Mary Ann Taylor's first indication that not all change is good came in 1947.

Born in Hialeah and raised in Miami Springs, she used to routinely ride her horse, Rex, across the stretch of Miami River canal that separates the two communities.

Her father kept livestock at their home, so Taylor and her family had their horses and chickens and any other animal fit for loving or eating.

Then came the zoning change of 1947, and the family had to do away with all its livestock, including Rex.

``It nearly broke my heart,'' says Taylor, now 80.

It was only the beginning of the change that would come to this community, where the Miami River canal for decades served as a great cultural divide, separating the blue-collar, lower-income, mostly Spanish-speaking enclave of Hialeah on the north from the tony, upwardly mobile English-speaking community of Miami Springs on the south.

HIALEAH RESURGING

Cross the bridge that separates the two cities today and you'll still sense a difference between the two areas, only this time Hialeah has the economic advantage.

Billed as the City of Progress, Hialeah is resurging, its downtown blooming with landscaping and pedestrians, and the sounds of new construction.

On the south side of the bridge, faded traces of that construction can be heard as you stand in front of the Miami Springs Pharmacy, founded by Carol Dodgen's father some 65 years ago.

Over the years, Dodgen has witnessed the town's struggle between embracing a rapidly changing world and eschewing it, between preserving the past and welcoming the future.

DEBATE

Some years ago, passions ran high on whether the city should renovate the town's country club or tear it down and build a new one with more revenue-producing amenities. The club was renovated.

``Ah, they should've torn it down,'' says the pharmacy's only customer, who overhears my conversation with Dodgen as he walks in.

``It looks good, but you still can't do much with it.''

It was an equally passionate debate recently when the city was trying to decide between renovating an old gym or building a new modern facility.

This time, those in favor of new development won.

For Dodgen, it's a sign that the city is beginning to move forward as older residents are replaced with younger ones. It's also a realization that when you bar the outside world, you spurn the good as well as the bad.

Dodgen understands the desire to hold onto the past, but looking around her pharmacy, the charm of its sundries eclipsed by the shop's emptiness, she can't help but lament that the town has missed out on something. ``We're cut off to the outside world,'' she says.

TREES GONE

Recently, the community was shaken by a decision to uproot decades-old pine trees that used to line a canal along Ludlam Drive, where Taylor has her home.

The trees were removed in the name of progress: The pine needles were filling up the canal and could contribute to flooding in the event of a major storm.

Now, instead of a border of greenery, all Taylor sees is a jail on the other side of the canal.

New trees are scheduled to be planted soon, but that offers her little consolation as she notes that it will be years before the trees are fully grown.

``It'll take a while to shield us,'' she says.

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