New Thai Buddhist Temple Opens in South Florida

June 7, 2003

Source: Miami Herald

https://miamiherald.newspapers.com/image/648272678/?terms=Wat%20Buddharangsi%20the%20first%20Thai%20Buddhist%20temple%20to%20be%

On June 7, 2003 Miami Herald reported that the building of "Wat Buddharangsi, the first Thai Buddhist temple to be built in South Florida, [which was] a nearly 20-year undertaking... will culminate next week in five days of dedication ceremonies. The $1.5 million temple in South Miami-Dade is the latest in a Thai Buddhist building boom: A temple was dedicated last week in Albuquerque, N.M.; another in Houston last June... What's fueling the surge is the growth of Asian immigrants, second only to Hispanics in terms of the fastest-growing ethnic group in the United States, according to the 2000 Census. Broward alone saw the number of Asians double in the 1990s. Our fascination with Asian culture, too, is spawning the interest."