Skip to Content
Streetsblog New York City home
Streetsblog New York City home
Log In
Streetsblog

Remembering All That Was Lost to an Interchange in Miami

Miami's Overtown neighborhood was once known as "the Harlem of the South." In this historic black neighborhood, legends like Nat King Cole and Billie Holiday would play to big crowds late into the night.

false
false
But as an NPR story recently described, in the 1960s, the construction of I-95 "shattered the world" of Overtown residents. Matthew Toro at Transit Miami explains:

As decried by 70 year-old, long-time Overtown resident, General White:

Well there’s nothing but a big overpass now!

He’s referring to Interstates 95 and 395, which Nadege Green explains were built in the 1960s. After that:

Overtown was never the same. [Mr. General White] and thousands of other people here were forced out to make room for the highway.

The Florida Department of Transportation recently made a bid to take over more of the roads in the Overtown neighborhood. But City Commissioner Spence Jones issued a strong objection, saying the agency was responsible for destroying the neighborhood and displacing its residents. "FDOT gets an 'F' for our community in Overtown," she told attendees at a City Commission meeting.

Elsewhere on the Network today: The State Smart Transportation Initiative reports that transit spending by state DOTs has increased slightly. We Are Mode Shift described the insane plans to widen two urban freeways in Detroit, despite the devastation such road projects have wreaked on that city. And A View from the Cycle Path considers how best to reach young people and teach them to become lifelong transportation cyclists.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog New York City

Larry Penner, Federal Transit Official and Letter Writer, is Dead

The former federal transit official, who had a second career as one of the most prolific writers of letters to the editors of scores of area newspapers, died on Thursday.

January 17, 2025

BLUNDER ROAD: Garden State has Spent $1M in Failed Bid to Block Congestion Pricing

Jersey pols have spent big and talked big on their anti-congestion pricing efforts as their own transit agency has fallen into disrepair.

January 17, 2025

Congestion Pricing Gets Kids To School On Time, Data Shows

Data shared with Streetsblog shows school buses traveling faster and being late less since congestion pricing began.

January 17, 2025

Friday’s Headlines: Fun in the Sun Edition

The mayor is going down to Mar-a-Lago to meet with President-elect Trump, eh? Plus other news.

January 17, 2025

Mayor Adams Proposes $4M Per Year to ‘Harden’ Dangerous Intersections

"We are ... keeping New Yorkers safe on our streets ... by improving road safety at hundreds of targeted traffic intersections," Adams said on Thursday.

January 17, 2025
See all posts