Five Guys Burgers and Fries in Pier Park (review)

Everyone has been telling me that I needed to go to Five Guys and get some burgers. I’ve heard only one bad thing about Five Guys and it was that the were too expensive. My opinion? Not so much.

My wife and I try to go on dates every week, and it usually consists of dinner and sometimes a movie, depending on how rich we are that particular week. If I can feed us both for $20, I’m usually pretty happy. Our ticket last night? Right at $15 with two burgers, two orders of fries and one soda.

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Bill to allow judges to lower mortgage amount instead of foreclosure

mortgage_debt_forgiveness_bill_sign.jpg

In an effort to reduce the number of foreclosures this year and next year by an estimated 600,000+ households, there are two bills before Congress that would grand “judges the authority to reduce mortgage debt.”

The two bills only apply to borrowers that live in their homes and have either subprime mortgages or other non-traditional mortgages, such as interest-only loans.

“It is one of many efforts by government and consumer groups to encourage lenders and mortgage servicers to restructure loans to more affordable terms for home owners in danger of default.”

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Panama City 3rd best in existing home sales

Panama City shows 3rd Best in Existing Home Sales, 4th Best in Existing Condo Sales Statewide
Florida Association of REALTORS® (FAR) releases 2007 4th Quarter home/condo resales data
Panama City, Florida, February 18, 2008
Panama City Real Estate Market continues to place well statewide

Florida Association of REALTORS® (FAR) has released sales data for Q4 2007 existing condos and homes, and Panama City continues to stay among those least-affected by the current real estate market conditions.

Statewide, sales of existing condos declined 27 percent (7,923 units closed for Q4 2007 compared to 10,820 for Q4 2006). In contrast Panama City showed a decrease of only 10 percent (81 existing condo units closed in Q4 2007 compared to 90 closings in Q4 2006) for the fourth best showing in the state, tied with Ft. Pierce-Port St. Lucie and surpassed only by Fort Walton, Sarasota and Marco Island.

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Notes and Comments from the 2/12/08 TDC/CVB Board Meeting

8 of the 9 board members were present. Absent was Marty McDaniel. It was also reported that McDaniel is no longer employed by Royal American Hospitality. Since Mr. McDaniel has accepted employment with another collector, TDC/CVB Attorney Doug Sale advised that both he and the Bay County Attorney did not see any problem with McDaniel retaining his board seat.

After the “more” link, info on the bed tax collection, Coastal Vision 3000, and College Spring Break Co-Op.

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Pier Park Grand Opening was a Smash Hit

The Grand Opening of Pier Park on Thursday, February 14 was a huge hit with literally thousands of shoppers enjoying the new shops. When I was there on Thursday evening, the parking was full on the Boardwalk area with a pretty heavy flow of traffic coming down the main street. You almost wouldn’t know that it was the first day it was opened. A total of 18 stores opened on Thursday with more to open this weekend and next week.

Click the “more” link for the rest of the post.

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Notes and Comments from the 2/6/08 TDC/CVB Marketing Committee Meeting

9 of the 11 committee members were present. Absent were Debi Knight and Ann Henry.

Holiday Celebration

Committee member Paul Wohlford made a presentation on the options for a holiday-oriented event to increase tourist visitors in December. A short discussion took place and a more through discussion was scheduled for the March meeting.

Brochure Rack Policy

President Dan Rowe advised the committee that he felt that the TDC Visitors’ Information Center Brochure Display Racks Policy of June 1995 needed to be updated. Rowe felt that the current policy might be overly restrictive and possibly should be revised to allow brochures for additional businesses/attractions such as attractions outside the taxing district(PCB only), vacation rentals by owners, and nanny services. Some members expressed concern that allowing brochures from outside PCB would end up helping Destin, while other members felt that promoting the entire area was important. Kirk Lancaster made the important point that PCB has a major price advantage over Destin.

PCB’s price advantage could be very useful this year due to the slowing economy and economic uncertainty. In addition, the fact that a large portion of our available accommodations have modern advantages that comparable accommodations to our west lack could be a successful marketing tool. We need to attempt to attract these tourists who are already used to visiting the Emerald Coast rather than just assuming that the Destin visitor will not come here. Continue reading “Notes and Comments from the 2/6/08 TDC/CVB Marketing Committee Meeting”

What's New in PCB – Pier Park Down to the Wire (video)

With the grand opening of the Boardwalk area of Pier Park on Thursday the 14th, crews are working almost around the clock to get everything done. I left town on Thursday of last week only to return on Sunday with sidewalks complete, landscaping almost done and the interior of several retailers nearing completion. I saw training happening at Five Guys and Buffalo Wild Wings.

I still haven’t seen a final list of the stores opening on Thursday, but the most recent press release lists the following to open in February/March: click the “more” link for the list and video.

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Panama City Airport Relocation Update

With the stay lifted, construction is heavy underway again with main runways and taxi-ways to be completed in 2008 and the terminal to be complete in 2009.  The new airport is still slated to open mid 2010.

All sounds good with the exception of another suit being brought against The Army Corps of Engineers and the United States Fish and Wildlife Service claiming that the 404 Permit issued for the relocation was not legitimate.

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