City of North Miami Beach history

When Henry Flagler extended the Florida East Coast Railway from West Palm Beach to Miami in 1896, he placed depots at numerous spots along the route, and small towns quickly developed around those stops.

In 1897, utilizing the Homestead Act, Captain Fulford acquired a 160-acre land patent from President Grover Cleveland.

In 1912 Lafe Allen, a former newspaper owner, came to Florida.

During the Florida land boom of the 1920's, lots were sometimes sold eight times before ever being recorded.

One of south Florida's first radio stations, WGBU, a 500-watt station, began broadcasting in 1925 from its 150-foot tower also located in Central Park.

In 1926, the Fulford-Miami Speedway held its first and only racing event attracting a crowd of 20,000 spectators, some of whom paid up to $15 for a box seat.

Beachfront property was annexed and the name of the municipality was changed from Fulford to North Miami Beach to reflect the 1931 boundaries and to take advantage of the nationwide advertising associated with the Miami Beach area in an effort to capitalize on that city's growing fame.

The Biscayne Park Woman's Club established a Library in the City Hall of the town of North Miami in 1932.

By 1933 there was a councilmanic form of government with five council members and a mayor as the capital head.

In 1936, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed approval of a Works Progress Administration appropriation of $16,000 for remodeling and rebuilding the old Fulford By-the-Sea power plant building (located on the west side of Northeast 19 Avenue at Northeast 170 Street) into a city hall.

E. May Avil, who served 37 years as City Clerk for North Miami, oversaw the Library's operation.Closed during World War II, the North Miami Community Library reopened in September 1945 in larger quarters at City Hall, again under the supervision of E. May Avil.

In 1948, the Biscayne Park Woman's Club turned the Library over to the town of North Miami.

A referendum, held in 1949, established a free Public Library under provisions of the Florida Statutes, setting up a Library Fund and a Library board to administer the operation.

The second water expansion project was completed in 1954.

The development of the 163rd Street Shopping Center reflected this tremendous growth in 1956.

Aerial view of the 163rd Street Mall in 1957 (courtesy of NMB Library)

In 1958, a new charter was voted on making the city a council/manager form of government which still prevails today.

From 1961 to the present, growth and development have been impressive.

The city embarked on a $2.1 million public works program having as its core a new four-story city hall with an adjoining auditorium and swimming pool which was completed in 1963.

In 1965, a new public safety building was erected on the site of the old Fulford By-the-Sea waterworks.

In 1970 the City Council voted unanimously to rename the Library as the E. May Avil North Miami Public Library.

The City Council changed the name of Northeast 164th Street to Hanford Boulevard in 1975, in honor of Lenore Hanford, whose father was one of, if not the City’s most influential early pioneers, Lafayette Allen.

Wanner's retirement in 1978, Mrs.

Federal grants were obtained in 1979 to expand the McDonald Senior Center and Washington Park Community Center.

The city expanded its parks, beautification was intensified, and in 1984, a new addition was added on to the existing city hall complex.

Services and programs expanded, and again the Library doubled in size with the construction and furnishing of a $1.3 million addition completed in 1991.

In 1993 the voters in North Miami Beach approved a $10 million bond issue to build a state-of-the-art police station and redevelop infrastructure in the Government Center neighborhood.

In 1994 the City appropriated funds for retrospective conversion, the first phase of the Library's automation project.

A Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) was secured in 1995 to purchase equipment which translates written materials into either speech or Braille.

More CDBG money became available in 1997 allowing the Library to furnish and equip a Lifelong Learning Center wherein patrons may pursue such personal goals as a General Equivalency Diploma (GED), English as a Second Language etc.

In September 2000 the voters approved a $17.5 million bond issue for neighborhood construction improvements.

Zavish retired February 1st, 2002.

As one of the Off-Site improvements, the developer agreed to give $10 million to North Miami Public Library for expansion.In 2003, the Florida Legislature revised the law to allow independent municipal libraries to participate in the State Aid to Libraries Program.

North Miami Public Library received its first State Aid appropriation in January 2004.