Pembroke Pines spread west from University Drive to the Everglades in four decades
The name goes back to Pembroke Road and the pine trees along it. The first mayor, Walter Kipnis, had one of the first homes, built in 1956, and the city incorporated in January 1960 with less than a square mile between Hollywood Boulevard, SW 72nd Avenue and Florida's Turnpike. Much of the eastern land was dairy pasture, including the Waldrep Dairy Farm, where Pembroke Lakes Mall stands now. For years University Drive was the western edge of habitable land.
A 1980 annexation that ran from Flamingo Road to U.S. 27 doubled the city, and I-75 reached Pines Boulevard by 1984. Streets still follow Hollywood's grid with "west" added, which helps when you describe where you live. The pattern for doors follows the map: the oldest sliders are in the east, closer to the Turnpike and North Perry Airport, and they get newer the farther west you drive.
West Pines was built after Hurricane Andrew, and its doors are a different generation
Hurricane Andrew in 1992 sent thousands of south Miami-Dade families north, and many settled in Pembroke Pines. By 1999 it ranked third on a national list of the fastest growing cities, and the population went from 65,452 in 1990 to 157,594 in 2011. The area west of I-75, known as West Pines, is mostly subdivisions built since Andrew, and communities such as Chapel Trail and Silver Lakes date from that wave. Pembroke Falls, in the middle of the city, is a gated community with a strong HOA.
Doors in these homes are usually larger and heavier than the ones in the east side houses, and many have impact glass. The common failures are different too:
- Rollers that wear out under the weight of tall impact panels, so the door drags and scrapes.
- Locks and handles that loosen from daily use by a busy household.
- Fogging between the panes of insulated glass when the seal fails.
Before a replacement, read your HOA rules. Many associations approve exterior changes, including door color and frame style.
Irene, Katrina and Wilma each tested Pembroke Pines doors
Hurricane Irene in 1999 dropped up to 16 inches of rain on the city and an estimated 19 inches on the western communities, including Chapel Trail and Silver Lakes. In 2005 Katrina passed directly over Pembroke Pines as a Category 1 storm, and in October the eye of Wilma passed about 20 miles to the north. The city recorded sustained winds of 92 mph with a gust of 101 mph, power was out for days, and most of the damage to houses was to roofs and screens. A 2017 study counted 116,000 residents living inside FEMA's coastal floodplain.
Rain is the everyday test. Every slider has small drain holes in the outer sill that let water in the channel run out. When those holes are packed with grass clippings and grit, a summer storm fills the channel and water spills onto the floor inside. Clearing them with a thin wire takes a minute and prevents most of these leaks. After a big storm, also check the screen: wind-driven rain and debris often knock screen panels off their rollers, and a screen that hangs crooked will scrape the glass panel every time the door moves.
Pembroke Pines is in the HVHZ: what to ask before replacing a door
Broward and Miami-Dade are the High Velocity Hurricane Zone of the Florida Building Code. A new slider in Pembroke Pines, in the older east or in West Pines, needs a Miami-Dade NOA or a Florida Product Approval that lists the HVHZ. Questions worth asking any installer:
- What is the approval number, and does it cover the size of my opening?
- Is the existing problem really the door, or would new rollers and a track repair fix it?
- Does my HOA need to approve the new door before it is ordered?
Many West Pines homes were built after 1992, and their doors are often better repaired than replaced. When replacement does make sense, see sliding glass door replacement. Pembroke Pines borders Miramar and Cooper City, and the county list is on the Broward County page.