Historic Florida Restaurant Reopens After Storm

- The restaurant closed in late 2024 after sustaining several feet of flood damage from Hurricanes Helene and Milton. The back-to-back storms caused extensive damage to the 88-year-old structure, leading to a full gut renovation. - Originally opened as a drive-in restaurant in 1938, the Seahorse became a popular spot for locally stationed soldiers during World War II. In November 2024, it was granted a historic designation by St. Pete Beach's Historic Preservation Board. - The historic designation allows the restaurant to be repaired after storm damage without having to meet current, more stringent flood standards, which could have otherwise required elevating the building. - Owners Anayeri Gomez and Carlos Calvillo used personal savings for the restoration, which involved about five to six months of construction and a seven to eight-month permitting process. They relied on old photos to restore the restaurant to its pre-storm appearance, including its wooden booths and historic memorabilia. - The reopening is seen by many in the community as a symbol of recovery and a return to normalcy for Pass-a-Grille, which is still rebuilding from the widespread damage caused by the 2024 hurricanes. - For manufacturers, the increasing frequency and intensity of storms highlight the importance of supply chain resilience; 68% of trade professionals now cite supply chain management as their top strategic priority, nearly double from the previous year. - Internal audit functions are evolving to address such emerging risks by adopting agile auditing and continuous monitoring, using AI and data analytics to assess vulnerabilities and provide foresight on geopolitical and climate-related disruptions. - Geopolitical shifts, particularly US-China trade tensions and the trend toward reshoring, are forcing manufacturers to reassess their global footprints and build more resilient, regional supply chains to mitigate risks from tariffs and policy uncertainty.