Treasure Ship to be Demolished

The iconic Treasure Ship which burned in April of 2010 was supposed to be torn down, but over a year later it still stands- reminding tourists that they can no longer visit the Treasure Ship Restaurant. The restaurant was a staple for visitors to Panama City Beach, and it’s burning broke many hearts.

A permit for demolition was signed June 2nd by the owner of the property, but the permit has now expired. This has caused the city to threaten demolishing the structure as early as next week. The city is hoping that the owner will renew her permit and demolish the remaining structure, because it is faster, easier, and less expensive than the city having to do it.

Many people would love to see the building fixed and running as it used to, however; it has been made clear that this won’t happen. The city would like to see it torn down before next years hurricane season hits, as it is an unsafe structure and could be made dangerous in the high winds.

Here is a link to the article written about the fire in 2010 and a link to the article about the decision not to rebuild.

Do you have any thoughts about the iconic building being demolished?

This Week:Pirates, Ghosts, Witches, Gymnasts, and Disney Characters!

The week of October 5^th to October 12^th is filled with Pirates, ghosts and witches, gymnasts, and Disney Princesses in Panama City.

Pirates of the High Seas Festival

October 7^th and 8^th, 2011

Pirates are invading Panama City Beach Friday and Saturday at the High Seas Festival. The festival will include pirate and wench costume contests, pet costume competitions, Mardi Gras style parades, beach ball drops, a 5K and half marathon, treasure hunts, face painting, pirate ship battles, children’s pirate parade, movie screenings, balloon making, and firework shows.

Please see the full article for detailed information and a complete event schedule.

Camp Helen State Park Ghost Walk and History Tour

October 8^th, 2011

Saturday, for only $5.00 for adults and $3.00 for children, you can join Camp Helen State Park for storytelling and historic re-enactments. The event will take place from 5 – 8:30pm and is family-friendly. Dress up in your favorite costume and bring a flashlight. Please park at Winn Dixie and ride the free shuttle if you are able, parking at the park is limited to handicapped.

7^th Annual Fall Into Edgewater

October 8^th– 10^th, 2011

Expecting a record number of athletes this year, is the Gymnastics Invitational competition at the Edgewater Beach Resort. USAG levels 2-10 will be competing based on Region 8 Rules and Florida Rules, as well as AAU levels 2-8. There will be a pool party from 6pm-8pm on Saturday to kick the competition off, followed by a weekend with two gyms full of talented gymnasts.

Three Classic Fairy Tales

October 9^th, 2011

You can see Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, and Donald Duck bringing alive Snow White, Cinderella, and Beauty and the Beast. Disney Live! is an experience for the whole family – adventure, humor, and romance. Tickets start at $17 and we’re offering a special discount to PCBDaily readers. When you buy using this phone number (850-763-4696) and mention the name “BELLE” you’ll save $5.00 from total ticket price. Not valid on Front Row/VIP. Additional service/handling fees may apply. The show is at 2:30 and 5:30pm at the Marianna Civic Center.

Have an amazing weekend, there are definitely a plethora of events to choose from!

High Seas Pirate Festival Invades PCB

October 7^th and 8^th Pirates of the High Seas Fest invade Panama City Beach for a weekend of family fun and entertainment. The weekends schedule is below. All events will be held at Pier Park, unless otherwise mentioned. Several events will involve the Krewe of Dominique Youx, the proud sponsors of Mardi Gras at the Beach in Panama City.

Friday October 7^th, 2011

6:00 pm– Adult Pirate and Wench Costume Contest

6:00 pm– Pet Costume Contest

7:00 pm– Second Line Parade led by Krewe of Dominique Youx (Mardi Gras style parade celebrating piracy this weekend)

8:00 pm– Tervis Family Beach Ball Drop (More than 7,000 beach balls will fall onto Pier Park Drive)

Saturday October 8^th, 2011

8:00 am– Run for the Treasure (pirate-themed fun run savenger hunt, 5K, and Half Marathon at Aaron Bessant Park)

12:00 pm– Children’s Costume Contest, Treasure Hunt on Bookit.com Beach, and Face Painting

2:00 pm– Lookout for Pirates on the Gulf of Mexico (The Midnight Princess and Sea Dragon battle on the waters)

3:00 pm– Pirates Raid Panama City Beach Pier to Capture the Keys to the City (pirates will invade the City Pier and have a children’s pirate parade, wear a costume and join in!)

5:00 pm– Main Pirate Parade (Krewe of Dominique Youx pirates join the costume contest winners and street performers)

6:15 pm– Pirate Movie Screening and Balloon Making

9:00 pm– Dueling Fireworks Show (Fireworks Battle between the two piers as a pirate ship arrives off shore)

Have an amazing weekend of piracy in Panama City Beach! Don’t forget your pirate and wench costumes!

A Successful Country Fest Weekend

This past weekend, the “Fun Never Sets” concert series held the two-night Country Fest featuring Miranda Lambert and Jason Aldean. Opening acts were The Randy Rodgers Band, Justin Moore, The Dirt Drifters, and Corey Smith.

Saturday night was estimated to host over 12,000 people, and judging by the screams when asked where everyone was from, most of the attendees were from out of state. The cheers for Alabama were the loudest, with Georgia a close second. Gates opened at 6:30pm each night, but had a line through the parking lot by 6:00pm.

At the concert, there were several food choices for concert goers to choose from, including seafood, funnel cakes, gator bites, BBQ, and hot dogs. There were also T-shirts, vanity items, and cowboy hats available for sale.

Friday’s Show

Friday night, the concerts were focused on appeasing the “Rednecks” in the crowd. The Randy Rodgers Band warmed up the night, with Justin Moore setting the Redneck tone and getting everyone excited for Miranda Lambert. Miranda Lambert began her set with Beyonce’s “Run the World (Girls)” music video, leading into her most female-empowering songs, “Kerosene” and “Gunpowder and Lead”. She continued to thank her fans for her award at this years Country Music Awards as Female Vocalist of the Year, which she thinks of as a wedding present from her fans – due to hearing the news while on her honeymoon with Blake Shelton. Miranda ended the concert with a few of her songs of her upcoming album set to launch on November 1st.

Saturday’s Show

The concerts on Saturday night, were still geared toward the “Redneck” audience, but also had a focus on remembering the “good ole days.” The Dirt Drifters opened the night with a focus on getting their name out there and having a good night. Corey Smith followed with songs reminiscing on spring breaks in Panama City, growing up a Redneck, and life as a Georgia native. The main artist of the evening, Jason Aldean, began his set with a silhouette of himself and played some of his most recent hits, “Big Green Tractor” and “Dirt Road Anthem.” He focused on making sure the audience was having fun and sharing personal anecdotes. He ended the evening covering a Kid Rock song “Cowboy,” and with a re-vamped version of his first single “Hicktown.”

Overall Impressions

All in all, Frank Brown Park was a perfect location for the crowd and the stage, hidden away from the road, yet still easily accessible. Parking and traffic were as organized as a crowd of this size could be. The security and volunteers were polite to concert-goers and helped them with any questions as quickly as possible when they did not have the specific answer. The crowd, decked out in cowboy boots, cowboy hats, plaid, and camouflage all seemed to be having a great time and were engaged in the artists. Hopefully, Panama City Beach will see similar events in the future!

*More information will be available about how much revenue the concerts brought to Panama City Beach, and we will get that out as soon as possible.*

Did you go to the concerts? What did you think of them?

International Real Estate Summit Coming to Panama City Beach

Organizers Lewis (Bud) and Hope Abbott have been hard at work putting together a large real estate summit in Panama City Beach that will draw attendees from all over the world.

Vision

From the website

“The vision of the “World Summit” is not to recreate your typical atmosphere of the International Real Estate trade shows, but to promote true unity and collaboration in and around the globe to create business. The message will be clear, that there is a new and better way of doing business on a global scale. You will be taught international business strategies by industry specialists that are working smarter and are proven leaders in their respected countries around the world.”

Date of the event and schedule

The event is from October 20 – 22, 2011 and will be held at the Boardwalk Beach Resort’s Conference facilities.

Pre-registration is on the afternoon of the 19th with the summit beginning at 9 am the following morning. Sessions will go through 5 pm.

For a full list of the schedule, visit their website.

Speakers

The International Real Estate World Summit is drawing speakers from Germany, Canada, Dubai, England, Asia, and of course, the USA.

Some of the topics that will be presented on are:

International Real Estate Trends
Mexico, the Growing Retirement Market
Immigration-Based Investment
How to Breakthrough with the Asia Investors
Marketing to Canada

For more information on the summit, visit their website.

City Moving Forward with Aaron Bessant Park Improvements [Amphitheater]

Looks like the improvements we were discussing for Aaron Bessant Park are, indeed, coming. Last week in a city council meeting, an “inter-local” agreement with Bay County was agreed upon to allow the City of Panama City Beach to take the lead on planning and development of this project. Although two of the council members were adamantly opposed to the improvements, there was still an affirmative majority vote – 3 to 2.

All the improvements could include:

60′x40′ amphitheater with permanent roof and walls suitable for theatrical productions, orchestral performances and musical events
Expanded amphitheater lawn area (see diagram below
Vegetative buffers around the parameter to prevent the need for temporary fencing
The Festival Lawn (the sandy area that’s used as overflow and vedor parking behind the park) will be improved to the quality of Frank Brown Park’s festival area
This area will support parking, play fields, and will have sod and irrigation
Additional bathroom facilities

At this point, the exact plans have not been decided upon. The structure in a previous post is just a proposed idea. The agreement that came to pass in the city council meeting just grants the City the ability to spearhead the planning of the new project.

The next step will bring plans and workshops before the final proposal and approval process.

IMAX Theater Open in Pier Park

With the release of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2, The Grand Theatre in Pier Park opened their IMAX screen, which has been in the works for a couple months. If you’ve not seen a movie in IMAX, you have to try it – it truly takes you into the movie.

Dubbed, “the world’s most immersive movie experience,” IMAX touts 12,000 watts of digital surround sound, crystal clear images, the world’s largest movie screens. This sounds fascinating and fun, but how does it do this?

How IMAX works.

IMAX combines a huge screen with a state-of-the-art projection system and a very advanced sound system. The typical IMAX screen is 52′ x 72′ – which is the size of The Grand’s. In addition to the huge size, the screen has a curvature to it that helps to “bring the viewer into the movie.” What really makes the magic happen is the two projectors that push the imagery onto the screen and the rumbling sound that you feel in your gut. The projector uses xenon short-arc lamps that fire a light so bright, the video on the screen is crisp and clear. The sound system is a complex array of surround sound speakers that offers a crystal clear listening experience and seat-shaking bass. You hear every crackle, pop, and whisper with complete accuracy.

What’s showing and the price.

Currently Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 is playing IMAX at the Grand. And let me tell you, it’s simply amazing. They only have one IMAX theater, so only one feature film will be playing at a time. Harry Potter is expected to play until August 4th at which point Sector 7: An IMAX 3D Experience is expected to play until the 9th when Cowboy’s Vs. Aliens comes out.

The ticket price is as follows:

$12 on Tuesdays
$12.50 for matinee
Evenings are $15.25 for adults and $12.50 for kids

At this time, an additional IMAX theater is not being planed for for The Grand, but there is another theater room that would be suitable for the upgrade, should the demand arise.

Have you been to our IMAX or another one? What were your thoughts on it?

New Amphitheater coming to Aaron Bessant Park

Improvements to Aaron Bessant park have been in the works for a few months. In fact, talks of improvements have been going on for years, but money has always been a challenge. This year, BP money in excess of $1 million, will help make park improvements a reality, and last week the Panama City Beach City Council approved the improvements.

Improvements include a new, larger amphitheater.

The new improvements will be a welcome addition to a heavily used facility. Currently they have several large events there each year that requires spending 10’s of thousands of dollars on erected staging and equipment. The new facility will have a large covered stage, integrated electrical and a solid infrastructure to host events with a capacity of 10,000.

All the improvements include:

60’x40′ amphitheater with permanent roof and walls suitable for theatrical productions, orchestral performances and musical events
Expanded amphitheater lawn area (see diagram below
Vegetative buffers around the parameter to prevent the need for temporary fencing
The Festival Lawn (the sandy area that’s used as overflow and vedor parking behind the park) will be improved to the quality of Frank Brown Park’s festival area
This area will support parking, play fields, and will have sod and irrigation
Additional bathroom facilities

Renderings, conceptual and imagery

The teal boundary area is the existing sidewalk paths around the amphitheater area. The purple lines indicate the other sidewalk areas and paths that lead around the park. The black lines will be the new amphitheater lawn area.

This is a conceptual of what the amphitheater could look like. The final product will have a beachy feel and should be consisten with the look and feel of neighboring Pier Park. The stage area could be approximately 60 feet across and 40 feet deep offering 2,400 square feet of space. There will be permanent walls and roof.

This is an example of another amphitheater. Ours could look similar.

What are your thoughts on this? Do you think this will bring more traffic problems to this area? Or do you think the improvements will be better for the community as a whole?

Laser Show This Weekend at Pier Park

Looking for something different to do this weekend? Try out the Laser Show that’s going down at Pier Park this weekend. Sponsored by Miracle Strip at Pier Park and located right across from them at the Bookit.com Beach, this is something totally new to the area and should be a total blast for your kids, friends and family.

Event details.

The event is on July 15th, 16th, and 17th.
The gates open at Sunset each day
The show starts at 9:30 pm
Tickets are $5
Miracle Strip @ Pier Park Daily Armband Holders will get free admission.

Russell Fields Pier adds 4 “Convenience” Booths

If you’ve driven by the Russell Field’s Pier in the last couple weeks you’ve probably noticed the four new huts that have gone up at the foot of the pier. The original vision of the Russell Field’s included having a sprawling amenity area, a gather place for visitors to hang out, a place where you can enjoy the sunset and the warm summer breeze. These new huts just add to the convenience of your beachy good times and help make your visit to the pier a little more enjoyable.

Beach Photos

The beach photo hut comes stocked with props and professional photographers that can escort you down to the beach for that perfect beach family portrait. What better way to capture the moment then by posing in front of a high-resolution lens and saying cheese. They have everything you need right there and when you’re done, they hand over a disc with your photos on it. Easy.

They do one photo for $10 and each additional photo is $8.

Convenience Store

Left the sunscreen at home? Need a new hat? They’ve got you covered. Here are some of the items you can find here.

Hair braids and wraps
Hemp necklaces and other beach jewelry
Lip balm
Sun screen
Shades – even those new HD ones
Tons of different hats – sun hats, ball caps, safari hats
Skim boards and boogie boards
Floaties – tubes, rafts, etc.
Beach toys – paddle ball, shovels, buckets, sand-molds, frisbees, etc.
Volley balls and footballs
Beach clothing – sarongs, cover-ups
Beach towels and umbrellas
Batteries
Snacks
Over the counter pain reliever

Airbrush Booth

Seriously, one of the best souvenirs to take home from your beach vacation is an airbrush t-shirt. Airbrush shirts and Panama City Beach have been going hand in hand since the 70’s.

At the Airbrush Station at the foot of Russell Fields Pier they have tons of designs ready to be put on your shirt. Or, if you’re feeling saucy, you can have a custom design commissioned just for you.

Shirts are $7 and the ready-made designs start at $10.

But, shirts are not the only thing they can airbrush. There are tons of other options: hats, shells, license plates, bags, and even baby bibs!

Snack Shack

Not to compete with Hook’d, the Snack Shack has all the little things you wouldn’t expect to find in a restaurant:

Snowcones
Hot dogs (hot diggity dog, salty dog, slaw dog, surf dog)
Boiled peanuts
Cookies
Chips
Sodas
Ice cream
Pretzels