What I saw on my first visit to Fairgrounds St. Pete in April 2021 was merely an outline of what was to come. Five months later, Liz Dimmitt and Mikhail Mansion’s Florida fantasyland is fully realized, and it’s every bit as awesome as I’d hoped it would be. It’s like they took all of weird wacky Florida and condensed it into 15,000 square feet. The legendary Fountain of Youth, the Everglades, the Florida Strawberry Festival, the roadside motels, art deco architecture, breeze blocks, swimming pools, lounge chairs, wildlife, coral, mermaids, and drink specials. All these beautiful pieces of Florida’s past, present, reality and mythology are there in graphic detail and made by artisans who call Tampa Bay home. You should really see it for yourself. But until then, you can see it here through the eyes of CL photographer Dave Decker who joined me on a walkthrough yesterday.—Jennifer Ring
