Florida Celebrates Florida

Let the global race to secure Richard Florida's signature on a lease begin!

With the influential author taking his talents, and "matinee-idol looks," to South Beach, Viglucci views Florida's winter migration south from his current home in Toronto as conferring a "blessing on the endeavors of Panther Coffee, Wynwood and the sprawling, still-unformed city that contains them."

So, with Florida's arrival, is Miami "ready to take its place in the creative economy alongside San Francisco, Boston, Seattle and Washington, D.C.?"

"Miami's newfound cultural allure, and its design-focused urban revival, [Florida] says, have made it a location of choice for people who, like the Floridas, could live anywhere. That includes CEOs with Beach pied-a-terres, DJs, star chefs and Latin American tech entrepreneurs. (The sunshine helps, he admits.)"

And although, as Viglucci notes, "the Miami-Fort Lauderdale metro area that is Florida's new winter home ranks relatively low on his creative-cities indices... it does score 11th in the nation for tolerance, a factor he says bodes well for the region's ability to attract and retain talent."

Watch out LeBron, there's a new superstar in town.