Coral Gables was one of the first new townplanned communities, and prefigured the development of the gated community and the homeowners association. It was at one point notorious for its aesthetic regulations, but they pale compared to those currently practiced by homeowners associations. The city was developed by George Merrick in the 1920s. The city's architecture is almost entirely Mediterranean. Merrick designed the downtown commercial district to be only four blocks wide and more than two miles long. The area was once serviced by a free trolley system that ran down Ponce de Leon Boulevard, the main artery disecting the business district. Merrick could boast that every business in Coral Gables was less than a two block walk. The old trolley system was replaced by the popularity of modern automobiles until a new free trolley system was initiated in November, 2003. Now, Coral Gables is known as a pedestrian-friendly destination. Located only four miles from Miami International Airport, the "City Beautiful" boasts more than 140 dining establishments and gourmet shops, plus many notable international retailers. In 1925, roughly simultaneous to the founding of Coral Gables, the city was selected as the home to the University of Miami, which was constructed that year on 240 acres of land just west of U.S. Route 1, approximately two miles south of downtown Coral Gables. Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coral_Gables%2C_Florida