From now until the week after Christmas, the Mexico Beach event calendar uses two addresses. The Halloween Mutt Strut, all five Farmers & Craft Market Saturdays, the Thanksgiving Turkey Trot and the Christmas Tree Lighting take place at either Parker Park on Highway 98 or Under the Palms Park on 7th Street. Both parks host events because of a run of small city projects that finished one at a time over almost two years while most of the attention went to the pier.
The pier is still listed as in process on the city's own project tracker. Many of the projects around it are crossed off. The city has marked them done one line at a time: a kayak launch, new restrooms in both parks, a pedestrian bridge at 15th Street, Mobi-Mats on the beach and an amphitheater that opened in September. Put in order, those finished projects explain why this season's calendar looks the way it does.
The Order the Pieces Arrived
Work started at the water. The city's administrator updates reported the ADA-compliant kayak launch on the City Canal as nearly finished in mid-December 2024 and open by the update for the week of December 30. Three accessible parking spaces sit in the lot next to it, with another accessible space nearby. The city describes the canal as a fishing spot and a way out to the Gulf, so paddlers put in on the canal and head out from there. The Florida Department of Environmental Protection funded it.
The parks came next, starting with restrooms. The city's update for the week of March 24, 2025 announced that the new restrooms at Parker Park and Under the Palms Park were ready for public use, and both were paid for with city funds. A four-hour Saturday market, a dog parade with registration at the pavilion and a 5K with an 8 a.m. start all need public restrooms close by. Since spring 2025, both parks that host this season's events have had them.
The 15th Street pedestrian bridge went up during the same stretch. WJHG reported in 2023 that the bridge was meant to give pedestrians beach access at 15th Street, backed by a $350,000 FDOT grant. The city now lists it as complete and credits FDOT and Mexico Beach jointly. The 2023 grant is the only published figure, and the final cost may differ.
Each of these projects made a park or a beach access easier to reach or easier to stay at. The last one gave Parker Park something to gather around.
A Stage That Replaced a Wooden One
Until this summer, Parker Park at 2500 Highway 98 had a small wooden stage. WMBB reported on September 7 that a new amphitheater had replaced it. The project cost just under $300,000, paid for with grants and city money. Its first use was the Mexico Beach Community Development Council's free "Music in the Park" series, with local musicians playing from 5 to 7 p.m. on Thursdays through September. The CDC calendar lists those shows for September 3, 10, 17 and 24.
City Administrator Mell Smigielski told WMBB:
"People like to go to concerts and parks and be with each other... It's just a major improvement from what we had in the past."
The amphitheater is not limited to city events. The city told WMBB that anyone who wants to use it can apply for a special-use permit. That makes Parker Park a stage that civic groups, nonprofits and organizers can book for their own events. The city's October 9 weekly report added a finishing touch: the Mexico Beach logo sign is now mounted on the back of the structure, and the report says it "looks fantastic."
The CDC's Parker Park venue page shows no concert or movie dates after September. For now, the events on the calendar fill the stage's open dates.
The Calendar, Park by Park
The CDC's Fall Festival on October 10 has already happened. Everything below is still ahead as of this week, listed by date:
- Saturday, October 24, morning: Farmers & Craft Market, Parker Park. The listing for that date gives 8 a.m. to noon, but the market's general description says 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Check the CDC listing before you head over.
- Saturday, October 24, 4 to 5:30 p.m.: 3rd Annual Halloween Mutt Strut, Under the Palms Park. Register and get a bib number at the pavilion on 7th Street. Registration closes at 4:30 p.m. Prizes go to Most Creative, Funniest Costume and Best Duo for a pet and owner in matching costumes. It is free and includes activities for kids. Organizers ask guests to bring a donation for the St. Joseph Bay Humane Society. All dogs must be leashed, and retractable leashes are not allowed.
- Friday, November 6: Turkey Trot registration closes. There is no race-day registration, so this is the deadline that counts.
- Saturday, November 14: Farmers & Craft Market, Parker Park.
- Thursday, November 26, 8 a.m.: Thanksgiving Turkey Trot 5K, Under the Palms Park.
- Saturday, November 28: Farmers & Craft Market, Parker Park.
- Sunday, December 6, 6 to 7:30 p.m.: Christmas Tree Lighting, Parker Park. The program includes live music, the Golf Cart Parade, the lighting, a visit from Santa and the Mexico Beach Fire Department's collection of new, unwrapped toys for local families. Golf cart parade entry is free, but every participant has to submit an entry form.
- Saturdays, December 12 and 26: Farmers & Craft Market, Parker Park.
The Mutt Strut and the October market share a date, but not a time slot or a park. The market ends around midday at Parker Park, and the dog parade starts at Under the Palms in the late afternoon. Under the Palms has more than a pavilion. The city lists a walking path, exercise equipment, grills and a playground at the 300 to 340 7th Street site. That makes it a natural spot for events that need open lawn and a start line, while Parker Park, with its new stage, gets the events built around a crowd watching something.
Still Behind a Fence
Some beach-side projects are not finished yet. The October 9 weekly report is the latest word from the city:
| Project | Status in the city's October 9, 2026 report |
|---|---|
| Sunset Park ADA dune walkover, 1813 Highway 98 | Built, but stays closed until the as-built survey is done |
| 7th Street ADA dune walkover | Weather has slowed progress |
| Pier dune walkover | Structural engineer revised drawings; updated plans going to FDEP |
| Boat ramp repair and extension | Waiting on metal sheet piles, expected late October or early November |
The Sunset Park walkover is the one most likely to open soon, since construction is complete and only the survey is left. The 7th Street walkover will add a second ADA beach crossing on the same street as Under the Palms Park once it is done. On the boat ramp, the sheet pile delivery is the next step to watch. The city's project list also shows a boat ramp lean-to on hold until the ramp expansion is finished.
Further out, FDOT's planned Highway 98 multi-use path is still in early public involvement, according to the city's project page. In July 2025, WMBB described the proposed route along Highway 98 from Crooked Sound Drive to County Road 386, with a branch along 15th Street. If it gets built, that branch would connect to the street where the pedestrian bridge already stands.
The next date on the list is Saturday, October 24, when the market opens at Parker Park in the morning and the Mutt Strut registration table opens at the Under the Palms pavilion at 4 p.m.
If you own a home near Parker Park, Under the Palms or the City Canal and want to know how this new stretch of finished public space affects your property's value, Margaret Buell-D'Ambrosi and The Burkett Team will put together a current, local answer. Get Your Free Home Valuation.
