Editing Key Biscayne, Florida (section)

==History==
{{See also|Key Biscayne#Early history|l1=Early history of Key Biscayne}}
===Rickenbacker Causeway===
[[File:President Richard Nixon Greeting Children on the Crandon Boulevard Fourth of July Parade Route in Key Biscayne, Florida.jpg|thumb|left|[[President of the United States|U.S. President]] [[Richard Nixon]] at Key Biscayne's [[Independence Day (United States)|Fourth of July]] parade in 1969; as president, Nixon visited his Key Biscayne compound over 50 times.]]
While there had been earlier plans to develop a town on Key Biscayne, the opening of the {{convert|4|mi|km|adj=mid|-long}} [[Rickenbacker Causeway]] from [[Miami]] to [[Virginia Key]] and on to Key Biscayne in 1947 opened the island up to large-scale residential development. The northern two-thirds of the island had operated as the largest coconut plantation in the [[continental United States]] during the first half of the 20th century. 

In 1940, the [[William John Matheson|Matheson]] family donated over {{convert|800|acre|km2}} of their land to [[Miami-Dade County, Florida|Dade County]] for a public park, which became Crandon Park, in exchange for a commitment from the county that it would build a causeway to the island. The remaining Matheson property, stretching across the middle of the island, was sold to developers. Beginning in 1951, the [[Mackle Brothers|Mackle Construction Company]] offered new homes on the island for $9,540, with $500 down. A [[United States Postal Service|U.S. Post Office]] branch opened in Key Biscayne, the Community Church started holding services in an old coconut-husking shed, and Key Biscayne Elementary School opened in 1952.<ref>Blank. pp. 159-162.</ref>

The island's southern third, which included Cape Florida, was owned by [[James Deering]], and, after his death, by his brother Charles, for 35 years. In 1948, José Manuel Áleman, a [[Cuban people|Cuban]] politician in exile, bought the Cape Florida property from the Deering estate. After Áleman died in 1951, his widow, Elena Santeiro Garcia, added to the property, purchasing an ocean-to-bay strip that had been part of the Matheson property. This strip included a canal William Matheson dug in the 1920s that extended from the bay across most of the island. The land north of the canal was developed as part of what is now the Village of Key Biscayne. In 1966, Garcia sold the Cape Florida property to the state of Florida, and the property became [[Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Park]], which opened January 1, 1967.<ref>Blank. pp.166-171.</ref>

===Richard Nixon compound===
{{Main|Nixon's Florida White House}}
In 1969, [[President of the United States|U.S. President]] [[Richard Nixon]] purchased the first of his three waterfront homes, forming a compound known as the [[Nixon's Florida White House|Florida White House]], to be near his close friend and confidant [[Bebe Rebozo]], owner of Key Biscayne Bank, and industrialist [[Robert Abplanalp]], inventor of the [[Aerosol spray dispenser|modern spray can]] valve. Rebozo was indicted for laundering a $100,000 donation from [[Howard Hughes]] to Nixon's election campaign. Presidents Kennedy and Nixon met for the first time after Nixon's [[1960 United States presidential election|1960 presidential campaign]] defeat in an oceanfront villa at the old Key Biscayne Hotel. 

Plans for the break-in at the [[Democratic National Committee]] headquarters in the [[Watergate complex]] were discussed at Nixon's Key Biscayne compound and, as the [[Watergate scandal]] unfolded, Nixon retreated into seclusion there with greater regularity. Between 1969 and 1973, he visited Key Biscayne over 50 times. The [[United States Department of Defense|U.S. Department of Defense]] spent $400,000 constructing a helicopter landing pad in [[Biscayne Bay]] adjacent to his compound; when Nixon later sold the property, including the helicopter pad, there were public accusations that he had enriched himself at taxpayer expense.{{citation needed|date=March 2023}}

===Incorporation===
The area was incorporated as a new municipality in 1991, making it the first new city in Miami-Dade County in over 50 years. Rafael Conte was elected the first mayor, along with the members of the founding village council: Clifford Brody, Mortimer Fried, Michael Hill, Bautista Tedin, Lucas Keller, Luis Lauredo, Joe Rasco, and Raymond Sullivan. The municipality's first manager was C. Samuel Kissinger and the first clerk was Guido Inguanzo. The village's incorporation, overseen by Alfred Brewer, provided local control over taxes and future development.{{citation needed|date=March 2023}}

Key Biscayne is a small, intimate community. Most families that live there have known each other for generations. Children who grew up on the island are sometimes referred to as "Key Rats".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/article1938236.html|title=Tale of a Key Rat: The Michael Capponi story|work=[[The Miami Herald]]}}</ref>

===Hurricane Andrew===
In 1992, [[Hurricane Andrew]] flooded some homes and businesses on Key Biscayne, impacting insurance.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.sun-sentinel.com/sfl-1992-ap-mainstory,0,7290462.story |location=Miami, Florida|title=Ten years after Hurricane Andrew, effects are still felt|author=Adrian Sainz|date=August 24, 2002|agency=Associated Press|newspaper=[[South Florida Sun-Sentinel]]|access-date=May 8, 2012|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20121014215256/http://www.sun-sentinel.com/sfl-1992-ap-mainstory%2C0%2C7290462.story |archive-date=October 14, 2012|url-status=dead}}</ref> The eye wall passed over uninhabited Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Park, which received the brunt of the storm. The damage was a blessing for the park because it destroyed all the non-native vegetation the state had been trying to eradicate. Federal and state funding allowed the replanting with native vegetation, making the park a showplace natural area. The town is in Evacuation Zone A.<ref>{{cite web |title=Flood Information and Protection |url=https://keybiscayne.fl.gov/index.php?submenu=_depts&src=gendocs&ref=FloodInfo_ProtectionMain_May2018&category=HurricaneFlood&link=FloodInfo_ProtectionMain_May2018 |website=keybiscayne.fl.gov |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20201104201451/https://keybiscayne.fl.gov/index.php?submenu=_depts&src=gendocs&ref=FloodInfo_ProtectionMain_May2018&category=HurricaneFlood&link=FloodInfo_ProtectionMain_May2018 |archive-date=November 4, 2020 |url-status=live}}</ref> 

In 2017, a study found that the town could be partly flooded at high tides by 2045 after [[sea-level rise]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Village of Key Biscayne final vulnerability assessment |url=https://www.keyscience.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/CRC-VillageOfKeyBiscayne-FinaltVulnAssess-SM.pdf |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20201104200313/https://www.keyscience.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/CRC-VillageOfKeyBiscayne-FinaltVulnAssess-SM.pdf |archive-date=November 4, 2020 |date=2017 |quote=by 2045, if no adaptation steps are taken, most roads within the village will experience tidal flooding during king tides, as will many low-lying residential and commercial properties.}}</ref> Property values fell. 

In November 2020, the town voted to approve a $100 million bond to protect itself.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Harris |first1=Alex |title=Key Biscayne votes to spend $100 million to protect itself from sea-level rise |website=[[Miami Herald]] |url=https://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/miami-dade/key-biscayne/article246895747.html |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20201104062615/https://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/miami-dade/key-biscayne/article246895747.html |archive-date=November 4, 2020 |date=November 3, 2020 |url-status=live}}</ref>

The village has its own fire, police and public elementary and middle school. The millage tax rate remains one of the lowest of any municipality in Miami-Dade County. In 2004, the village completed the construction of a civic center, including fire, police and administration buildings and a recreation and community center with indoor multi-use courts, an outdoor swimming pool, and a musical theater program.{{citation needed|date=March 2023}}