Scenes from The District Green grand opening, an outdoor event space in downtown Biloxi
What was once an empty parking lot was filled with people, food and music Friday as a block party officially opened The District Green on Howard Avenue in downtown Biloxi.
It’s the property sat empty for a decade since Upstairs Downstairs night club, Spanish Trail Book Store and Adventures Bar & Grill were destroyed by a fire in January 2011.
Construction crews worked throughout the night to make sure the space was ready for the day’s festivities, according to one organizer.
Around the green space, people lined up for food trucks and to try beers from new local brewery Fly Llama that opened in late January.
The stage featured multiple musicians and a stand up act throughout the day as people sat in the grass, tables and lawn chairs spread across the green grass .
Mayor “FoFo” Gillich arrived on a Party Bike with his sunglasses on. The mayor said his hellos as he walked around and greeted people sitting at tables.
He spoke a few words about his excitement for the space and hopes that it would be the first of many live events Howard Avenue would see as COVID-19 cases drop and vaccine distribution increases.
Gilich said he was thankful to already have received his two doses and was looking forward to more “normalcy.”
Gilich, the Biloxi Bay Area Chamber of Commerce and with others who had part in the creation of the space came together for a ribbon cutting.
After the cutting, Gilich introduced Scott Gremillion, who was a co-owner of the award-winning Olive or Twist craft cocktail bar in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
He announced the plans for Bilocchy, a 1920s-themed craft cocktail bar, restaurant planned for new Barq’s building in downtown Biloxi.