-395 relay the main I-95 route east to Biscayne Boulevard (US 1) and Miami Beach across Biscayne Bay via the Julia Tuttle and MacArthur causeways.

In greater Miami, the Miami-Dade Expressway Authority and Florida's Turnpike Enterprise (FTE) maintain eight state expressways in conjunction with FDOT. The Airport Expressway (SR 112) and the Dolphin Expressway (SR 836) relay western Miami-Dade suburbs to the eastern urban coast at I-95, and to Miami Beach via I-195 and I-395 at the Airport and Midtown interchanges. The Gratigny Parkway (SR 924) connects northern Miami suburbs to the southern end of I-75. The Palmetto Expressway (SR 826) is the primary beltway road of urban Miami, relaying I-95 and Florida's Turnpike (SR 91) at the Golden Glades Interchange near northeastern North Miami Beach to the southern inland suburbs of Kendall and Pinecrest. The Don Shula Expressway (SR 874) and the Homestead Extension of Florida's Turnpike (SR 821) form the southernmost end of the beltway, connecting the Palmetto Expressway to the bedroom communities of Homestead and Florida City. The Snapper Creek Expressway (SR 878) relays the Don Shula Expressway to South Dixie Highway (US 1).

The urban bypass expressway in greater Fort Lauderdale is the Sawgrass Expressway (SR 869), connecting the northern Broward County coast at I-95 and Deerfield Beach to I-595 and I-75 at Alligator Alley in Sunrise.

Express lanes on I-95 start in Broward County and continue to Miami-Dade County. With an increased presence of traffic in South Florida, it is projected that express lanes will soon be implemented in southern Palm Beach County.

• Interstate 95
• Interstate 75
• Interstate 195 / State Road 112 (Airport Expressway)
• Interstate 395 / State Road 836 (Dolphin Expressway)
• Interstate 595 (Port Everglades Expressway)
• Florida's Turnpike, including Homestead Extension
• State Road 924 (Gratigny Parkway)
• State Road 874 (Don Shula Expressway)
• State Road 878 (Snapper Creek Expressway)
• State Road 869 (Sawgrass Expressway)
• State Road 826 (Palmetto Expressway)

The metropolitan area is served by three major commercial airports. These airports combine to make the fourth largest domestic origin and destination market in the United States, after New York City, Los Angeles, and Chicago.[58]

The following smaller general aviation airports are also in the metro area:

Port of Miami, the world's busiest cruise ship port, December 2007

The metropolis also has four seaports, the largest and most important being the Port of Miami. Others in the area include Port Everglades, Port of Palm Beach and the Miami River Port. On August 21, 2012, PortMiami and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers signed the Partnership Agreement (PPA) construction agreement that will allow the Deep Dredge project to go out for bid. The Deep Dredge will deepen the Port's existing channels to minus 50/52 feet to prepare for the Panama Canal expansion, now scheduled for completion in early 2015. PortMiami's deeper channel will provide ships with an economically efficient, reliable and safe navigational route into the Port. PortMiami will be the only U.S. Port south of Norfolk, Virginia to be at the minus 50 foot depth in sync with the opening of the expanded Canal. Deep Dredge is expected to create more than 30,000 direct, indirect, and induced jobs in Florida and allow the Port to meet its goal to double its cargo traffic over the next decade.

Miami-Dade Transit (MDT) is the largest public transit agency in Florida, operating rapid transit, people movers, and an intercity bus system. Metrorail is Florida's only rapid transit, currently with 23 stations on a 24.4-mile (39.3 km) track. The Downtown Miami people mover, Metromover, operates 20 stations and three lines on a 4.4-mile (7.1 km) track through the Downtown neighborhoods of the Arts & Entertainment District, the Central Business District, and Brickell. Metrobus serves the entirety of Miami-Dade County, also serving Monroe County as far south as Marathon, and Broward County as far north as Downtown Fort Lauderdale. In Broward County, Broward County Transit runs public buses, as does Palm Tran in Palm Beach County. Additionally, the South Florida Regional Transportation Authority operates Tri-Rail, a commuter rail train that connects the three of the primary cities of South Florida (Miami, Fort Lauderdale, and West Palm Beach), and most intermediate points. Brightline provides service to Miami, Aventura, West Palm Beach, Fort Lauderdale, Boca Raton, and Central Florida's Orlando, with talks to expand to Tampa and Jacksonville.[59][60]

The Miami metro area is home to five major league professional sports teams:

• The Miami Dolphins of the National Football League play at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens
• The Inter Miami CF of Major League Soccer play at Inter Miami CF Stadium in Fort Lauderdale
• The Miami Heat of the National Basketball Association play at FTX Arena in Downtown Miami
• The Miami Marlins of Major League Baseball play at Marlins Park in Little Havana
• The Florida Panthers of the National Hockey League play at BB&T Center in Sunrise

The most prominent college sports program in the Miami metropolitan area are the Miami Hurricanes of the University of Miami in Coral Gables, who compete in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association, the highest level of collegiate athletics.[61] The University of Miami's football team has won five national championships since 1983 and its baseball team has won four national championships since 1982.

Other collegiate sports programs in the metropolitan area include the Florida Atlantic Owls of Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton, the FIU Panthers of Florida International University in University Park, the Nova Southeastern Sharks of Nova Southeastern University in Davie, and the Barry Buccaneers of Barry University in Miami Shores.

The Miami area is also host to minor league sports teams, including:

• The Miami Marlins and St. Louis Cardinals conduct spring training in Jupiter at Roger Dean Stadium.
• The Houston Astros and Washington Nationals conduct spring training in West Palm Beach at The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches.[62][63][64]
• Inter Miami CF will have a reserve team that will play in USL League One.
• The Homestead-Miami Speedway oval has hosted NASCAR Cup Series and IndyCar Series events. Temporary street circuits at Museum Park hosted several CART, IMSA GT, and American Le Mans Series races between from 1986-1995, as well as a Formula E race in 2015. The Palm Beach International Raceway is a minor road course.

• 
  DRV PNK Stadium, home stadium of Inter Miami of the MLS
• 
  FTX Arena, home of the Miami Heat of the NBA
• 
  Marlins Park, home of the Miami Marlins of the MLB
• 
  BB&T Center, home of the Florida Panthers
• 
  FAU Stadium, home of the Florida Atlantic Owls
• 
  Riccardo Silva Stadium, home of the FIU Panthers