Jacksonville, Fl — This weekend is the Palakta Blue Crab Festival, a nearly 40-year event that has run into recent troubles but is looking to make a strong comeback.
The festival had traditionally been run by volunteers until 2018, when it didn’t happen. Erin Hewes got involved in 2019 with other young professionals and revived the event until COVID killed their momentum.
The city of Palatka took the reins in 2022, alongside a promoter and producer from St. Augustine, but there was highly publicized dissatisfaction over the execution of the event, reaching a peak last year.
This year, the volunteer group River and Claw stepped in to take over, and Hewes says they’ve been doing a lot of listening and learning.
“We know they’re watching us. They want to know if we’re going to win or we’re going to fail. So we definitely have a lot of eyes on us. People who have reached out to offer help.”, Hewes said.
Since September the volunteers have been recruiting participants, bands, volunteers, and more.
Over 100 vendors will fill St. Johns Avenue covering six blocks, offering something for every taste from art, merchandise and, of course, fresh seafood.
“We read the reviews where other people were upset with prices. Keep in mind, seafood is pricey. That is costly. But it would be kind of weak to have just one leg, not even rice or potatoes in the box. That, yeah, that kind of hurt my heart.”, said Hewes about last year’s complaints.
Hewes said they’ll be listening closely to feedback throughout the weekend and, if needed, can pivot to address long lines or more.
They don’t have the bandwidth to bring back a car show and beauty pageant, recognizing the attractions could return next or or beyond.
Any profit from this year’s event will go into a seed fund for next year as they try to build momentum.
“Easily this is between $180,000-$200,000 without all the extra bells and whistles, without having any big name acts or anything.”, Hewes said.
Fireworks will go off Saturday night, despite the drought and burn restrictions, as they will shoot off a barge in the river.
Find the full schedule of events for Palatka Blue Crab Festival here.
▶ Listen to Jacksonville’s Morning News Interviews
[ Read more local news from WOKV ]
Click here to download our free news, weather and traffic app. And click here to subscribe to our daily 3 Big Things newsletter.