Our District

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Florida’s 18th Congressional District spans from Little Havana to Miami Beach to Key Biscayne all the way south to Key West. My district contains approximately 265 miles of pristine Florida coastline and includes the largest coral reef system in the Continental United States.

South Florida is home to several highly regarded secondary educational institutions including:

Barry University
Florida International University
Miami-Dade College
St. Thomas University
University of Miami

The 18th District has several historic districts:

Coral Way – residential neighborhood connecting Downtown Miami to Coral Gables since 1922
Coral Gables – home of the University of Miami
Coconut Grove – Miami’s City Hall since 1825
Coconut Grove Playhouse – Built in 1926 designed to resemble a Spanish Rococo Palace.
Coral Gables Venetian Pool – formed from a coral rock quarry in 1923, this 820,000 gallon pool is fed with cool spring water daily and features two waterfalls, coral caves and grottos.
First Coconut Grove Schoolhouse – Built in 1887, this frame vernacular structure originally was used as a Sunday School for pioneers.
Flagler Station Oversea Railway Historeum – Built from 1905-1912, the overseas railroad served as a route from New York all the way to Key West commenced by Henry Flagler, partner of John D. Rockefeller. The railroad built by Flagler began in Homestead, Florida and cost about $30 million.
Freedom Tower – Built in 1925, this was originally known as the Miami Daily News Tower and served as the Cuban Refugee Emergency Center in the 1960’s.
Hindu Temple – Built in 1920, this unusual house was a site of the filming of Miami’s first motion picture called The Jungle Trial.
Matheson Hammock County Park – Visitors dine inside the historic coral rock building or outside, overlooking the beach and Biscayne Bay.
Stiltsville – Located on Biscayne Bay roughly one mile south of Cape Florida at the tip of Key
Biscayne, this area is home to seven remaining houses standing on pilings in shallow water.
The Alamo – Miami’s oldest surviving hospital building built in 1918, and its architectural design is the same as that of the Texas landmark.
The Barnacle – Overlooking Biscayne Bay, this house stands as a great example of the vernacular architecture constructed during the late 19th century and is the former home of local pioneer Commodore Ralph Munroe.
Virginia Key Beach Park – In 1945, this historic beach is an example of discrimination and segregation because it was established for the “exclusive use of the Negroes,” and it is preserved for the public’s use today.
Vizcaya Museum and Gardens - Built by agricultural industrialist James Deering in 1916, Vizcaya features a main house, ten acres of formal gardens, a hardwood hammock, and soon-to-be-restored historic village.
United States Richmond Naval Air Station – Now the site of the Miami Metro Zoo’s parking lot, this 2,000-acre station once served as a blimp base for the Navy that detected German submarines during World War II but was later destroyed by a hurricane in 1943.
The Miami Children’s Museum, dedicated to enriching the lives of all children by fostering a love of learning and enabling children to realize their highest potential.
The Florida Keys
- Audubon House and Tropical Gardens – Chosen as South Florida Magazine’s Best Museum in the Florida Keys, its beautiful art and gardens are certainly a sight to see.
- Ernest Hemingway House – Old house that is home to polydactyl cats that have more than the usual number of toes on one or all paws.
- Fort Jefferson, Dry Tortuga National Park – Built in 1846, this structure became obsolete in 1862 due to the technological advancement of weaponry and was used as a federal prison in which several of the “Lincoln Conspirators” were imprisoned.
- Fort Zachary Taylor – Built in 1860, this is Fort Jefferson’s companion fort which helped strengthen the strategic importance of the Florida Keys in military operations.
- Harry S. Truman’s Little White House – Built in 1890, this structure functioned as the first officer’s navel station and later housed former President Truman, Thomas Edison during World War I, and former President Eisenhower when he was recuperating from his heart attack in 1956.
- John Bartlum Bahama House – Located on Eaton Street, this house is a great example of the distinctive vernacular designed homes particular to Key West.
- Key West Botanical Garden – The only “frost-free” botanical garden in the continental United States, this garden is home to many endangered and threatened flora and fauna.
- Key West Inns – Bed and Breakfast Inns date back to the mid-1800’s.

Important stations:

Florida International University – houses the National Hurricane Center, which works as the National Weather Service’s Tropical Prediction Center.
Homestead Air Reserve Base – stations the Air Force Reserve Command which is one of ten Major Commands (MAJCOMS) in the U.S. Air Force.
Port of Miami – Site of the largest volume of cruise ships in the world and largest container port in the state of Florida.
United States Naval Air Station – Located in Key West, this station is equipped with a sophisticated Tactical Combat Training System (TCTS) and is host to many tenant activities including Joint Interagency Task Force South, U.S. Coast Guard, and U.S. Army Special Forces.

The 18th District also contains:

Historical Museum of Southern Florida
Jewish Museum of Florida
Largest concentration of international banks in the United States
Miami Metro Zoo
Miami Science Museum
Miami Seaquarium
Over 80 parks hosting various events

In the 18th District, the Port of Miami is in an important position:

“Cargo Gateway of the Americas” – Largest container port in the state of Florida and ninth in the United States making this seaport accommodative to both cargo and passengers.
“Cruise Capital of the World” – Focal point for cruise ship companies by accommodating the largest volume of cruise ships in the world.
Both the cargo and cruise ship industries provide approximately 98,000 jobs.
Economic impact on Miami-Dade County is over $12 billion.

About 15 miles south of Miami is where the Florida Keys begin, an archipelago of about 1,700 islands that are exposed portions of an ancient coral reef. The Keys attract tourists every year for its naturally beautiful locations:

National Parks:
- Biscayne National Park
- Dry Tortugas National Park
- Everglades National Park

State Parks:
- Bahia Honda State Park
- Curry Hammock State Park
- Dagny Johnson Key Largo Hammock Botanical State Park
- Fort Zachary Taylor Historic State Park
- Indian Key Historic State Park
- John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park
- Lignumvitae Key Botanical State Park
- Long Key State Park
- San Pedro Underwater Archeological Preserve State Park
- Windley Key Fossil Reef Geological State Park

The Florida Keys is also home to the site of the southernmost point of continental United States in Key West and an assortment of activities to experience: