Palatka resident Sam Deputy has experienced the highs and lows of owning a business.
He’s been in business at his store, which started out as a print shop, for 60 years. For the past three years, he has sold antiques and vintage items from his store in the heart of Putnam County.
Despite the realty signs visible in nearby store windows, he said he knows for certain that Palatka is in solid form right now. Deputy said his business has been doing well since its inception.
“This is our third year of this, and every month it’s been better,” Deputy said. “We thought this would be nice and slow and we’d see maybe 10 (people) a day, but no, we’re way ahead of schedule.”
Small businesses all over the country were affected by inflation and tariffs this past year. According to a press release from the Center for American Progress, about 236,000 small business importers paid $151,000 more in taxes on average, from April to September 2025, compared with the previous year.
The center’s analysis also found that small business importers paid $25,000 more a month in tariffs during that same time period
But several Palatka shop owners said they anticipate a stronger year in 2026.
“The bones are all here,” Deputy affirmed. “Our best is on its way.”
Another Palatka business that has been open even longer than Deputy’s is Florida’s oldest diner, Angels Dining Car.
John Browning, one of the owners of the establishment, said the restaurant has been open for 93 years. Business for the diner has always been good, he said, especially more recently. Given how long the diner has been open and its long-term success, he’s confident Palatka will be steadfast in the face of economic change for a long time.
The city of Palatka is working to implement some improvements, mainly to the downtown district, that will benefit the shops there.
Deputy is especially invested in these changes as they’ll be happening right on his doorstep.
He said the main improvements to the downtown district include revamping and widening the sidewalk, and repaving the roads. He also said the city will be replacing the trees outside his store to provide more shade, and the outside lighting will also be revamped.
Deputy said the project is expected to cost a total of $1 million. “It’s a lot of money,” Deputy said.
Palatka mayor Robbi Correa owns a small business, Lemon Street Market and Mercantile, just a block away from Deputy’s store. She sells various home goods in her store and has also seen the economic toll on small businesses in recent years.
Originally from Rhode Island, Correa has lived in Palatka for 20 years, and this is her fourth year as mayor. She is the first female mayor elected in Palatka. She said she plans on making sure the city stays on the right track.
“Obviously I’m focused on the whole city, but one of my real interests is downtown’s revitalization,” Correa stated.
“I see downtown as the catalyst not just for Palatka but for the county as a whole,” Correa explained, stating that the revitalization would bring in the most tax revenue for the city as a whole, and she’s already worked to get some of it started, beginning with the project to improve downtown streets and sidewalks a few weeks from now.
The city also has a rotation of different festivals and events happening every year that help bring more people into town, and this year is no different.
The most important upcoming events are the azalea, Thanksgiving, and blue crab festivals. “Thousands come up for blue crab,” Correa stated. “We have some pretty major festivals, and in between we have smaller things like wine strolls, art strolls.”
Local merchants like Deputy help to host these festivals, particularly one of the area's biggest event, the Thanksgiving festival.
Palatka has a large arts community and is home to the Florida School of the Arts. Murals can be found on the once blank walls of various buildings downtown. The city's roots in the arts is the reason it hosts festivals and events of that nature over the course of each year.
The events Palatka hosts create more foot traffic, and give a big boost to the businesses there.
Palatka is an example of a city that doesn’t take economic uncertainty to heart.
Leaders and local business owners said htey support the city so it can continue to grow when faced with adverse economic trends.