Friday night in Old Town: Backyard Jam is free
The weekend starts Friday, October 16 with Old Town's Backyard Jam, the city's free monthly outdoor concert series in the greenspace behind Bailey Contemporary Arts at 165 NE First Avenue. It runs 6:00 to 9:00 PM every third Friday of the month, which puts the October edition on the calendar for this Friday. The lineup rotates local and regional bands by month, with southern food bites and craft cocktails on site, and the city invites you to bring chairs and blankets. Admission is free; registering on the event page enters you into the monthly giveaway. From the condo it is about a 12-minute drive into Old Town.
Saturday night: the 5th Annual Caribbean Fest at Community Park
The marquee event of the weekend is the 5th Annual Pompano Beach Caribbean Fest, Saturday, October 17 from 5:00 to 10:00 PM at Pompano Community Park, 1801 NE 6th Street. It is free, and it is presented by the city's Parks and Recreation Department, which describes it as a celebration of culture and music. Past editions have stacked the evening with live music, food trucks, and family-friendly activities, and the city's press release this year points the same direction. It is the same park that hosts The Amp, so the setting is the big open lawn under the amphitheater's canopy. About 10 minutes from Palm Aire.
Saturday afternoon: the Swordfish Battle weighs in at the marina
The tournament on the water this weekend is the 5th Annual Big Dog Tackle Swordfish Battle, which runs Thursday, October 15 through Sunday, October 18, hosted by Big Dog Tackle at 1440 N Federal Hwy. Tournament day is Saturday, October 17, with weigh-in at 3:00 PM at the LHP Marina Fuel Dock / Nauti Dawg, and that weigh-in is the free spectator version even if you are not fishing it. The full rundown, including the captain's meeting Thursday at 26 Degree Brewery, is in this week's water roundup.
Read this week's water roundup for the tournament details
Saturday daytime: art workshops at Bailey Contemporary Arts
For a quieter Saturday, BaCA runs its third-Saturday workshop slate on October 17: Introduction to Drawing, the Polymer Clay Experience, and Lunch with Art: Weekend Writer's Edition. BaCA is the city's small contemporary art space on NE 1st Street in Old Town, and the Arts calendar carries each class with its time and registration. A common Pompano rhythm: workshop in the morning, Old Town lunch, Caribbean Fest at the park by evening.
Sunday: the quiet day, and the pier is open
The official city calendars have no festival, concert, or special event listed for Sunday, October 18, which makes it the right day for the other Pompano: the beach. The Fisher Family Pier at 222 N Pompano Beach Boulevard is open daily from 7:00 AM to 10:00 PM, walking the pier is free (fishing requires a fee), and the beachfront Great Lawn is a short walk from it. October surf has been running in the mid-80s; the water roundup has the flags and conditions. Or stay local: the screened patio at unit 610 is made for a calm Sunday evening with the golf-and-lake view.
The Pomp this week: a sales office goes before the board
Since The Pomp sits on the old Pompano Park harness track site, minutes from Palm Aire, the roundup keeps a running tab on what is open, what is building, and what the developer and the city have actually decided. This week's item is a planning one: on October 12, a developer filed for Pompano Beach Zoning Board of Appeals approval of a temporary sales office of about 2,500 square feet at 777 Isle of Capri Circle, to market planned housing on the site. The item sits on the board's October 15 agenda. Sourced to TAPinto Pompano Beach, October 12, 2026.
The rest of the standing picture, unchanged this week:
- Open: Topgolf Pompano Beach (400 Lucky Lane) grand-opened December 2023 with 102 hitting bays and remains the anchor that draws the crowds, and Harrah's Pompano Beach casino operates on site in its renovated form.
- Under construction: the Live! at The Pomp entertainment district is building, though the plan was scaled back in July 2026 to four buildings and about 170 parking spaces. No opening date has been announced.
- Apartments: the 423-unit community on the site, now named Lumio Pompano Beach, was slated for completion around July 2026 with leasing underway since early 2026, per the developer's project page.
- Land bought: Millrose Properties, a Lennar affiliate, closed a $50 million land purchase in January 2026 to build 344 condos and 82 townhomes on the site. Construction dates have not been announced.
- Decided: a proposed Costco at The Pomp was rejected 4-3 by the city's Planning and Zoning Board in July 2026.
- The master plan: roughly 4,000 residential units, about 1.3 million square feet of retail and entertainment, about 1.4 million square feet of office, and two hotels, built out in phases over several years.
That is the honest picture: the district is opening in pieces, and the pieces that are open are the ones doing the work right now. Nothing here is a forecast, and nothing here should be read as one.
Save the dates: what is coming up
A few verified anchors for the weeks ahead. The Cultural Center's season continues with The Wilburys, A Traveling Tribute on Friday, October 23 and December '63: Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons Tribute on Sunday, October 25. Halloween weekend brings two free family events from Parks and Recreation: Boo Bash on Saturday, October 24 from 4:00 to 9:00 PM at Community Park, with rides, hayrides, and a costume contest, and the Horse & Hound Costume Event on Sunday, October 25 from 3:00 to 7:00 PM at Sand & Spurs Equestrian Park, 1600 NE 5th Avenue, with costume contests and a horse show. The Amp picks back up Monday, October 26 with CAKE. Then the big one: the Drone Show Extravaganza returns Saturday, November 7, its fifth year, over the ocean just south of the Fisher Family Pier, with free shuttles from Community Park. And the Green Market at the Cultural Center opens its season Saturday, November 14, running the second and fourth Saturdays through April.
The bottom line this weekend.
Friday night is free in Old Town. Saturday stacks a free Caribbean festival at Community Park, a weigh-in at the marina, and art workshops in Old Town. Sunday is the quiet day for the pier and the beach. And The Pomp keeps moving in planning phases across the street. For the straight version of any of it, or a tour of the unit with the lake-and-golf view: Call or Text Ryan, 561-915-8590. Co-listed with Helen Katz, Coldwell Banker Realty.
Sources
- City of Pompano Beach · Old Town's Backyard Jam, Oct 16
- Pompano Beach Arts · Backyard Jam series
- City of Pompano Beach · 5th Annual Caribbean Fest press release
- Pompano Beach Parks & Recreation · Events (Caribbean Fest, Boo Bash, Horse & Hound)
- City of Pompano Beach · Events calendar
- Pompano Beach Arts · Events (BaCA workshops, Cultural Center season)
- Pompano Beach Parks & Recreation · Fisher Family Pier
- Big Dog Tackle · 5th Annual Swordfish Battle, Oct 15-18
- The Billfish Foundation · Big Dog Swordfish Tournament
- TAPinto Pompano Beach · Developer at The Pomp seeks sales office approval (Oct 12, 2026)
- Atlantic Residential · Lumio Pompano Beach project page
- City of Pompano Beach · Drone Show Extravaganza, Nov 7
- City of Pompano Beach · Boo Bash, Oct 24
- City of Pompano Beach · Horse & Hound Costume Event, Oct 25
- AXS · Pompano Beach Amphitheater ticket listings (CAKE, Oct 26)
- City of Pompano Beach · Green Market (season opens Nov 14)
By
Ryan Parker · Realtor, Coldwell Banker Realty
Sales Associate · SL3571861 · Florida. Co-listed with Helen Katz. 2026-10-13 · Event dates, times, and availability change; confirm the live sources before you go. This roundup updates weekly.