Bal Harbour

Bal Harbour is a village in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. The population was 2,513 at the 2010 US Census, and the 2014 estimate is at 2,633.HistorySince the 1920s, the Detroit-based Miami Beach Heights Corporation – headed by industrialists Robert C. Graham, Walter O. Briggs, and Carl G. Fisher – owned 245acre of undeveloped, partially swampy land that stretched from the bay to the Atlantic. Mr. Graham assumed the duties as the developer for Bal Harbour. In the 1930s, city planners Harland Bartholomew & Associates were called in to design the Village. The company made several plans and they were submitted to the Miami Beach Heights for review.The original name chosen for Bal Harbour was Bay Harbour. However, the planning committee didn't think that was appropriate for a city that was on the beach. A name was invented to encompass a village that ran from the bay to the Atlantic Ocean. The "b" was taken from the word bay and the "a" and "l" were taken from the name Atlantic. Hence the word "Bal" was created.In 1940, World War II began and the plans were put on hold. As a goodwill gesture to the government, Robert C. Graham rented the land to the United States Air Corps for $1 per year. The Air Corps used this land to train their soldiers and established a Prisoner of War camp. The ocean front area was used as a rifle range and the barracks were set up on the west side of Collins Avenue. The camp for prisoners was located where the Bal Harbour Shops are presently.