Liberty City | |
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 Liberty City mural | |
| Nickname: Model City(historic name) | |
 The Liberty City neighborhood in Miami | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Florida |
| County | Miami-Dade County |
| City | Miami |
| Government | |
| • City of Miami Commissioner | Jeffrey Watson |
| • Miami-Dade Commissioners | Keon Hardemon |
| • House of Representatives | Ashley Gantt (D) andDotie Joseph (D) |
| • State Senate | Shevrin Jones (D) |
| • U.S. House | Frederica Wilson (D) |
| Elevation | 9.8 ft (3 m) |
| Population (2010) | |
• Total | 19,725 |
| • Density | 9,669/sq mi (3,733/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-05 (EST) |
| ZIP Code | 33125, 33127, 33142, 33147, 33150 |
| Area codes | 305, 786 |
Liberty City is a predominantly African Americanneighborhood inMiami, Florida, United States. The area is roughly bound byNW 79th Street to the north,NW 27th Avenue to the west, theAirport Expressway to the South, andInterstate 95 to the east. The neighborhood is home to one of the largest concentrations of African Americans inSouth Florida, as of the2000 census.[1][2] Although it was often known as "Model City" both historically and by the City of Miami government, residents more commonly call it Liberty City.
It is serviced by theMiami Metrorail atDr. Martin Luther King Jr. Plaza andBrownsville stations along NW 27th Avenue.
Once part of the sparsely populated outskirts of northern Miami, what became Liberty City developed during theGreat Depression of the 1930s when PresidentFranklin D. Roosevelt authorized the construction of theLiberty Square housing project in 1933, the first of its kind in the Southern United States. Built as a response to the deteriorating housing conditions in densely populated andcovenant-restricted slums ofOvertown, construction on the initial housing project began in 1934 and it opened in 1937.
Into the 1940s and 1950s, the growing Liberty City and adjacentBrownsville thrived as a middle-incomeblack American community, hosting several churches, hospitals, andcommunity centers. The area served as home to prominent figures such as Kelsey Pharr,M. Athalie Range (the first black American elected to serve on the Miamicity commission) and boxerMuhammad Ali. Althoughsegregation laws prohibited black Americans from resting and residing in popularMiami Beach, service establishment and resorts such as the Hampton House Motel and Villas catered to and entertained the likes of notables such asMartin Luther King Jr.,Althea Gibson, and even whites such asMickey Mantle.
Construction ofInterstate 95 in Florida in Overtown and declining use of restrictive covenants in the wake of theCivil Rights Act of 1964 dramatically altered the neighborhood into the 1960s. Increasing numbers of lower-income elderly andwelfare-dependent families migrated to Liberty City after their displacement primarily frominner city Overtown, turning the area into a dangerous ghetto, leading to large-scaleblack flight of middle- andhigher-income blacks and other blacks likeWest Indian Americans largely to suburban areas likeFlorida City andMiami Gardens in southern and northernDade County, respectively.[3]
Crime grew prevalent in the increasingly poverty-stricken area in the immediate post–civil rights movement era of the 1960s and 1970s. By 1968, Liberty City, with a population of 45,000, was Miami's largest and most congested area. Years of social disruption created an unstable climate that needed just a spark to ignite. The ensuing problems of the poor and disenfranchised grew most apparent and notable inrace riots that occurred in Liberty City in August 1968 during theRepublican National Convention in Miami Beach and in May 1980 following the acquittal of police officers charged with the killing ofArthur McDuffie.
The plight of inner-city black Miamians increasingly came to be highlighted in national press into the 1980s as theUniversity of MiamiHurricanes football team won severalnational college football championships led by players recruited mostly from black, lower-income neighborhoods such as Liberty City and Overtown. National exposure continued with the popularity of nationally broadcast programs such as theNBC crime dramaMiami Vice, which brought the deteriorating conditions of the area to greater prominence.
Into the 1990s and 2000s, music grew to reflect the area, with locals such asLuther Campbell of2 Live Crew pioneering theMiami bass genre, which dominatedSouthern hip hop during the decade. Other music and sports talents rose to national prominence from the area such as rappersTrina andTrick Daddy,NBA playerUdonis Haslem andNFL playersChad "Ocho Cinco" Johnson,Antonio Brown, andWillis McGahee.
Climate change is affecting the value offlood-prone real estate in Miami.[4] Miami neighborhoods with higher elevations such as Liberty City are experiencing increasing real estate values.[5] By 2017, Liberty City, along withLittle Haiti, started becoming more attractive to investors.[6][5] A community land trust is planned to maintainaffordability for current residents.[7] Home prices appreciated more slowly in 2018 inMiami Beach and lower-elevation areas ofMiami-Dade County.[4]
In 2000, Liberty City had a population of 23,009[8] and 43,054[9] residents, with 7,772 households, and 5,428 families residing in the neighborhood. Themedian household income was $18,809.87. The racial makeup of the neighborhood was 94.69%Black, 3.04%Hispanic orLatino of any nationality, 1.68%Other races (non-Hispanic), and 0.59%White.[8]
The zip codes for the Liberty City include 33127, 33142, 33147, and 33150. The area covers 5.968 square miles (15.46 km2). In 2000, there were 19,286 males and 23,768 females. The median age for males was 25.9 years, while the median age for females was 30.3 years. The average household size had 3.1 people, while the average family size had 3.7 members. The percentage of married-couple families (among all households) was 20.3%, while the percentage of married-couple families with children (among all households) was 9.1%, and the percentage of single-mother households (among all households) was 33.1%. The percentage of never-married males 15 years old and over was 21.9%, while the percentage of never-married females 15 years old and over was 29.7%.[9]
In 2000, 2.7% of the population spoke little to no English. The percentage of residents born in Florida was 74.5%, the percentage of people born in another U.S. state was 16.7%, and the percentage of native residents but born outside the U.S. was 0.8%, while the percentage of foreign born residents was 7.9%.[9]
Miami-Dade County Public Schools operates area public schools:
Miami-Dade Public Library operates area public libraries:
TheMiami Metrorail services the neighborhood at the following stations:
A 1965 study by the Welfare Planning Council of Dade County revealed strong correlations between overcrowded rental housing in Miami and such social problems as crime, juvenile delinquency, premature school termination, welfare dependency, and an array of health-related
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25°49′54″N80°13′29″W / 25.831801°N 80.224829°W /25.831801; -80.224829
