March 2011
May 2019
Events and Celebrations
New Year’s Eve Pelican Drop occurs in Plaza Ferdinand and draws crowds of more than 50,000; a 14-foot-tall pelican statue descends a 100-foot platform at midnight
Annual Mardi Gras Parade attracts 6,000 participants, more than 200 floats
Investors to spend $1 million to convert vacant Palafox parcel into courtyard for food trucks
Downtown Improvement Board manages Palafox special events involving street closure, portable restrooms, additional police and EMTs, and event cleanup
Source: American Planning Association
Pure Barre Studio and Fosko Coffee Barre
March 2011
May 2019
Originally interested in opening a Pure Barre studio, Kevin and Catalina Kehman added a coffee shop next door called Fosko when they realized the studio would not be able to turn a profit to cover the necessary rent. Both businesses opened on Palafox Street in 2014.
May 2019
May 2019
Cactus Cantina Mexican Grill
July 2011
May 2019
The Cactus Cantina, one of Pensacola’s most popular Mexican restaurants, recently opened its second location in the heart of downtown Pensacola on Palafox Street. Cactus Cantina occupies a space that once housed a Beef ‘O’ Brady’s.
Historic Character
April 2016
May 2019
Originally named George Street after King George III, Palafox retains original grid design laid out by British engineer Elias Durnford in 1764
Pensacola was capital of West Florida during periods of British, Spanish, and American occupation with Palafox Street serving as city’s central business and cultural artery (1760s)
Spanish Surveyor General Vicente Sebastian Pintado renamed street Calle de Palafox after Jose Robelledo de Palafox, 1st Duke of Saragossa (1812)
Pintado modified Palafox British plan according to orders from the Council of Indies and Spanish colonial town planning concepts; set aside Plaza Ferdinand as public space (1812)
Palafox Street was Pensacola’s main commercial hub after Civil War; city became one of the largest export centers of yellow pine and red snapper for the Gulf Coast (1880)
Eighty percent of the buildings along Palafox Street built during the Progressive era by optimistic businessmen wanting to erect edifices that stand the test of time (1890-1920)
Source: American Planning Association
The Tin Cow
November 2007
Tin Cow Hamburger
May 2019
The Tin Cow is a local burger, milkshake and craft beer restaurant concept that opened on Palafox Street in 2012.
World of Beer
March 2011
May 2019
After establishing World of Beer in Tampa in 2005, Pensacola natives Matt LaFon and Scott Zepp returned to their hometown, opening a World of Beer location on Palafox Street in 2012. Since that time, the business partners have opened three additional concepts in adjacent buildings. Blend Lounge was the first to follow, opening in 2013. In 2016, Taco Agave was added to the mix. Their latest concept, Graffiti Pizza, opened in 2018 utilizing a portion of an existing surface parking lot as a covered outdoor seating area.
November 2007
May 2019
“The most exciting thing to me is seeing all these young entrepreneurs taking chances on Pensacola when 10 years ago it didn’t seem that way. And one of the most exciting things now is we’re starting to retain talent. Some of these people are wanting to stay in Pensacola rather than go elsewhere and I think you’re going to see it get even better here in the next couple of years.” - Scott Zepp - World of Beer
Source: Pensacola News Journal
March 2011
May 2019
May 2019
“When we were coming back, we didn’t know about Gallery Night, and when we started seeing what was happening with Gallery Night, we started seeing the area would support new bars. If you can do it one night, you can do many more nights. That kinda opened our eyes. At the time, if you looked at the demographic, it didn’t seem like the greatest place, but with us being from here, we really believed it. Matt and I always listen to our customers to our friends and we just always try to fill a void with our concepts.” - Scott Zepp - World of Beer
Source: Pensacola News Journal