It was party time Wednesday afternoon at the new El Santiago Recreation Center, when a crowd of residents in a celebratory mood attended the official ribbon-cutting ceremony.
The classy light blue and yellow Florida beach shack building, which sits behind the pool and gaming area on Enrique Drive, has a much larger footprint than the original El Santiago Club Restaurant, which it replaces.
To a large degree, the new facility has kept the Key West ambiance of the original building which, for many years was a favorite haunt for area residents and golfers from the adjacent El Santiago and El Diablo executive courses. The turquoise, sky blue and coral color scheme, with colorful tropical pictures, sea shells, flowers and other ocean bric-a-brac, all contribute to a cheerful beach vibe.
A gleeful John Rohan, Director of Villages Recreation, summoned the crowd together to cut the ribbon. The Villages Recreation Department offered demos of some of the crafts and groups which will be featured at El Santiago — and later in the afternoon, DJ Ric Mitchell played lively dance music for a sock hop. Rec coordinator Pam Henry joined other rec supervisors who swayed to the pulsing beat.
The 7,600-square-foot, $2.6 million project is yet another accomplishment Rohan and the Amenity Authority Committee members have to be proud of. El Santiago is the third of the original Villages local restaurants — after Silver Lake on the Historic Side of highway 27/441 and Chula Vista, on Rio Grande Boulevard — to be converted, upgraded and or replaced. Rohan thinks of Jimmy Buffett and Don Ho music when he enters the door — and really likes the laid-back old-Florida ambiance.
Amenity Authority Committee members, including Ann Forrester, Carl Bell, John Wilcox, Don Deakin and Lowell Barker, were on hand for the celebration.
“I’m glad we made the decision to do a knock down and build this new one from scratch,” a beaming Carl Bell, a key advocate for the project, said. “That was the right thing to do — we definitely got this right.”
Hadley residents Gyeneth and Hendrick Joshua and Pauline Clarke think the new digs are absolutely beautiful. The neighbors, who moved here from the U.K., hail originally from the southern Caribbean islands of St. Vincent (Clarke) and Aruba (the Joshuas) — and loved the vibrant décor.
Peggy and Leroy Pettit and Kathy Dudley, nearby Santo Domingo Village neighbors, were happy to see the facility open — so fitness and exercise classes and fun clubs would be available closer to their homes.
John and Pat Affleck enjoyed the tour.
“We used to enjoy the old restaurant — they served wonderful breakfasts after golf, and huge hamburgers at lunch,” John recalled. “We actually saw Norman Lee perform here too.”
The Afflecks like that the cupola from the original restaurant was preserved intact and installed atop the new center. “When we water-walk in the pool, we can see the cupola, and it brings back good memories,” John added. “Its a little bit of Villages history, a nostalgic touch, which is nice.” “We live right down the street,” Pat added. “This will be so convenient.”
The Surf Shack kitchen is well equipped and there is a 1,200 square foot covered outdoor patio with tables to accommodate about 24 visitors.