Having been born in Miami, I can tell you that the single turnout shelf layout described by Lance Mindheim in the May 2013 MRH article is very accurate to the prototype. Not only does it "look" right, it agrees quite well with Google maps (I checked it out, search for 3409 NE 62 Street, Miami , FL, on Google Maps if you'd like to see it for yourself). Excellent job, Lance!

For someone who enjoys making scenery, scratch-building structures, and adding scenic detail & clutter, there is enough there to keep them busy for quite a while. My own personal problem is that I am unable to satisfy myself with my own efforts at building scenery, so I really don't enjoy doing it very much, and therefore, I frequently "don't get around to it". I must admit that up until Lance's series of articles on his current layout, I thought Miami was just too flat and boring to be a decent prototype for model railroad scenery, since there are no mountains or breathtaking vistas here, but Lance's article shows those things aren't really needed. After reading his articles, I am rethinking my position.

Most model railroaders start a layout with over-ambitious goals in mind, and when the construction progress gets bogged down, they get bored and discouraged, lose interest, or tear it down and start over. The most important point in this article is the idea of starting small while maintaining achievable goals, thus being able to complete this part of the layout, and then add more layout once this section is finished. If following the advice from this article helps a modeler break out of the "start it, get bored, then tear it down and start over again" syndrome, then it is very good advice indeed.

Bill in FtL