Miami To Be Headquarters For Southern Command

In a decision that could bring 1,500 new jobs and thousands of additional visitors to Florida, the Pentagon on Wednesday selected Miami as the next headquarters for U.S. military activities in Latin America.

The announcement was timed to coincide with President Clinton’s arrival in Tallahassee, Florida’s capital, Wednesday evening. “The president was going to be in Florida and has good news to share with them,” said a senior White House official.

Florida, which will have 25 electoral votes in the 1996 presidential election, had powerful congressional support for two of the six candidate cities the Defense Department was considering: Miami and Tampa.

Military officials said they concluded that Miami was the best choice after considering the cost, quality of life for military personnel and the city’s standing as a cultural, business and transportation hub of the Americas.

Miami civic leaders have estimated that the new headquarters would provide 1,500 new jobs, 10,000 additional visitors a year and a five-year infusion of $100 million in the local economy.

With U.S. forces scheduled to withdraw from the current headquarters of the Southern Command in Panama by 1999 under terms of the Panama Canal Treaty, the Pentagon’s search for a new home for the command had touched off a mad scramble among six communities.

Besides Miami and Tampa, the Defense Department was also considering New Orleans, Atlanta, Washington and Puerto Rico.

The Southern Command is res ponsible for U.S. military activities in 19 countries in Central and South America, excluding the Caribbean and Mexico.