The Venetian Islands project was proposed to be much larger than what exists today. Another causeway was to be built, called "The Drive of the Campanili." The causeway would connect Hibiscus Island (south of the Venetian Islands) with Di Lido Island. The road would then continue north right up the center of Biscayne Bay, with five new islands created along its path. The roadway would then veer slightly to the northeast, where it would end at
Indian Creek Village. An additional four islands would be built along two east-west roads that would connect with the causeway. One of these roads was along the current route of the
Julia Tuttle Causeway and the other along the current route of the 79th Street Causeway. The original bridge (called the
Collins Bridge) was built by farmer and developer
John S. Collins with financial assistance from automotive parts and racing pioneer
Carl G. Fisher. At the time it was completed, it was the longest wooden bridge in the world. The 2½ mile wooden toll bridge opened on June 12, 1913, providing a critical link to the newly established city of
Miami Beach, formerly accessible only by a ferry service. While none of these islands were built, the foundation pillings for one of them can still be seen in Central Biscayne Bay between Di Lido Island and the
Julia Tuttle Causeway. The island was to be called
Isola di Lolando. The demise of the island construction was due to a combination of the aftermath of the
1926 Miami Hurricane and the end of the
Florida land boom of the 1920s. The Shoreland Company went bankrupt in 1927 due to objections of "further mutilation of the waterway". The original wooden causeway was replaced in 1925 by a series of arch drawbridges and renamed the
Venetian Causeway. Today, the causeway is a popular stretch for people to jog, ride bikes, walk dogs and stroll. The islands offer residents a suburb feel that is located between (and within minutes of) Miami Beach's
South Beach and Miami's
Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts. ==Biscayne Island==