South East Florida Communities » Pembroke Pines.
Pembroke Pines was incorporated in 1960, and took the name Pembroke from its location along Pembroke Road and the many pine trees in the area. But the name Pembroke may even date back much further. The name may have been from an early landowner from Britain known as the Earl of Pembroke.
It started as agricultural land occupied by dairy farms and grew after the war as servicemen were retiring, including large eastern sections that were part of the Waldrep Dairy Farm. The first two tiny subdivisions were called Pembroke Pines. One of the first homes in the city belonged to Dr. (the first mayor) and Mr. Walter Smith Kipnis, built in 1956. It was then known as the Village of Pembroke Pines and incorporated into a town in 1959. Builders contested the incorporation, so a legal battle was brought out concerning the boundaries of the new town that were incorrectly stated in the ballot. City services were added in the 1960s with the building of the first fire department building near North Perry Airport. However, University Drive was the western edge of habitable land for residents.
In January 1960, Pembroke Pines held another election when 98% of 425 voters voted "yes" in Ernon Day's driveway, thus the town became a city. This small property was less than a square mile and was between Hollywood Boulevard and SW 72nd Avenue, and had the Florida Turnpike to the east. Pembroke Pines sought to give citizens involvement so they organized the Pembroke Pines Civic Association. In 1977, a maximum security prison known as the Broward Correctional Institution was built in northwestern Pembroke Pines. The prison offers the accommodations for woman committing serious crimes including the housing of those on death row. In 1980, property from Flamingo Road to U.S. 27 was incorporated into Pembroke Pines, doubling the size of the city. This expansion included the property that is currently C.B. Smith Park as well as the Hollywood Sportatorium and the Miami-Hollywood Motorsports Park.
The Miami-Hollywood Motorsports Park was built in 1966. This speedway had gone through many various name changes over its long history. However, it was home to many famous races and was a nationally recognized racetrack. It featured a quarter mile drag strip where you could race all types of modified cars or traditional racing cars. It closed in 1992 due to western expansion of new homes. Now, the subdivision Pembroke Isles occupies where it used to be.
The city's expansion was a major effect of Hurricane Andrew in 1992. Thousands of southern Miami-Dade County residents moved northward to Broward County, many to Pembroke Pines. The population greatly increased as former owners of destroyed homes spent their insurance money on an inland city. The resulting boom ranked the City of Pembroke Pines third in a list of Fastest Growing Cities in the United States in 1999. Over the years, the sudden and unplanned overpopulation has caused problems...especially in schools.
In 2003, Charles W. Flanagan High School had close to 5,000 students, making it the most populated high school in Florida. In response to Broward County's inability to keep up with demands, Mayor Alex Fekete and City Manager Charles Dodge started a Charter School System. As of 2006, Pembroke Pines had the largest Charter School System in the county. The city is also home to a campuses for Broward Community College and Florida International University. The city's population has grown from (1990 pop. 65,452) to an estimated 2005 population of 148,000.
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