Board of Adjustment approves Pelican entertainment venue with hours and fencing conditions near childcare

The Escambia County Board of Adjustment on Sept. 17 approved a conditional use for a restaurant-arcade called the Pelican at 1420 West 9 Mile Road that will serve alcohol and include a package sales component, despite the use being within the statutory 1,000-foot separation from a childcare facility.

The decision was 5-0 after the board adopted staff findings and an applicant amendment limiting on-premise alcohol service to 3 p.m. weekdays and 2 p.m. weekends, and requiring an 8-foot wood privacy fence and completion of required state alcohol licensing before operation.

Staff and the applicant told the board that the proposed venue, described by the applicant as a family-friendly restaurant-arcade with a bar and a package-sales area, would be separated from the adjacent childcare facility (Little Prodigies) by a retention pond and buffering. County planner Caleb McCarty said staff verified the childcare’s posted hours as 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and measured the minimum separation between the two uses at roughly 650 feet from door to door, which triggered the conditional-use review.

Applicant’s attorney Meredith Bush said the Pelican would operate bar service and indoor arcade activities, with package sales beginning at 10 a.m. She and the applicant proposed mitigation measures including an 8-foot privacy fence, indoor-only service (no outdoor consumption), security protocols and responsible alcohol-service practices. Bush also offered to amend the application to restrict weekday on-premise alcohol service to start at 3 p.m. while keeping the package-sales hours at 10 a.m.

Staff’s findings, which the board adopted, concluded the proposal met the Land Development Code criteria for a conditional use provided specific conditions were met. Planning staff noted an Escambia County development order issued Jan. 29, 2025, authorized a 10,400-square-foot multi-tenant retail building on the site; utilities (ECUA and Florida Power & Light) were available and the approved site plan showed no cross-access to the childcare property.

During public comment Nathaniel Love, part owner of Little Prodigies Music and Arts Center, said his primary concern was protecting children from exposure to alcohol and urged the board to restrict hours so children would not overlap with alcohol service times. The applicant responded that the venue is intended to be family friendly, that all alcohol service would be indoor, and that responsible management would minimize risks.

Board members discussed both the statutory 1,000-foot separation and the county’s conditional-use criteria, noting that the Land Development Code allows the board to grant a conditional use even when the separation requirement is not met if other compatibility criteria are satisfied. The board’s motion approved staff’s recommendation with the applicant’s amended hours and the fence condition. The motion passed 5-0.

The board recorded the approval as a development order condition: the applicant must (1) obtain the required state alcohol licensing; (2) construct an 8-foot privacy fence along the property boundary facing the childcare facility; and (3) limit on-premise alcohol service to 3 p.m.–1 a.m. Monday–Friday (as amended to begin at 3 p.m. weekdays by board motion) and 2 p.m.–1 a.m. on weekends, with package-sales opening at 10 a.m. on weekdays as stated in the application.

The board’s action is a final local administrative decision of the Board of Adjustment and may be subject to legal review consistent with applicable county procedures and state law.