Two weeks after Hurricane Isaias, most of the work in Mexico Beach is happening along the water. Crews are still clearing the canal, the dune walkovers are unfinished, and the pier is in the hands of contractors and council meetings. The holiday calendar is happening somewhere else. From mid-November through January, every major community event is set for one of two downtown parks, Parker Park at 2500 Highway 98 or Under the Palms Park on 7th Street. Those two parks are also where the city has crossed the most projects off its list.
The unfinished projects are on the waterfront, and the finished ones are in the parks.
The finished list is mostly the parks
The city's projects page uses strikethrough text to mark completed work. Here is how the two groups line up:
| Finished | Still in process |
|---|---|
| Amphitheater at Parker Park | Pier rebuild |
| New restrooms at Parker and Under the Palms parks | Jetty rebuild |
| 15th Street Pedestrian Bridge | Boat ramp expansion and seawall repairs |
| ADA kayak launch on the canal | ADA dune walkovers at Sunset Park, 7th Street and the pier |
| Mobi-Mats | Police/fire station |
Almost everything people use for a Saturday morning or a December evening is in the left column. Almost everything that depends on the canal, the jetty or the dunes is in the right column. Isaias added to the right column.
What Isaias did to the waterfront
The city's October 16 weekly report said the canal "was among the city facilities hardest hit by Hurricane Isaias." Sand washed in from the beach and blocked the channel to all but the smallest boats. By then the Harbor Master's crew had removed thousands of cubic feet of sand. The city said it would announce the reopening through its own communication channels once the canal was safe to navigate. WMBB reported that crews dredged every day that week and still had more sand to move. If you keep a boat on the canal, the city's channels are the place to watch.
The dark water near shore has a simple explanation. City officials told WJHG it's tannin discoloration, which happens when large amounts of stormwater drain to the Gulf to keep inland areas from flooding. The dredging is also stirring things up near the canal for now. The same report said the work is meant to restore safe passage for charter and commercial fishing boats.
Some beach access is still under construction too. The October 16 report said the Sunset Park walkover's as-built survey was in, with weld rust being checked and a final row of side planking to come. At the 7th Street walkover, railings were expected that week, though the report noted "little progress." For the pier, the city was preparing pre-construction documents and a first change order for the October 27 council meeting. We covered the pier's longer story in why Mexico Beach's restaurants came back years before its pier did.
Overall, the town came through better than many feared. In the same report, Fire Chief Sandy Walker wrote that "given the presence of a Category 3 storm in the area, the outcome was as good as we could have hoped for," and said he expected the city to be "largely back to normal" by the time the update went out.
The stage that replaced the wooden one
The amphitheater is the newest piece in the parks. WMBB reported in September that it replaced the small wooden stage that used to stand in Parker Park. It cost just under $300,000, paid for with grants and city money. City Administrator Mell Smigielski told the station, "People like to go to concerts and parks and be with each other," and called the venue "a major improvement from what we had in the past."
It opened with the Mexico Beach Community Development Council's free Music in the Park series, held Thursdays from 5 to 7 p.m. through September. The lineup was String Theory, Flabbergasted Band, Baby Gray and Bo Spring Band. The Farmers' Market of Mexico Beach Fall Festival followed on October 10 in the same park, with food trucks, games and pumpkin decorating.
The amphitheater is also open beyond the city's own events. Anyone can book it by getting a special-use permit from the city. That's worth knowing if you run a club, a church group or a fundraiser that used to need a borrowed backyard.
The calendar from here to January
By Thursday, October 29, the Halloween Mutt Strut and the October 24 market will be over. Here is what's left, all listed on the CDC's Mexico Beach event calendar:
- Farmers & Craft Market, Saturday, November 14, Parker Park. Special Events for Mexico Beach, Inc. organizes it.
- Turkey Trot 5K, Thursday, November 26, 8 a.m., starting and finishing at Under the Palms Park. The same all-volunteer Special Events for Mexico Beach group runs it.
- Farmers & Craft Market, Saturday, November 28, Parker Park.
- License-Free Saltwater Fishing Day, Sunday, November 29. This is one of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission's license-free fishing days. The rules are on the FWC's free fishing days page.
- Christmas Tree Lighting, Sunday, December 6, 6 to 7:30 p.m., Parker Park. Live music, the golf-cart parade, Santa, and a Mexico Beach Fire Department toy collection.
- Farmers & Craft Market, Saturdays, December 12 and 26, Parker Park.
- Farmers & Craft Market, Saturdays, January 9 and 23, 2027, Parker Park.
The market listing gives two different sets of hours, 8 a.m. to noon and 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., so check with Special Events for Mexico Beach before you go.
Thanksgiving week packs three events into four days: the Turkey Trot on Thursday, the market on Saturday, then License-Free Fishing Day on Sunday morning. If family is in town for the holiday, none of it requires leaving Mexico Beach. The tree lighting has been planned for a while. The city's September 25 weekly report listed a September 29 bid opening for the Christmas tree itself.
Getting between the parks and the beach
The finished projects help people get around on foot. The 15th Street Pedestrian Bridge started with a $350,000 state grant that WJHG reported in 2023, meant as a safer way to reach the beach. City weekly reports show it was delivered March 23 and set in place by early April. It's now marked complete, along with the Mobi-Mats and the new restrooms at both parks. Those restrooms are a big reason a two-hour tree lighting with kids works at all.
The ADA kayak launch on the canal is finished too, with accessible parking nearby. It's another reason to watch for the city's canal reopening announcement.
Coffee before the market, dinner after the parade
The CDC's eat and drink directory lists Bakerista at 1100 Highway 98 for baked goods, coffee and espresso. That's an easy stop on the way to an 8 a.m. Turkey Trot start. The directory also calls Beach Bear Coastal at 2902 US-98 a new restaurant, and it offers pickup and delivery for nights when the tree lighting runs late.
Here is how the season looks with the pieces together. The canal will reopen when the dredging is done, and the walkovers and pier will finish on their own schedules. Meanwhile, the market, the 5K and the tree lighting are set for two parks that are finished, with restrooms, a real stage and a footbridge.
If Isaias got you thinking about what your Mexico Beach property is worth this fall, The Gene Team can give you a current number while you're between market Saturdays. Start with our free home valuation, and we'll follow up and follow through from there.
