Pardi Gras, a daylong festival sponsored by the Pine Bluff Small Business League, filled the downtown streets around the Jefferson County Courthouse with hundreds of people throughout the day Saturday.
Billed as an opportunity for the small businesses that call downtown home to promote themselves to the wider community, Pardi Gras included a music stage set up in the middle of Main Street between Barraque Street and Second Avenue that hosted gospel, rhythm and blues and jazz groups throughout the day.
Booths lining both sides of Main Street between Second and Third avenues offered everything from barbecue sandwiches to sports memorabilia to jewelry.
People strolled up and down Main Street in the bright afternoon sun, with many stopping along the way to see what the many vendors were offering for sale.
A children’s play area complete with a bouncy castle was set up in a vacant lot at the corner of Main Street and Third Avenue.
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
Organizer observations
“It is a fabulous success,” said PBSBL President Michael McCray. “This is an effort to show what individuals can do if we all come together. We wanted to draw attention to the fact that there are businesses downtown. Small business is the engine for job growth and economic development.”
Festival Co-chair Harold Terry, owner of Terry’s Home Cooking Express on Second Avenue, was thrilled with the finished product that all of the event planning had yielded.
“This has been my vision for two years to see this,” Terry said. “Everything is going great. There is an excitement and nervousness about the day becoming a reality and it makes me feel great about the city of Pine Bluff and shows what we can do when we work together.”
Festival Co-chair Angela Tyler, owner of Pizza Posh at Main Street and Second Avenue, said that a key goal of Pardi Gras was the revitalization of the downtown area.
“We are trying to bring awareness to downtown,” Tyler said. “We are trying to keep revenues in the city instead of people going to Little Rock. We need to make our city the same as Memphis or better than Memphis. It is really nice to see these people out in the streets today. It was hard work putting this together but I have enjoyed every minute of it.”
Gary Wilson of GMW Productions provided the sound and lighting for the event.
“The reason we put this together was to attract businesses to downtown Pine Bluff,” Wilson said. “We have businesses here that are not being recognized. The current administration hasn’t done a lot about it. We are here to unite the people, to bring them together and show people something positive for Pine Bluff as a community. We are trying to get the city back on track and to fight the unfair characterization of our city as Crime Bluff.”
Pat Hopkins, who helped to organize the event, said inclusiveness was an important Pardi Gras goal.
“I think the importance of this to the community is to bring together the different ethnicities of Pine Bluff and to give them an opportunity to come together to enjoy themselves and to find out about businesses and to get Pine Bluff revitalized.”
Community comments
Pine Bluff Mayor Carl A. Redus, Jr. considered Pardi Gras another step forward in the renewal of the downtown area.
“This is a good opportunity to start activities in the downtown area and to recognize the fact that downtown is the heart of the community,” Redus said. “We all know that downtown has fallen off in recent years but it is also true that in the past 24 months there have been 20-plus new businesses that have opened in downtown Pine Bluff. We are doing everything that we can to support small businesses in the downtown area.”
Stacy Bohannon of Pine Bluff served as a festival volunteer working in the children’s play area.
“I moved here from Houston and there are lots of festivals in cities but this festival today is a great opportunity to bring people together in the streets to have a wonderful time,” Bohannon said. “I encourage people to come back next year with their children and friends. It’s going to be bigger and better.”
Latasha Randle of Pine Bluff was enjoying the day with her daughter Leah Randle and nephew Blake Oswell.
“I think it’s wonderful,” Randle said of the event. “This is a start for Pine Bluff. You’ve got to start somewhere.”
“I’m having a good time,” said Leah Randle.
“I’m having a really good time,” said Oswell.
Pine Bluff resident Terry Ross hopes to see Pardi Gras return to the downtown area.
“I hope this is something we can do every year,” Ross said. “We are losing revenue in the city. People go down to Louisiana for Mardi Gras but this could be us every year. This city needs the money. I hope the mayor sees this and the future mayor.”
Pastor Christopher Mack of Highland Baptist Church in Pine Bluff was pleased to have a positive event for downtown Pine Bluff.
“I think it is a great day for the community for all ages,” Mack said. “It is needed here in Pine Bluff. It is a day for people to come out and enjoy themselves. Some people say that there is nothing to do in Pine Bluff but here is something for people to do.”
Clarence Davis of Pine Bluff saw the festival as an opportunity for people considering a downtown business location to see the positives of such a decision.
“If this could happen every quarter it would stimulate this part of downtown,” Davis said. “People can see that there are businesses downtown and maybe more new businesses will locate here. If we change our thinking we can make Pine Bluff work.”
Jefferson County Clerk Patricia Royal Johnson said she believes Pardi Gras is an example of what Pine Bluff can be.
“I think it’s great,” Johnson said. “I think it was a great idea. A lot of cities have things like this and now we do. A lot of people never come downtown, especially early on a Saturday morning so it is nice to see all of the kids and adults just having fun.”
Business exposure
Charles Hawkins, owner of ThaBullPn Sportn Joint, had a booth set up on Main Street.
“This gives me an opportunity to expose my merchandise from the store to customers,” Hawkins said. “It is a positive thing for area businesses.”
Sharon Love, founder of Nubian Queens of Pine Bluff, was glad to have the opportunity to promote her social club with a booth on Main Street.
“This is great for us,” Love said. “We are trying to do positive things for the community. This gives our women’s social club good exposure.”