Fisher Island Ferries

Fisher Island is a census-designated place (CDP) and town located on a man-made island of the same name in both the City of Miami Beach and on unincorporated land in Miami-Dade County, Florida. As of the 2000 census, the CDP had only 218 households and a total population of 467 persons. The relatively small Miami Beach portion, at the extreme northeast part of the island, contains only one building. The developer is building the first new building on the island, and only two more buildings will be completed. This will finish the development on the island, and leave it to 750 units, or 29% of an acre per apartment. As one famous resident says, “You get all of the amenities of a high rise while remaining close to the dirt.”
Fisher Island, as seen from Government Cut.

Fisher Island, as seen from Government Cut.

Named for automotive parts pioneer and Miami Beach developer Carl G. Fisher, who once owned it, Fisher Island is 3 miles off shore of Miami, Florida. No road or causeway connects to the island, which is accessible by private ferry and helicopter. Once a one-family island home of the Vanderbilts, and later several other millionaires, it was sold for development in 1960s. The property sat vacant for well over 15 years before development was begun for very limited and restrictive multi-family use.

Today, Fisher Island is occupied again, but remains a very exclusive and wealthy community. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Fisher Island had the highest per capita income of any place in the United States in 2000.