Morada Way Grew Into an Art Town Faster Than It Grew Parking

On a third Thursday at mile marker 81.5, oceanside, children draw in chalk on the pavement. Galleries keep their lights on past sunset, and the Morada Way Art Walk runs from 6 to 9 p.m. A recent Keys Weekly file photo shows that same chalk scene. The street itself is short. In May, the people who run the district met to talk about what it has become and to plan what comes next.

"Our fishing town is now becoming an art town," said Stephanie Cox, executive director of the nonprofit Morada Way Arts & Cultural District. At the same meeting, the village manager said the best parking available on a busy night is the shade of a tree. Those two statements belong together. Morada Way's art business has grown faster than its curb space, and that gap matters more for the next two art walks than any new mural.

What the Street Looked Like When the Walk Began

The district nonprofit started in 2011. At the time, its six-block area had a popular monthly art walk, a pottery studio and a gallery or two. The art walk dates from that same year. It was set up so emerging artists, musicians, chefs and local retailers could show their work on one evening each month.

For most of the years since, the walk was bigger than the street. Emma Putney, an artist and the nonprofit's events chair, gave the timeline in May: "Five years ago the Jessica Ann Art boutique was the only one open. The past three years there's been enormous growth."

Here is how the 2011 district compares with the one reported in June 2026:

The brochure also calls Morada Way the only walking district in Islamorada and the largest in the Keys outside Key West. The district has its own place in the Islamorada Comprehensive Plan, the document the state of Florida requires the village to keep so it can formally propose a vision for its future.

What Changed at 140 and 151 Morada Way

The art walk's home base is 151 Morada Way. The nonprofit now owns that property, which holds five art galleries and a shaved-ice truck.

The nonprofit also manages 140 Morada Way. That building used to be Morada Way Clay, a ceramics collective, and it is now Wonder and Wyld Creative. The district's own website hasn't caught up yet. Its visitor page still lists Morada Way Clay at 140, with ceramicists Bev Blitzer, Chery Hampton and Lisa Smith. If you remember the clay studio from past walks, the building is the same and the tenant is new.

The board chairman runs a business on the street. Craig McBay owns Florida Keys Brewing Co. and led the May 14 meeting at the Moose Lodge. "Our mission is to create and maintain an environment that enables a creative and business community to thrive," he said.

The Studios That Stay Open Between Walks

Part of the growth on Morada Way shows up only on art walk nights. A lot of it is open on ordinary afternoons, too. According to the district's visitor directory:

• Jessica Ann Art has two locations on Morada Way, both open every day from noon to 5 p.m. This is the boutique Putney described as the only one open five years ago.
• Taylor Hale Studio & Gallery is open every day from noon to 5 p.m. Hale grew up in Key Largo and earned a BFA from the Rhode Island School of Design. His paintings focus on the sky's constant changes.
• Limelight Studio + Gallery is open by appointment and for evening classes. The mother-daughter team of Sue and Jul Jankowski runs it.
• Salt&Silver Studio & Gallery is a wet-plate photography studio and gallery. The directory still lists it as "coming soon."

Since Jessica Ann Art and Taylor Hale both keep noon-to-5 hours seven days a week, you can see their work on a quiet weekday afternoon and save the third Thursday for the music, the vendors and the crowd. Limelight's evening classes give you another way in that doesn't depend on the monthly calendar.

Why Parking Keeps Coming Up

When council members came to the May meeting, they talked about what they called a pain point caused by the district's growth: not enough parking and too much traffic. Village Manager Ron Saunders said an app is being considered to bring more order to it. "Now it's haphazard and you have to park under a tree," he said.

Councilwoman Deb Gillis said the village is also looking at a "loop system," a scheduled vehicle people could hop on and off. She warned that traffic fixes take time. She pointed to the village's earlier dispute with the Florida Department of Transportation over where parking spaces could go in the right-of-way. "And that took forever," she said.

Parking problems at mile marker 81 predate the art district's current growth. In early 2021, organizers of two Sunday farmers markets near MM 81 told the village council they had received letters ordering them to stop. Parking and public safety were among the village's stated concerns. One organizer told the council that the shops in his plaza had complained the market next door was taking up all their parking. So on this stretch of the Overseas Highway, the same issue comes back whenever an event draws a weekly or monthly crowd. That Sunday market is still running today in the parking lot of Islamorada Gardens Plaza at 81001 Overseas Highway, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., with a giant mermaid out front.

What the Comprehensive Plan Sketches

The comprehensive plan does include a design idea for the district. It reads: "Enhanced paving patterns, a welcoming entry arch, and integrated public art along Morada Way will create a distinctive and memorable gateway to the Arts District." Keys Weekly describes the plan as a set of ideas rather than a fixed blueprint, and anyone can read it on the village's website.

None of those ideas has a construction date. The parking app and the loop vehicle are also still under discussion. So for the rest of 2026, the art walk will happen on the street as it is now, with tree-shade parking and the crowd that has built up over the past few years.

The Fall 2026 Dates

The walk takes place on the third Thursday of every month, at 151 Morada Way, mile marker 81.5 oceanside, from 6 to 9 p.m.

1. Thursday, October 15. The Islamorada Chamber calendar lists the art walk that night along with several other events, including REEF Fest and a BPW political debate. Expect more cars than usual on the corridor.
2. Thursday, November 19. This is the next date on the Chamber's calendar.

The district's art walk page has the full 2026 schedule. The studio directory lists daily hours for the galleries that open between walks. For background on the May meeting, the property changes and the parking discussion, see Keys Weekly's June 2026 report on the district's plans. Since there's no set parking plan yet, the simplest approach is to get there close to 6 p.m., or to come by bike if you live nearby.

If you take home a canvas from a third-Thursday walk and aren't sure where it should go, Kelsey Caputo-Frins can help. She trained in architecture and the arts at FIU, and as a licensed contractor and interior designer she thinks about walls, light and sightlines when placing a piece. Request a Valuation & Design Consult and bring a photo of the piece you found on Morada Way.