Report Card: MLK Blvd, Pompano Beach, Florida

Pompano Beach

Broward County, Florida

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr Boulevard

(formerly named: Hammondville Road and Third Street)

Zip Code: 33060

Overview:

MLK Blvd through Pompano Beach starts at Dixie Highway, which is the historical center of the city that divides east from west at the railway tracks. Heading west, it is a four-lane road with commercial zoning fronting the road. To the south is the commercial core of Pompano Beach, and immediately behind the commercial zoning to the north is a viable but hurting residential neighborhood. The locals, including the Black locals, still refer to this section of MLK Blvd as Third Street.

After about a mile one drives under the I-95 freeway (no entrance to freeway) and enters the industrial corridor. This section of MLK Blvd is still referred to by the locals as Hammondville Road. On both sides of the freeway the area has a hard-core inner-city feel to it and I would not be anywhere near here after dark. From here (the 1100 block) to the end, the area to the north is pure industrial, with the exception of the Sunshine Health Center at 1711 MLK Blvd. This is a health center that caters to Medicaid and Medicare recipients and also offers dentistry. The area to the south is residential, and a sheriff’s substation is located on the corner of 18^th Avenue.

Once past Powerline Road (2100 block), you are in NIMBY land, where there are two strip joints and three prisons within blocks of MLK Blvd.

MLK Blvd ends at NW 31 Avenue, where there is a Florida Turnpike entrance.

Length:

Approximately 3 miles

·000 Block (Dixie Highway) to 3100 Block West.

Category:

Residential Neighborhood (houses fronting MLK Blvd) = 0%

Commercial Corridor: Main Street = 0%

Commercial Corridor: Mom & Pop Shops = 20%

·Blighted and Ignored = 30%

·Blighted but Not Ignored = 30%

·Gentrification Failing = 0%

·Gentrification Succeeding = 10%

·Viable with Room to Improve = 20%

·Vibrant and Car Friendly = 10%

· Vibrant and Pedestrian Friendly = 0%

Industrial Corridor = 80%

·Blighted and Ignored = 50%

·Blighted but Not Ignored = 30%

· Gentrification Failing = 0%

·Gentrification Succeeding = 10%

·Viable with Room to Improve = 10%

· Vibrant and Car Friendly = 0%

·Vibrant and Pedestrian Friendly = 0%

Community Assets:

1) The E. Pat Larkins Community Center at 520 MLK Blvd. It is a brand new facility built in a relatively safe area. It seemed well staffed with a broad variety of programs for all age groups. (http://www.mypompanobeach.org)

2)Churches: Along the length of the boulevard there were three significantly large and well maintained churches, and perhaps a half-dozen small “store-front” churches.

3)National Chain Grocery or Department Stores: None were encountered.

4) Brand Name Franchised Restaurants: At the far western end, where the ramp to the turnpike is located and you are within a block of Coconut Creek, there is a Wendy's Restaurant.

5)Other National Franchises: None, not even an auto parts franchise.

NIMBY Items Encountered:

1)Three prison facilities (within 3 blocks)

2)Two strip clubs

3)Two major rail corridors

4)Three major overpasses (only two with access)

Indexing for This Topic:

"Report Cards"

Pompano Beach: NIMBY Goes to MLK Blvd.

NIMBY: "Not-In-My-Back-Yard"

If the rest of a community is opposed to something, and if that "something" is a business or institution that just about every community will support at the end of the day, then it will eventually end up in the least desirable part of the community by default.

These two photos of businesses that are located along MLK Blvd in Pompano Beach, Fla. say it all.

PS. In researching another post I discovered that there are three Broward Sheriff's Office prison facilities within blocks of these two corners of MLK Blvd in Pompano Beach.

Talk about NIMBY! But hey, if Hammondville Road was just renamed five years ago to MLK Blvd, you have to ask how smart it is to name the road that goes through this kind of an industrial park in honor of one of America's greatest heroes.

Indexing for This Topic:

"NIMBY Sent to MLK"

What I Do to Review an MLK Blvd.

At the bottom of each blog post you will see the footnote "Indexing for This Topic."

The reason for this is to underscore the idea that these problems are pervasive and affect almost every major city in the United States. They definitely affected every area that I have visited in South Florida over the last three months.

For the indexing I have created the "http://white-guy-on-MLK.com" companion domain.