Gulf Shores is looking at a sponsorship to help revive the Zydeco & Crawfish Festival for spring of 2027 after a three-year hiatus, this time at the foot of the gleaming south tower of the city’s new pedestrian bridge. The target date is April 24.

A request from the Waterway Village Merchants Association seeks the city’s help to stage the event in the plaza on East Secord Street leading up to the south tower near Tacky Jacks and Big Beach Brewing.

The merchants will formally make a request for the sponsorship at a council work session on Tuesday, Sept. 8, skipping the regular Monday session because of the Labor Day holiday. A vote could come in the next regular session on Sept. 14.

Included in the request of about $46,000 arecash and in-kind services from Public Works, police, fire and special events staff members. The city will also help in the promotion of the festival.

Officials are hoping the $24 million bridge will be completed early next year and much of the work on the south plaza where the festival will be staged is already finished. Previous festivals were held near the State Route 59 bridge in open areas north of East 24th Avenue and in the city’s parking lot on the south side of 24th Avenue in the same area.

“After being paused for the past three years, the Waterway Village Merchants Association now intends to bring the festival back to its original prominence for the community to enjoy once again,” a memo Recreation and Cultural Affairs Assistant Director Laura Waldrop states.

After the success of the original 2015 festival, the merchants worked to make it an annual event and included help from the Coastal Alabama Business Chamber and Alabama Beaches Tourism Organization (formerly Gulf Shores and Orange Beach Tourism).

Highlights of past festivals included Cajun music including a second line band, food and beverages, fine arts displays, a children’s area and information on the history of the Waterway District.

And, lots and lots of mudbugs.

“The festival quickly became one of the region’s most anticipated events, attracting 10,000-plus attendees and showcasing the community’s cultural vibrancy,” Waldrop’s memo states.