Lincoln Road
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Lincoln Road runs east and west between 16th Street and 17th Street on Miami Beach. Once open to vehicular traffic, Lincoln Road is now closed to traffic between Washington Avenue and Alton Road. In that area, Lincoln Road is a popular pedestrian mall lined with shops, sidewalk cafes, bars and galleries.
History
Originally, Lincoln Road was covered by a forest of mangroves, as was most of Miami Beach. Around 1912, Carl Fisher had Lincoln Road cleared and it eventually became the town's social center. Fisher, himself, maintained a real estate office on Lincoln Road. Over time, Lincoln Road featured premium retail destinations like Bonwit Teller, Saks Fifth Avenue, and even Cadillac and Packard car dealerships.
Around 1960, Miami Beach Architect Morris Lapidus, whose credits include Miami Beach's Fountainbleu and Eden Roc Hotels, was commissioned to redesign Lincoln Road. Lapidus' design for Lincoln Road, complete with gardens, fountains, shelters and an amphitheater, reflected the Miami Modern Architecture, or "MiMo," style that Lapidus pioneered in the 1950's. The Road was closed to traffic and became one of the nation's first pedestrian malls.
Today, Lincoln Road features a state-of-the-art multiplex cinema, a concert hall for the New World Symphony Orchestra, boutique and national retail stores, fine restaurants and bars. Lincoln Road is also home to the newly restored Colony Theater, a performing arts venue, and Art Center South Florida, a collection of studio and gallery space for emerging artists. Street performers entertain an almost constant stream of tourists and locals on Lincoln Road. It is among the most popular destinations for visitors to South Miami Beach. Among the more popular stores and attractions among Lincoln Road are Macy's, a flagship store for Banana Republic, Segrafedo, David's Cafe, Johnny Rocket's, FCUK, a trio of Starbucks, and Parmalat.
Lincoln Road is located in a pre-dominatley Italian community, hence a large Italian influence can be felt in it, with many resturaunts and local stores owned by Italians. The Italian language is also commonly heard in area.
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