8 Great Ways to SAVE MONEY at the The PCB Seafood, Wine & Music Festival

If you aren’t already bursting with excitement over the upcoming PCB Seafood Wine and Music Festival, here are 8 reasons why you should be. Here’s how to save money and still have a blast during Panama City Beach’s signature event.

====> CLICK HERE TO BUY TICKETS

1. The best priced tickets are online in advance at PanamaCityBeachFest.com – and use promo code PCBDAILY to save $2 off each ticket

2. All Kids 12 and Under are FREE

3. The Beach Bouncers “Bouncer Village” now has 8 giant bouncers and they are all FREE

4. The FAMILY FUN DAYS (Sat & Sun 11a-3p) features a Meet & Greet with Nickelodeon’s Jimmy Neutron, Hands on Art with Visual Arts Center & various local artists, Face Painting, Stilt Walking Balloon Artists, Kids Concerts with the Fish Clappers Island Band, shows by Gallagher’s Gymnastic’s and more are all FREE

5. Not interested in the big concerts each night? Get a daytime only ticket and save nearly 50%

6. Special daytime only “all you can ride” midway armbands will be just $10 – a 50% savings off the all day & night “all you can ride” armband ($20)

7. The Emerald Coast Cruizin Sneak Peek Car Show is FREE and included with all General Admission and VIP tickets

8. All Wine Tastings (4p-6p each day) are included with all General Admission and VIP tickets

====> CLICK HERE TO BUY TICKETS

Some other cool stuff to know about the festival:

2009 is the 30th anniversary of this ever evolving premiere event on Panama City Beach

The festival benefits many charities through direct donations for volunteer work done at the festival to the newly announced “Promo Codes for Cash”, where non-profit groups can get a special PROMO CODE and whenever anyone uses that code when they purchase their advance discount tickets online the festival will donate $2 to the non profit group. If you represent a non profit group and you need a promo code to help you raise funds, call 850-230-6715

The 2009 official t-shirts have been designed by internationally acclaimed artist GUY HARVEY – and every shirt purchase benefits the Guy Harvey Ocean Foundation

The current promoters of the festival (since 2008) are 3 local men who live here, own and operate businesses here, and are invested in the community and want to see this festival be the pride of PCB again

====> CLICK HERE TO BUY TICKETS

AGENDA: TDC/CVB: Sep 29 Budget Discussions

Combined Tourist Development Council and Convention and Visitor’s Bureau meeting to discuss amendment to the 2010 CVB Budget.

AGENDA

COMBINED BOARD MEETING
Bay County Tourist Development Council
Panama City Beach Convention & Visitors Bureau, Inc.
Panama City Beach
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
4:00 p.m.
Board Room, Visitor

Information Center

I. CALL MEETING TO ORDER

II. ROLL CALL

A. Invocation
B. Pledge of Allegiance

III. REVIEW AND DISCUSS BUDGET AMENDMENT FOR THE FY 2010 CVB BUDGET, Mr. Dan Rowe, President

IV. AUDIENCE PARTICIPATION

V. ADJOURNMENT

To download this agenda please click here

Excercise for a Good Cause at Pier Park This Week(end)

We all knew Pier Park would be a game changer when it exploded onto the Panama City Beach shopping scene almost two years ago. But in addition to being a great place on Panama City Beach to shop and dine, Pier Park is also a great place to hold awesome events and fundraisers. With the huge expanse of pavement Pier Park happens to be the perfect place to stage fun and fundraising runs and walks.

Continue reading “Excercise for a Good Cause at Pier Park This Week(end)” →

TDC: Spring Break Recommendations – No More MTV

TDC/CVB had a combined meeting this week to pass Spring Break recommendations presented by Dan Rowe, CEO of the Tourist Development Council. After long weeks of deliberations, meetings and one vigorous community forum, a recommendation on Spring Break was reached that will decidedly cut Spring Break advertising ergo, cutting ties with MTV.

Bullet point recommendations at the meeting were as follows:

TDC Actions:
- Limit Paid Advertising to “Spring Break Responsibly” campaigns
- Engage in Proactive Spring Break Public Relations activities
- Develop a Spring Break Section of VisitPanamaCityBeach.com with Spring Break Responsibly messages, “Rules of the Road,” Spring Break Friendly Lodging.
Requested City of Panama City Beach Actions
- Conduct workshops for businesses engaged in Spring Break to discuss ways of better managing Spring Break business owners’ roles in the enforcement of state and local laws and other avenues to control potential problems related to Spring Break.
- Conduct workshops with the public and lodging establishments not directly engaged in Spring Break on strategies to control and limit impacts from Spring Break, as well as define various roles, responsibilities, and what action public safety officials can legally and practically take.
- Hire auxiliary police during peak weeks to augment PCB PD to increase police presence along Front Beach Road.
- Provide additional foot, canine and ATV patrols in areas of high Spring Break activity, including on the sandy beach to enforce littering, glass and other laws.
- Fully implement the Special Events Ordinance to insure gatherings of college students at outdoor concerts and other assemblies have appropriate management and public safety plans in place.
- Encourage FRLA to take and active role in getting the association’s members to proactively manage Spring Break activities at their locations.

This breaks down to better overall management of the 2 month-long event coupled with a more strategic advertising aimed at positive Spring Break messaging. No additional monies will be allocated to marketing or advertising Spring Break (only towards advertising “Spring Break Responsibly” which should fall somewhere between $12-$15,000 in total). Basically, no MTV, no bucketloads of money to the event and much stronger police presence throughout the beach. The question remains as to whether or not this will satisfy everyone, but it is, incontestably, a very good start.

The New King of South Has Been Crowned

Early Tuesday morning, a milestone was reached at the New Panama City Beach – Bay County International Airport Site. The capping of the control, a significant accomplishment in airport construction, was completed with nary a hiccup.

Dozens of workers, all using video camera cell phones to capture the event, lined the fenced perimeter to take a marked occasion in a very long process. Two huge cranes on either side of the 50 ton metal frame slowly raised the cab the 150ft to the top of the control tower.

It hovered under perfect blue skies before being bolted down atop the tower to be glassed in at a later date. While the whole event lasted a half hour or so, it was simultaneously the apogee to years of work and the crowning of Northwest Florida new king. If all goes according to plan, the new airport will be one of the signature southern airports, providing vacationers easy access to the “World’s Most Beautiful Beach” as well as low cost flights for residents. Seeing the control tower in place gave the airport a sense of tangibility, an air of “this whole airport-and-panama-city-beach-transformation thing is really going to happen, huh?” The ceremony was quite a thing to behold.

I asked Jeff Dealy, KBR’s program manager for the project, how many times in my life would I get to experience an event like the capping of the control tower. He smiled and said, “Once.”

Rates Lower – Single Family Starts Fall

We have had some good news on the housing front over the past week as the National Association of Homebuilders reported that builder confidence rose in September for the third consecutive month to its highest level since May of 2008. The Census Bureau also released a report on August home starts that showed builders broke ground on 598,000 new homes, up 1.5% from July.

The good news was tempered, however, by a surprising drop in the number of single family home starts. While overall starts were up, thanks to a resurgence in multi-family property starts, single-family starts actually fell 3% in August. Some analysts suggested the drop in single-family home starts could simply be an anomaly and point to the overall report as yet another sign that the housing market has bottomed.

Mortgage rates have continued to defy the rally in the stock market with the benchmark conforming thirty-year, fixed-rate settling in at 5.125% with no points. The fifteen year fixed also improved to just under 4.50% as the bond market continues to bet that the Federal Reserve will keep rates low for the foreseeable future. Fed Chairman, Ben Bernanke, has helped reaffirm this belief by stating that while the economy may be approaching the end of the recession the overall economy, and particularly job growth, are likely to remain weak for some time. With the apparent lack of any inflationary pressures on the horizon, the Fed is determined to keep monetary policy very accommodating to insure the economy does not slip back into recession. Over the short-run, I expect mortgage rates to remain in their current narrow range and could ease even further.

One late report out this week from the IRS said that, so far, 1.4 million first-time homebuyers have taken advantage of the $8,000 tax credit. The credit is due to expire on November 30th though there are already some calls from Congress that it should be extended. I’ll keep you posted.

Episode #23 – 3/2 Waterfront Townhome, $159k, 2 Boat Slips Xtra Lot

This week’s features:

Deal 1 – 3/2 Waterfront Townhome, $159k, 2 Boat Slips Xtra Lot
Deal 2 – 3/2 DSF Home in Palmetto Trace for $140/foot
Deal 3 – 2/2 Gulf-front Condo for less than $200k

The Beach Show is your ONLY internet TV show all about Real Estate on Panama City Beach.

Download the podcast

Remember, it doesn’t cost anything to work with us if you are a buyer.

Click the “more” tag for show notes and pictures.

Call us at 850-527-5651 to see these properties or for anything else you need regarding real estate in Panama City Beach.

Show Notes

Deal 1 – 3/2 Waterfront Townhome, $159k, 2 Boat Slips Xtra Lot

List Price: $159,000
Square Feet: 1,475
Price/SqFt: $107.80
3 Bedrooms, 2 Bath
Built in 1986
This is the second time we featured this property. The first time it was listed at $199k, and it was a steal then, but the price was just dropped to an insane $159,000. This place is move-in ready, ultra clean and an absolute steal as it comes with an extra lot right next door, two boat slips (one of them is covered) and it is right on the water in a great quiet neighborhood. This deal is just amazing.

Deal 2 – 3/2 DSF Home in Palmetto Trace for $140/foot

List Price: $229,900
Square Feet: 1,642
Price/SqFt: $140.01
3 Bedrooms, 2 Bath
Built in 2005
Palmetto Trace is one of the greatest neighborhoods in Panama City Beach. With underground utilities, sidewalks, two community pools and tons of families, this is a great place to raise a family. This is one of the least expensive homes in the subdivision and move-in ready. High ceilings and a split floor plan make this a great opportunity to get into a newer home for not a lot of money.

Deal 3 – 2/2 Gulf-front Condo for less than $200k

List Price: $199,900
Square Feet: 975
Price/SqFt: 205.03
2 Bedrooms, 2 Bath
Built in 2006
Gulf-front condos are just getting so CHEAP! Majestic is one of the best amenitized condos on Panama City Beach with a huge 100+ seat movie theater, HUGE workout center with steam room and sauna, conference facilities, several pools, indoor and out, pool side bar and grill, and so much more. This condo is in great shape and ready to use.

Call us at 850-527-5651 to see these properties or for anything else you need regarding real estate in Panama City Beach.

Airport: No New Name, Serious Grass Problems

While the buzz surrounding Tuesday’s airport board meeting centered around the potential new name for the 318 million dollar gamechanger, it was talk of grass and sod that dominated the meeting. In fact, due to the overwhelming interest in the new name, a special meeting, to be held October 7th, will address that issue specifically. Although, many attending the meeting didn’t get what they came for, the very tense discussion on the condition of soil and stabilization of areas through the airport kept everyone’s attention.

James Phoenix, from Phoenix Construction, said with a pang of exasperation in his voice, “We’ve got some issues, multiple issues and we need help.”

Heavy rain and inconclusive studies on the soil at the airport site have caused the development of large areas to be completely reworked and the bill to keep rising. Large stretches of land, nearly 1400 hundred acres worth, which was believed to be stabilized, faltered under harsh rain causing all the grass to die off. Runway areas and ditches in need of regrading, have caused the most problems for site staff. “The soil condition is not what we anticipated,” said George Roberts of PBS&J, “The grass is growing and then dying off from a lack of organics. We cannot make the grass grow within the specs.”

The suggestion from airport representatives to sod the area was met with heavy contention from the board. Mr. Bill Cramer, Vice Chairman of the airport board, questioned the airport staff as to why the board was not notified of the issues in compliance with permits and what happened to the additional $500,000 dollars added to the budget to mitigate the problems.

Although no final word was reached, sodding the 1400 hundred acres could cost an additional $1 million dollars. Recommendations will be brought to the board and discussed in the coming meeting.

In other news, the airport is reported to be at 73% complete overall with 93% of the site development package completed.

The next board meeting is scheduled for October 7th

Frank Brown Park's Muddy Problem Could Be Everyone's Problem

Back in August, Bay County Sheriff’s Office put together an exciting and successful rodeo held on Frank Brown Park’s festive grounds. In order to have this event, an agreement was reached with the city manager to till a large space of grass to create enough dirt to handle the show and after the rodeo the area would be sprigged for grass to grow back. For the event, the dirt worked beautifully, and everything ran smooth. But, over a month after the event, grass has not grown over that perfect patch of dirt and what remains is a big, muddy problem for future events.

As it stands, the large space that was tilled prior to the event to make way for dirt is still, well, dirt. As you can imagine, with Thunder Beach on the way the area will not do well with bikes and if it rains the mud could complicate the whole event. Because the Fall Bike Rally typically isn’t as large as the Spring Rally, what’s likely to happen is the city can get away with roping off the area for the short weekend. But, the muddy problem becomes everyone’s problem when the Seafood Wine and Music Festival, Panama City Beach’s most prized event, comes to town. There simply is not enough time for grass to grow over the area before the event hits PCB. If the area isn’t sodded, like yesterday, well, you can just imagine how mud splashing over wingtips and heels could infuriate those wine drinkers and music lovers sending them home with all sorts of bad impressions of PCB.

As Panama City Beach aims to change it’s image as a backwoods, party, dirty town, a muddy field for a wine festival will definitely set everyone back. If you’ve yet to see the field, here are a few images.

God's Thunder @ Mr. Surf's: Free Bikers Event by Tribe of Judah

For those looking to get in on the Bike Rally fun, but want to avoid all the craziness, Mr. Surf’s Surf Shop will host the “TRIBE of JUDAH” Motorcycle Ministry Organization Bike Rally on Sept. 24-27. This event IS NOT affiliated with THUNDER BEACH. There will be NO SALE or promotion of any alcohol on premises. And, for the record, Tribe of Judah nor Mr. Surf’s condemns the THUNDER BEACH Party, only wants to provide an additional venue for bikers who have a heart for God &/or are interested to see what’s it’s all about.

There will be live bands, raffles, door prizes, bike washes and more. Best of all, it’s totally free. Live band list includes, “Old to New, Floating Moses, Liah, Sunshine and Thunder and more to be announced.

Mr. Surf himself, Tony Johnson says, “The event is open for folks who want to fellowship & just hang out in a good’ol fashion way and share the love and blessings of our Lord Jesus Christ, who for me and my life, is doing some awesome things! And, share that light with EVERYONE no matter who or what they are about that comes in to listen and learn about God’s Word through speakers & music.”

The event is located at Mr. Surfs on Thomas Drive. The party begins Friday 9/25, runs through Sunday 9/27 and it will be a blast. For more information visit www.mrsurfs.com