Opa-locka is a city in

Miami-Dade County Miami-Dade County is a county located in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Florida. The county had a population of 2,701,767 as of the 2020 census, making it the most populous county in Florida and the seventh-most populous county in ...

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and ...

, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 16,463, up from 15,219 in

2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...

. The city was developed by

Glenn Curtiss Glenn Hammond Curtiss (May 21, 1878 – July 23, 1930) was an American aviation and motorcycling pioneer, and a founder of the U.S. aircraft industry. He began his career as a bicycle racer and builder before moving on to motorcycles. As early a ...

. Developed based on a ''

One Thousand and One Nights ''One Thousand and One Nights'' ( ar, أَلْفُ لَيْلَةٍ وَلَيْلَةٌ, italic=yes, ) is a collection of Middle Eastern folk tales compiled in Arabic during the Islamic Golden Age. It is often known in English as the ''Arabian ...

'' theme, Opa-locka has the largest collection of

Moorish Revival architecture Moorish Revival or Neo-Moorish is one of the exotic revival architectural styles that were adopted by architects of Europe and the Americas in the wake of Romanticist Orientalism. It reached the height of its popularity after the mid-19th centu ...

in the

Western Hemisphere The Western Hemisphere is the half of the planet Earth that lies west of the prime meridian (which crosses Greenwich, London, United Kingdom) and east of the antimeridian. The other half is called the Eastern Hemisphere. Politically, the te ...

, and streets with such names as Sharazad Boulevard, Sinbad Avenue, Sabur Lane,

Sultan Sultan (; ar, سلطان ', ) is a position with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", derived from the verbal noun ', meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it c ...

Avenue, Ali Baba Avenue, Perviz Avenue, and

Sesame Sesame ( or ; ''Sesamum indicum'') is a flowering plant in the genus ''Sesamum'', also called benne. Numerous wild relatives occur in Africa and a smaller number in India. It is widely naturalized in tropical regions around the world and is cul ...

Street. The name ''Opa-locka'' is an abbreviation of a

Seminole The Seminole are a Native American people who developed in Florida in the 18th century. Today, they live in Oklahoma and Florida, and comprise three federally recognized tribes: the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma, the Seminole Tribe of Florida, ...

place name, spelled Opa-tisha-wocka-locka (or ''Opatishawockalocka''), meaning "wooded hummock" or "high, dry hummock."

History

Opa-locka was founded by aviation pioneer

in 1926. Curtiss developed the city with a

Moorish architecture Moorish architecture is a style within Islamic architecture which developed in the western Islamic world, including al-Andalus (on the Iberian Peninsula, Iberian peninsula) and what is now Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia (part of the Maghreb). The ...

theme. While the 1926 Miami hurricane badly damaged the city and brought the Florida land boom to a halt, several Moorish-style buildings survived. Twenty of the original Moorish Revival architecture buildings have been listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

as part of the Opa-locka Thematic Resource Area.

Amelia Earhart Amelia Mary Earhart ( , born July 24, 1897; disappeared July 2, 1937; declared dead January 5, 1939) was an American aviation pioneer and writer. Earhart was the first female aviator to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean. She set many oth ...

launched her historic trip around the world from Miami Municipal Airport, located at the time in what is now the southern part of Opa-locka. The German dirigible '' Graf Zeppelin'' visited Naval Air Station Miami, which later became Opa-locka Airport, as a regular stop on its Germany-Brazil-United States-Germany scheduled route. In the 1950s, the Opa-locka airport—specifically Building 67—became the site of a large

CIA The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gathering, processing, ...

operation, PBSuccess, run by operatives including E. Howard Hunt. The operation helped launch the U.S.-led coup in Guatemala in 1954 and was a precursor to the

Bay of Pigs Invasion The Bay of Pigs Invasion (, sometimes called ''Invasión de Playa Girón'' or ''Batalla de Playa Girón'' after the Playa Girón) was a failed military landing operation on the southwestern coast of Cuba in 1961 by Cuban exiles, covertly fin ...

in 1961. The airfield center then served as a listening post for Cuba until the 82nd Airborne took over Opa-locka Airbase during the

Cuban Missile Crisis The Cuban Missile Crisis, also known as the October Crisis (of 1962) ( es, Crisis de Octubre) in Cuba, the Caribbean Crisis () in Russia, or the Missile Scare, was a 35-day (16 October – 20 November 1962) confrontation between the United S ...

. In the 1980s, Opa-locka transitioned from majority white to majority African-American and was seen as a pioneer in black empowerment in northern Dade County where neighboring cities (

North Miami North Miami is a suburban city located in northeast Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States, about north of Miami. The city lies on Biscayne Bay and hosts the Biscayne Bay Campus of Florida International University, and the North Miami campu ...

North Miami Beach North Miami Beach (commonly referred to as NMB) is a city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. Originally named "Fulford-by-the-Sea" in 1926 after Captain William H. Fulford of the United States Coast Guard, ...

, Miami Gardens, and Golden Glades) were undergoing a similar racial shift. In 1943, Opa-Locka hired its first Black police officer. In 1972, the first Black City Commissioner was elected, Albert Tresvant, who then went on to serve as the first Black mayor of Opa-Locka in 1975. The city was the first community in the United States to commemorate the first African-American president of the United States. A mile-long section of Perviz Avenue—from Oriental Boulevard to Ali Baba Avenue—was renamed

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, Obama was the first Af ...

Avenue on February 17, 2009. In addition to the unique buildings, Opa-locka has a large general aviation airport, three parks, two lakes and a railroad station which is currently the tri-rail station. The city is a mixture of residential, commercial and industrial zones. The city was the backdrop for the making of movies such as '' Salesman'', "Living Dreams", ''Texas Justice'', '' Bad Boys II'' and '' 2 Fast 2 Furious''.

2016 financial emergency

On June 1, 2016, Florida Governor

Rick Scott Richard Lynn Scott ( Myers, born December 1, 1952) is an American politician serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, junior United States Senate, United States senator from Florida since 2019. A member of the Republican Party (U ...

issued Executive Order Number 16-135, declaring the City of Opa-Locka to be in a state of "Financial Emergency" under Florida Statute Sectio
218.503
According to the Executive Order, the Opa-Locka City Commission requested that the governor declare the financial emergency, the state and the City of Opa-Locka were to execute a State and Local Agreement of Cooperation, and the government would appoint a Financial Emergency Board. On the same day, the ''

Geography

Opa-locka is in northern Miami-Dade County, north of

downtown Miami Downtown Miami is the urban city center of Miami, Florida. The city's greater downtown region consists of the Central Business District, Brickell, the Historic District, Government Center, the Arts & Entertainment District, and Park West. ...

and west of

. It is bordered to the north by the city of Miami Gardens, to the east by unincorporated Golden Glades, to the south by unincorporated Westview, and to the southwest by the city of Hialeah. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of th ...

, Opa-locka has a total area of . of it are land and of it (3.90%) are covered by water.

Climate

Surrounding areas

: Miami Gardens :

Miami Lakes Miami Lakes is a suburb of Miami, an incorporated town and former census-designated place in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. US Census, 31,628 people live in Miami Lakes. History The development was constructed by Sengra (now the ...

Golden Glades : Unincorporated Miami-Dade County Golden Glades : Hialeah

: Hialeah, Westview

Demographics

2020 census

''Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos can be of any race''

2010 United States Census

As of 2010, there were 5,966 households, out of which 14.8% were vacant. In 2000, 41.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 28.4% were married couples living together, 35.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.7% were non-families. 24.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.97 and the average family size was 3.52.

2000 United States Census

In 2000, the city's population was distributed as 34.6% under the age of 18, 12.3% from 18 to 24, 26.8% from 25 to 44, 17.7% from 45 to 64, and 8.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 27 years. For every 100 females, there were 85.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 77.1 males. In 2000, $25,000 was the median income for a family. Males had a median income of $22,347 versus $19,270 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the city is approximately $15,000. About 31.5% of families and 35.2% of the population are below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 42.3% of those under age 18 and 40.8% of those age 65 or over. As of 2000, speakers of English as a

first language A first language, native tongue, native language, mother tongue or L1 is the first language or dialect that a person has been exposed to from birth or within the critical period. In some countries, the term ''native language'' or ''mother to ...

accounted for 68.45%, while Spanish made up 28.30%, French Creole 2.78%, and

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

was at 0.48% of the population. As of 2000, Opa-locka had the 46th-highest percentage of

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribb ...

n residents in the US, with 9.58% of its populace. It had the forty-ninth highest percentage of Dominican residents in the US, at 2.59% of the city's population, and the fifty-second highest percentage of

Haiti Haiti (; ht, Ayiti ; French: ), officially the Republic of Haiti (); ) and formerly known as Hayti, is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and s ...

an residents in the US, at 2.90% of its population (tied with four other areas, including Palm Springs, Florida). It also had the forty-third most

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of Hispa ...

ns in the US, at 3.00% (tied with

Margate Margate is a seaside town on the north coast of Kent in south-east England. The town is estimated to be 1.5 miles long, north-east of Canterbury and includes Cliftonville, Garlinge, Palm Bay and Westbrook. The town has been a significan ...

), while it had the nineteenth highest percentage of

Nicaragua Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Managua is the coun ...

ns, at 2.22% of all residents.

Government

The city of Opa-locka was incorporated in 1926, and operates under a commission/

city manager A city manager is an official appointed as the administrative manager of a city, in a "Mayor–council government" council–manager form of city government. Local officials serving in this position are sometimes referred to as the chief exec ...

form of government. The city commission consists of the mayor and four commissioners, who are responsible for enacting ordinances, resolutions, and regulations governing the city, and appointing the members of various advisory boards, the

city attorney A city attorney is a position in city and municipal government in the United States. The city attorney is the attorney representing the municipality. Unlike a district attorney or public defender, who usually handles criminal cases, a city att ...

, and

city clerk A clerk is a senior official of many municipal governments in the English-speaking world. In some communities, including most in the United States, the position is elected, but in many others, the clerk is appointed to their post. In the UK, a Tow ...

. As chief administrative officer, the city manager is responsible for the enforcement of laws and ordinances, and the appointment and supervision of the city's department heads. Municipal services include police, sanitation, water and sewer services, storm water services, maintenance of streets and infrastructure, and recreational activities. The financial reporting entity, under which the financial statements are prepared, includes all the activities and functions for which the city is financially accountable. The federal government has been investigating the city's government since at least 2013. In 2014, auditors reported that basic bookkeeping was non-existent. The ''Miami Herald'' reported the mayor and other officials were using city funds for their own benefit. In 2016, the city manager and public works supervisor were arrested, charged with extortion of money in exchange for city permits. Both quickly pled guilty. The city's water system had been used by city workers as means of collecting money for their own use. In August 2016 the city asked the county to take over the system.

Police

In 2022, the city hired Broward County law enforcement officer

Scott Israel Scott Israel is an American law enforcement officer, and the Police Chief of the city of Opa-locka, Florida. Israel was chief of police in North Bay Village, Florida, from 2004 to 2008, during which time he was named Police Chief of the Year in ...

as its Police Chief, replacing acting police chief Michael Steel, who had been in the position since Steve Barreira resigned in late October 2021 after just months on the job. In 2019, Israel In a 2013 editorial, the ''

Miami Herald The ''Miami Herald'' is an American daily newspaper owned by the McClatchy Company and headquartered in Doral, Florida, a city in western Miami-Dade County and the Miami metropolitan area, several miles west of Downtown Miami.Ron DeSantis suspended Israel from his Broward County position in 2019 (replacing him with

Gregory Tony } Gregory Scott Tony (born 1978) is an American law enforcement officer and the 17th Sheriff of Broward County, Florida. Tony was initially appointed sheriff in 2019 by Florida governor Ron DeSantis, to fill a vacancy. In November 2020, ...

) citing Israel's responses to the

Fort Lauderdale airport shooting On January 6, 2017, a mass shooting occurred at Fort Lauderdale–Hollywood International Airport in Broward County, Florida, United States, near the baggage claim in Terminal 2. Five people were killed while six others were injured in the shoot ...

and the

Stoneman Douglas High School shooting On February 14, 2018, 19-year-old Nikolas Cruz opened fire on students and staff at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in the Miami suburban town of Parkland, Florida, murdering 17 people and injuring 17 others. Cruz, a former student at ...

. Israel appealed his removal to the Florida Senate. The Senate appointed former Senate President

J. Dudley Goodlette J. Dudley Goodlette (born May 18, 1948, in Hazard, Kentucky) moved to Naples, Florida, with his family in 1954, and is a lawyer. Goodlette served as a Representative in the House of Representatives of the U.S. State of Florida from 1998 to 2007, ...

(R) to serve as special master to hear the testimony and evidence. After conducting a trial, Goodlette issued his report in September 2019, finding the removal was improper and recommending Israel be reinstated. Bob Gualtieri, chairman of the panel investigating the Parkland shooting and sheriff of Pinellas County, said he didn’t think Israel should be suspended: "He had some personnel that failed. Any law enforcement organization is going to have people that fail. And just because individuals fail doesn’t mean that the leader of the organization is a failure.” Despite the special master report and recommendation, however, the Florida Senate held a special session on October 23, 2019, and voted 25–15 to uphold the suspension.

Crime

In 2004, Opa-locka had the highest rate of violent crime for any city in the United States.Garcia-Roberts, Gus. "The Curse." ''

Miami New Times The ''Miami New Times'' is a newspaper published in Miami, Florida, United States, and distributed every Thursday. It primarily serves the Miami-Dade County, Miami area and is headquartered in Miami's Wynwood Art District. Overview It was acquir ...

''. February 10, 2009
2
Retrieved on February 11, 2009. Calvin Godfrey wrote, in a 2009 ''

'' article, that Opa-locka was "mired in crime and sinking fast." He wrote that the police department, whose headcount had decreased from 50 to 16, had been "steadily deteriorating" for the 20-year period leading up to 2009. The ''Miami New Times'' received memorandums that, in Godfrey's words, "reveal an agency rife with controversy". In January 2005, after negative Florida Department of Law Enforcement evaluations of the Opa-locka police force surfaced, the

Miami-Dade Police Department The Miami-Dade Police Department (MDPD), formerly known as the Metro-Dade Police Department (1981–1997), Dade County Public Safety Department (1957–1981), and the Dade County Sheriff's Office (1836–1957), is a county police department ser ...

sent county commissioner Barbara Jordan a report that projected it would cost $7 million per period to take over the Opa-locka police duties. In 2005, Opa-locka allocated $3.5 million to its officers. Jannie Beverly, Opa-locka's city manager, fired police chief James Wright in January 2008 after he was accused of corruption.Godfrey, Calvin. "Opa-locka Boots the Boss." ''

''. January 30, 2008
1
Retrieved September 28, 2009. In a 2013 editorial, the ''

Miami Herald The ''Miami Herald'' is an American daily newspaper owned by the McClatchy Company and headquartered in Doral, Florida, a city in western Miami-Dade County and the Miami metropolitan area, several miles west of Downtown Miami.excessive force. During his career he had been fired five times and arrested three times. Opa-locka crime statistics reported an overall downward trend in crime based on data from 12 years, with both violent crime and property crime decreasing. Based on this trend, the crime rate in Opa-locka for 2013 was expected to be lower than in 2010.

Education

Miami-Dade County Public Schools serves Opa-locka. Dr. Robert B. Ingram/Opa-locka Elementary School is located in Opa-locka. North Dade Middle School in Miami Gardens and Hialeah/Miami Lakes Senior High in Hialeah serve the city.

Library

The Opa-locka Branch library is one of the 50 branches included within the

Miami-Dade Public Library System The Miami-Dade Public Library System (MDPLS) is a system of libraries in Miami-Dade County, Florida. Governance The Miami-Dade Public Library System is a county department within Miami-Dade county government. The Board of County Commissione ...

. This branch is open to the public on weekdays offering an After School Club and Storytime for children.

Religion

Opa-locka had 30 houses of worship in 1996. During that year, Oscar Musibay of the ''

'' said, "Like

South Beach South Beach, also nicknamed colloquially as SoBe, is a neighborhood in Miami Beach, Florida. It is located east of Miami between Biscayne Bay and the Atlantic Ocean. The area encompasses Miami Beach south of Dade Boulevard. This area was the ...

has hotels, Opa-locka has churches."Musibay, Oscar. "God Damned." ''

''
1
May 30, 1996. Retrieved on September 28, 2009.

Transportation

Opa-locka is served by

Opa-locka Executive Airport Miami-Opa Locka Executive Airport (formerly Opa-locka Airport and Opa-locka Executive Airport until 2014) is a joint civil-military airport located in Miami-Dade County, Florida north of downtown Miami. Part of the airport is in the city limit ...

, owned and operated by the Miami-Dade County Aviation Department. Additionally, Opa-locka is served by Miami-Dade Transit buses and by Tri-Rail via the Opa-locka Station.

In popular culture

* The sequence in the 1964 James Bond movie '' Goldfinger'' in which CIA agent Felix Leiter is tailing Oddjob, who is driving Mr. Solo to the airport, was filmed in Opa-Locka. * Opa-locka is featured in the landmark 1969

documentary film A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a historical record". Bill Nichols has characterized the documentary in te ...

'' Salesman'', by the Maysles Brothers. * In 1970, Mary Ann Vecchio, a teenaged runaway from Opa-locka, was in

Kent, Ohio Kent is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the largest city in Portage County. It is located along the Cuyahoga River in Northeast Ohio on the western edge of the county. The population was 28,215 at the 2020 Census. The city is counted as ...

, on the day of the

Kent State shootings The Kent State shootings, also known as the May 4 massacre and the Kent State massacre,"These would be the first of many probes into what soon became known as the Kent State Massacre. Like the Boston Massacre almost exactly two hundred years bef ...

on May 4, 1970. The image of Vecchio, kneeling by the body of a slain Kent State student, taken by '' Greensburg Tribune-Review'' freelancer

John Filo John Paul Filo (; born August 21, 1948) is an American photographer whose picture of 14-year-old runaway Mary Ann Vecchio screaming while kneeling over the dead body of 20-year-old Jeffrey Miller, one of the victims of the Kent State shootings, ...

, later won a

Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prize () is an award for achievements in newspaper, magazine, online journalism, literature, and musical composition within the United States. It was established in 1917 by provisions in the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made ...

. *Opa-Loka is the title of a song on the 1975 album ''

Warrior on the Edge of Time ''Warrior on the Edge of Time'' is the fifth studio album by the English rock band Hawkwind. Many of the lyrics are by Michael Moorcock, and the album is loosely based on the concept of Moorcock's novel '' The Eternal Champion''. It was the band ...

'' by the British band Hawkwind. * In the 1991 film '' Soapdish'', the leading character, played by

Kevin Kline Kevin Delaney Kline (born October 24, 1947) is an American actor. He is the recipient of an Academy Award and three Tony Awards. In addition, he has received nominations for two British Academy Film Awards, two Primetime Emmy Awards, and five ...

, is a down-and-out actor reduced to drunkenly performing the role of Willy Loman in the play ''

Death of a Salesman ''Death of a Salesman'' is a 1949 stage play written by American playwright Arthur Miller. The play premiered on Broadway in February 1949, running for 742 performances. It is a two-act tragedy set in late 1940s Brooklyn told through a montage ...

'' at the fictitious "Opa-Locka Dinner Theater." * Opa-locka is mentioned in the 1995 action movie '' The Substitute'' by a black student who is being disciplined by Tom Berenger.

Notable people

* Brisco, rapper * Harry Wayne Casey, singer *

Dalvin Cook Dalvin James Cook (born August 10, 1995) is an American football running back for the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Florida State, where he finished his career as the school's all-time le ...

, NFL player *

Rohan Davey Rohan St. Patrick Davey (born April 14, 1978) is a Jamaican-born former American football quarterback. He won two Super Bowl rings with the New England Patriots, as the backup to Tom Brady in 2003 and 2004. Early years Davey attended Hialeah-M ...

, NFL player *

Thad Lewis Thaddeus Cowan Lewis (born November 19, 1987) is an American football coach and former quarterback who is currently the assistant wide receivers coach for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He was signed by the St. Lo ...

, NFL player *

Yung Miami City Girls is an American hip hop duo consisting of Yung Miami (Caresha Romeka Brownlee; born February 1994) and JT (Jatavia Shakara Johnson; born December 1992). The duo originate from Miami, Florida, and garnered attention after making an un ...

, hip hop singer * Montel Vontavious Porter, professional wrestler * Aurin Squire, playwright

References

External links

*
Dr. Robert B. Ingram/Opa-locka Elementary School
{{DEFAULTSORT:Opa-Locka, Florida Cities in Florida Cities in Miami-Dade County, Florida Moorish Revival architecture in Florida Planned cities in the United States Planned communities in Florida Cities in Miami metropolitan area 1926 establishments in Florida Populated places established in 1926