IPA VISITORS GUIDE TO MIAMI-DADE COUNTY INCLUDING CITY OF MIAMI, MIAMI BEACH (SOUTH BEACH) THE EVERGLADES, THE FLORIDA KEYS AND MAJOR POLICE FACILITIES VER. 1.1 Region 43, South Florida, United States Section Contact: Lew Thomason, President [email protected] Phone: 786 413-2852 Jerry Rudoff, Incoming Visitor Coordinator [email protected] 1 INTRODUCTION Welcome to Miami-Dade County. The County is home to 35 towns and cities ranging from the City of Miami itself with a population of 407,000 and an area of 27 square miles (70 sq km) to Indian Creek Village with a population of less than 100 and an area of about one square mile (2.6 sq km). The County itself has a population of 2.5 million and an area of 1,946 square miles (3,132 sq km), making it as large as the State of Delaware, or twice the size of Luxemberg. The population is 62.4% Hispanic, 19.5% African-American (non-hispanic) and 17.8% non-hispanic whites. Some of the best known cities in the County are: The cities of Miami, Miami Beach, Coral Gables and Hialeah. Many people incorrectly believe that Fort Lauderdale is located in Miami-Dade County, but it is actually some 40 miles (65 km) North of the City of Miami, in Broward county. The primary Police agency in the County is the Miami-Dade Police Department (MDPD), which is also the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office. The constitution of the State of Florida mandates that each County shall have a Sheriff, and that he/she shall be the Senior Law Enforcement Officer in the County. Municipalities are authorized to form their own Police Departments, but they still remain subordinate to the orders of the Sheriff. MDPD has approximately 4700 employees, both sworn and non-sworn. Twenty-four towns and cities have their own Police Departments. The remaining eleven towns and cities contract with MDPD for Police Services. All of the municipal Police Departments receive some services from MDPD. Altogether there are more than 50 local, County, State and Federal Police agencies operating in the County. Miami-Dade County and Monroe County (The Florida Keys) are Region 43 of the United States Section, International Police Association. Region 43 is the third largest region in the US, with between 400 and 500 members. We receive more than 1000 IPA visitors every year that we are aware of. Many more visit without notifying us, so we do not know how many actual IPA visitors come to the Miami-Dade area each year. Of the 1000 visitors we are aware of, some 250 to 300 request some assistance from our Region. We are happy to assist any IPA member within the limitation of our abilities, but with limited resources, we are not always able to fulfill all requests, just as is the case with many of your home Sections. The earlier you contact us, the more likely it is that we will be able to make arrangements to assist you. Due to security measures implemented after the attacks on Sept 11, 2001, it is particularly difficult to set up tours of Police facilities and ride-alongs, but it can be arranged if you follow the procedures set out later in this document. The departments have granted some special priveleges to IPA members. But due to the resources that they dedicate to helping our members, it is essential that if you are scheduled for a tour or ride along, you either show up or notify us well in advance if some major problem arises that prevents your participation. The agencies have advised us that if there are too many “No Shows”, we will lose the privelege of special treatment for tours and ride-alongs. We also request that you send us a short write-up and pictures, if you are permitted to take them, of your ride-along experience for publication in our newsletter. 2 THINGS TO DO IN MIAMI-DADE COUNTY TOURIST ATTRACTIONS BEACHES There are many beaches in Miami-Dade County. If you are staying at a beach-front hotel in Miami Beach, your hotel will most likely have a beach of it’s own. If you are staying in a hotel that does not have a beach, there are a few public access beaches located at: 1. Haulover Park, Route A1A (Collins Ave) North of Bal Harbor. 2. Indian Beach Point, Collins Ave between 44th and 49th Streets Miami Beach. 3. South Beach, Ocean Drive, Miami Beach, from 5th Street to the South end of the island. This beach is very popular with young adults, but may not be suitable for families at some times. 4. Crandon Park Beach, located on Key Biscayne, a short trip over the Rickenbacker Causeway after Virginia Key. 5. The Florida Keys, The Keys are in effect one long beach. If you travel this way there are many good (and a lot of too rocky) beaches, but not really worth a special trip just to go to the beach unless you want to visit John Pennekamp State Park on Key Largo. The park is famous for it’s diving and snorkling. 3 POINTS OF INTEREST IN MIAMI-DADE COUNTY Prices and operating hours for many attractions change for various reasons, including the season. Please contact the web-sites shown for more information as well as prices and operating hours. NOTE: Addresses in the unincorporated areas list Miami, as their city, even though they may be miles outside the city limits. Vizcaya Museum and Gardens: 3251 South Miami Avenue, Miami: This is an Italian villa that was purchased by John Deering, an early Miami Pioneer, prior to the first World War. Deering had the building dismantled and shipped to Miami where it was rebuilt. He used it as his winter home until 1923. The Villa and it’s extensive formal gardens are now a museum operated by Miami-Dade County. www.vizcayamuseum.org Miami Museum of Science and Planetarium: Located directly across South Miami Avenue West of Vizcaya. www.miamisci.org/www/prices.html The Miami Seaquarium: Located at 4400 Rickenbacker Causeway on Virginia Key. This is a 38 acre site with marine and aquatic displays, porpoise shows and many other family attractions. www.miamiseaquarium.com Fairchild Tropical Botanic Gardens: 10900 Old Cutler Road, Coral Gables. A large exhibit of tropical plants, flowers and trees. www.fairchildgarden.com Coral Castle and Museum: 28655 South Dixie Highway. This is a monument built of gigantic pieces of coral rock by Edward Leedskalnin out of unrequited love after being jilted by his fiancee the day before their wedding. It took the 100 lb man 28 years to build this 11,000 ton edifice and is sometimes called the stonehenge of the US, although there is really no comparison. www.coralcastle.com/ Jungle Island (formerly Parrot Jungle): 1111 Parrot Jungle Trail, on the MacArthur Causeway between Miami and South Beach. A display of more than 1100 species of avian creatures. www.jungleisland.com 4 Miami Children’s Museum: 980 MacAuthur Causeway. Children’s Art. www.miamichildrensmuseum.org/ Duck Tours: 1661 James Avenue Miami Beach. A tour of Biscayne Bay seeing many of the homes of the rich and famous in a World War II amphibious truck (DUKW). www.ducktourssouthbeach.com/ Monkey Jungle: 14805 SW 216 Street Miami. A large scale display of many varieties and species of monkeys. A bit expensive at $30.00 for adults, but interesting for animal lovers. www.monkeyjungle.com/ Zoo Miami: 12400 SW 152 Street, Miami. A 600 animal zoo plus indoor aquarium. www.zoomiami.org Everglades National Park: Everglades National Park occupies the Gulf Coast of Florida from just South of Homestead to Florida’s West Coast near Marco Island. It extends North to US 41, also known as the Tamiami Trail and SW 8th Street. It is a treasure trove of exotic plants and wild-life. There are two main accesses to the Park. The first begins at State Road 9336 in Florida City, the southernmost city in Miami-Dade County. The road leads about halfway across the park, terminating at “Flamingo”. Along the way are several spots where you can walk a short distance into the park and see various sights. The round trip from Miami is more than 150 miles (240 km), and will take most of a day. The second option is the Shark Valley entrance to the park. It is located 35 miles (56 km) West of Downtown Miami on US 41. It is a 14 mile (23 km) loop out into the Everglades. You may walk all or part of the loop, rent a bicycle and ride the loop, or have a guided tour by tram. Everything that you can see on the long route, can also be seen here. There is an abundence of wildlife (lots of alligators) and plant-life. It is also adjacent to the Miccosukee Indian Village and several commercial airboat ride attractions. Miccosukee Indian Village: Located 1 mile (1½ km) West of Shark Valley, at mile marker 70. There is an exhibition of Miccosukee culture and living, along with an alligator wrestling show. Golf: There are many private golf courses in Miami-Dade County open to the public and country clubs that require invitation by a member. The County owned golf course is Crandon Park Golf Course. www.crandongolfclub.com/ Deep Sea Fishing Charters: Trailer Jailer Charters. Owned and operated by IPA member Mickey Brelsford, former Commander of the Miami-Dade Police Department Marine Patrol. Call 786 298-6267 to make a reservation or go to www.trailerjailer.com for more information and prices.