About Oakland Park, Florida
The City of Oakland Park is one of the older municipalities in Broward County. It was originally chartered as the Town of Floranada in December, 1925. This was to be no little village.
The boundaries went from the ocean west to what is now U.S. 441, and from the north fork of Middle River north to Cypress Creek.
All of south Florida was bursting with development, but the September 1926 hurricane, which devastated the area, burst the prosperity balloon. The few who were left tightened their belts and decided to make some major changes. A referendum abolished the Town of Floranada and established the City of Oakland Park. The boundaries were reestablished to approximately the west side of U.S. 1 west to NE 3rd Avenue and the north fork of Middle River north to what is now Prospect Road. A very unusual thing about the demise of Floranada – all bills were paid, there were no debts left.
Gradually the City began to grow. A few new homes appeared and the population increased. As the years passed, the size of the town also began to expand, both in residents and in area. Although it will never cover as much territory as Floranada, today it is a little over 8 square miles, and approximately 43,000 residents call Oakland Park home. It has a notable recreation program, its own excellent library, expansive parks, and much, much more.
Oakland Park also offers an outstanding quality of life, highlighted by a semi-tropical climate. Blessed with over 3,000 hours of sunshine each year and pleasant year-round ocean breezes, world-famous beaches close by for recreation, relaxation and enjoyment. The downtown Oakland Park Corridor serves as the cornerstone of the City’s arts, Culinary, and historic district which features the Funky Buddha Brewery, Tats & Tacos, 10th level Tavern and Switch Box Coffee Roasters . In addition, the City’s downtown area is home to the Library, Main Post Office and City Hall.
Through the cooperative efforts of residents, businesses and local government, Oakland Park has evolved into a City that offers the best of both worlds – an attractive business environment and an outstanding quality of life. Oakland Park is a great place to live, work and raise a family, and the City looks forward to continuing to build upon its success to meet the challenges of the 21st Century and beyond. As it continues to grow more and more developers and businesses are looking to Oakland Park.