The DeVilliers Cultural Heritage Museum is helping preserve the history of the area in the light of a downtown speak-easy. Denise Lukas/Splash! Magazine Big things are happening in what was once the hub of business, culture and entertainment for the black community of Pensacola. Within a short two-block stroll down DeVilliers, you can grab a burger at the Blue Dot, indulge in some soul food at Ron's SoulFood Eatery, view a collage of artwork at the Gumbo Gallery, take in the lost art and music of forgotten communities at the DeVilliers Cultural and Heritage Museum, or see glass-blowing demonstrations at the Belmont Arts Center.

The Belmont-DeVilliers neighborhood hopes to be added to the National Register of Historic Districts, which will be a big attraction to developers because of the 20 percent federal tax credits that are available for historic rehabilitation of commercial and residential rental properties within a designated historic district.

Pensacola’s newest tourist attraction is the brainchild of entrepreneur Michael Allen, the proprietor of the DeVilliers Cultural Heritage Museum and leader of the house band, Unity.

Allen along with Eugene Franklin, president of the Florida Black Chamber of Commerce, has been working with local artists to establish a partnership between the community and the arts with the opening of the museum, housed in the John Sunday building at 500 West Belmont, on the corner of Belmont and DeVilliers in Pensacola.

The venue was created to utilize culture and history, instead of race, to establish a bohemic and funky tourist attraction in the heart of the downtown historic Belmont-DeVilliers District.

In the early and mid-1900s, the space housed The Bunny Club, a small venue for upand coming entertainers. Back in the day, a ticket was only $2.50 to see bigger acts like Ray Charles and Ike and Tina at the Saber and Abe’s 506 (The Eddie Todd building) that were right next door.

Artist: Jean Pugh Of great historical significance, Belmont- DeVilliers was a prominent stop on the "Chitlin' Circuit"–a string of performance venues throughout the eastern and southern United States that were considered safe and acceptable for African American musicians and other entertainers to perform during the time of racial segregation.

Allen sees the museum as a link between Pensacola’s musical and cultural past and the art and entertainment of today by showcasing the talents of local artists and musicians, and offering a place for people to gather for entertainment, food and culture.

Museum hours of operation are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. A lunch menu is offered during the week, with a catered Sunday Gospel Brunch. Cultural Entertainment is held on Friday and Saturdays during tourism season (April through October). More information can be found at www.devilliersmuseum.com.

Before The Belmont-Devilliers District of Pensacola was once a bustling cultural district. The area has become an almost forgotten footnote in the cultural history of the Pensacola area. Scott Page/Splash! Gulf Breeze business leader, Quint Studer is another visionary paving the way for new life in the neighborhood. The Studer Community Development Group, LLC. has invested in over 10 real estate properties in the neighborhood, with over $1.5 million in the purchase and renovation of the newly opened Five Sisters Blues Café at the historic Belmont-DeVilliers crossroads. This organization is designed to bring investment capital to local real estate and business projects which will produce a reasonable self sustaining return on investment that will be reinvested back into the community.

After The proposed redevelopment of the Belmont-DeVilliers district aims to revitalize the area. This graphic rendering shows the planned improvement along North DeVilliers Street. The Five Sisters Blues Café and redevelopment project were both featured in the April 2010 issue of Florida Trend Magazine. Five Sisters, owned by navy veteran and chef, Cecil Johnson will serve Southern food with a Caribbean influence.

The Belmont-DeVilliers initiative is not only striving to preserve the community and market the Pensacola culture and heritage as a tourist attraction but is a great, new trendy hangout for locals.