Key Biscayne's manager isn't surprised in the least. In Lauderdale Lakes, where the proportion of people under 18 rose by nearly 7 percent, the city opened a teen center in January, and it is building a new community center that will serve both young people and adults. Expanding youth programs in Lauderdale Lakes helped push park visits up to more than 334,000 in 2000, an increase of approximately 33 percent from 1999 and about 58 percent from the year before that, said Patrick Cann, director of parks and recreation. Mayor Samuel Brown said the city is hoping for county bond money for additional park space. Cann said the city also is negotiating partnerships with local schools to use play areas when school is not in session.
Demographers say younger families are replacing older residents as they die or move elsewhere.
They move into older homes, and the more the minorities move in, the greater the change.'' North Miami Mayor Frank Wolland agrees the figures showing those under 18 going from 23 percent to 28 percent of his city's population reflect that trend. Kerr said he did not know what to make of the increased numbers of children in Aventura, but his hunch was that the city is becoming home to young, affluent professionals with kids. The census indicates that those under 18 are 10 percent of the population, up from 6 percent in 1990. On Tuesday, the City Commission gave the go-ahead to give a charter elementary school to the city, Soroka said. It's an increase driven by the building of new industrial centers and new apartments.