Entries Tagged 'Orange Beach' ↓

Two Baldwin County beach communities have turned down federal awards because they required local governments to put up city money or add costs for new city programs.

City officials in Gulf Shores scuttled plans last month for a new fire station and a community storm shelter despite securing a $2.8 million pledge from the federal government.

And Orange Beach officials decided last week to give the state $750,000 in federal money the city received to buy waterfront property.

The two communities have aggressively pursued the grants in recent years, winning money used to buy sea oats, senior citizen shuttles - even an island.

2 Baldwin County cities turn down federal money

It was hard to believe then and now, five years later it still seems surreal. A birds-eye view of Ivan’s destruction in Orange Beach showed the incredible power of the storm.

Entire condo buildings crumbled to the relentless wind and waves. Mile after mile of expensive real estate was destroyed. But, even as folks returned to these awful sights many seemed determined to move on.

” We’ll just dig out and rebuild,” an Orange Beach resident told us, ” You don’t have a choice. Everything we have is here and it’s just a mess.”

Orange Beach 5 years after Ivan

City officials have negotiated a payment plan under which Brett/Robinson can satisfy the $450,000 unpaid portion of the $2.5 million it pledged to taxpayers as part of its Phoenix West condominium tower.

The City Council is scheduled to vote on a resolution outlining the plan at its Tuesday meeting. Under terms of the agreement, Brett/Robinson would, beginning in October, pay Orange Beach $12,000 a month for 37 months, followed by a single $6,000 payment.

Phoenix West condo developers to pay Orange Beach $450,000

Tourism is the backbone of South Baldwin County’s economy and Labor Day visitors did their part to help break the recession.

The final figures won’t be in for a couple more weeks but all indications are the Labor Day weekend saved the summer for many struggling businesses on Pleasure Island.

Labor Day Beach Economy

Flushing the bad economy away

When Meyer Real Estate opens its Gulf Shores and Orange Beach offices this morning, the firm will check in more vacationers arriving for the holiday weekend than it has on any other day this summer, said Sarah Kuzma, a company spokeswoman.

In July, traditionally the local tourism trade’s most lucrative month, Orange Beach collected more sales and lodgings taxes than it has in any month in the city’s 25-year history. The $1.4 million in lodgings tax collected was a 5.2 percent increase over July 2008 and the $1.01 million in sales tax taken in was up 13.5 percent from last July, the Convention and Visitors Bureau reported Thursday.

Also in July, the 14,317 condo units from Perdido Key to Fort Morgan reported an occupancy rate of 79.5 percent, a 3.2 percent increase over the same month last year and the highest rate since at least 2004, Convention and Visitors Bureau statistics show. That, Malone said, is “staggering” considering there are 713 new condo units that weren’t on the market last July.

Beach reports tourism records

Having spent the last couple years working to wipe away lingering traces of storm damage along the beach, city officials said they are now focusing their attention on derelict properties in residential neighborhoods.

To that end, the City Council at its meeting today will consider declaring five properties public nuisances, which would allow city employees to clean up the properties, in some cases demolishing structures, and billing the owners.

“We’re not out harassing people if they don’t clean their yard up every two weeks,” Mayor Tony Kennon told residents last week during a public forum. “We’re talking about public safety, public heath. Serious issues. Vermin. Something of that nature

Derelict properties under scrutiny

Withered two years ago when developers defaulted on $100 million in loans, plans to replace a storm-battered stretch of beach houses and low-rise condos with the state’s tallest residential towers have officially died, according to city officials.

“It was just too big a project to do in this economy,” said Greg Leatherbury, a lawyer who worked with Mandolay Beach’s six lenders as they tried to revive the project last year.

Mandolay Beach was originally proposed during the area’s post-Hurricane Ivan building boom as a pair of 36-story condo towers at the terminus of Ala. 161, and later recast as a convention center and resort. To do so required special zoning that came with an expiration date if construction failed to begin. Despite that deadline being extended multiple times, dirt never turned and the 15 acres of beach-front reverted in recent days to the zoning it held when Ivan struck in 2004 and ripped the faces off the structures that sat there

Planned resort in Orange Beach officially dies

A nonprofit that earlier this summer struck a deal to build and operate a 6,700-square-foot art education center on city property in Gulf Shores has backed out of that deal and instead proposed putting its facility in the next city over.

Beach CITE Studios Inc. struck a 99-year, $1-a-year lease agreement with the Gulf Shores City Council in February. Its leadership said in June that it expected to open its art center at the corner of West 19th Avenue and West Second Street early next year but that deal fell apart.

As the nonprofit sought approval for its building designs this summer, Gulf Shores officials sought to develop the public space with green building techniques, but Beach CITE Studios representatives said adding things like landscaped stormwater retention basins and a permeable parking lot would price the project out of their b

Nonprofit eyes Orange Beach for arts facility

A Baldwin County Circuit Court judge has dismissed a lawsuit developer Ken Wall filed against Orange Beach and its former city planner two years ago in which he alleged errors on the municipal zoning map led him to overpay for a small parcel at Boggy Point.

Wall had claimed in the lawsuit that in 2005 he paid $2 million for less than an acre at the terminus of Marina Road after a trip to City Hall led him to believe that the property was unzoned and in Baldwin County’s jurisdiction

Developer Ken Wall’s suit against Orange Beach dismissed

• Johnny Rockets, 4651 Main St., Suite K-1, Orange Beach — 64.
• Stop’n'Shop No. 12, 600 E. Laurel Ave., Foley — 79.
• Magnolia Court Management LLC, dba Magnolia Court Restaurant, 117 McKenzie St., Foley — 83.

HealthRatings

It’s a popular hangout at The Wharf in Orange Beach, but Johnny Rockets failed to “lift off” during an inspector’s unannounced visit this week.

Baldwin County Health Department officials’ Aug. 13 report shows violations, including five critical violations. Violations including sewer flies, cold food held at the wrong temperature and homemade items inspectors say was prepared in an unrated kitchen. Inspector’s notes also show they found moldy food.

It was reportedly enough for the owners to clean house: literally and figuratively. Right now, they under new management and the new team is looking to soar to higher heights in the future. But for now, “The Rocket” has been grounded a bit with a deplorable score of 64. Health inspectors say that’s only four points away from being “temporarily scrubbed” with an emergency closing.

Stop N Shop on Laurel Avenue in Foley - 79 points

Magnolia Court Restaurant on McKenzie Street in Foley - 83

Johnny Rockets Crashes Back To Earth with Score 64

Last week, Orange Beach Mayor Tony Kennon and the City Council took a road trip, looking at a proposed location for a new art center

The group of elected officials looked at a possible sight near Waterfront Park, then looked at another area near the Library.

The building would be an arts and educational facility, and would be planned, constructed and paid for from donations given by the “Friends of the Arts,” a local group of citizens helping to offer local opportunities in fine arts.

Searching for a new home

Retooled plans for the Amber Isle resort project, which has lingered unbuilt for more than five years, have been filed and city officials say they expect the developers to ask for, but likely not receive, tax breaks to get the project built.

First proposed in late 2003 as a 12-story, 110-room Holiday Inn and a pair of low-rise buildings with retail space and 96 condominiums, the Amber Isle project sits on the north side of Ala. 182 at the westernmost edge of town. The project borders the Gulf State Park and is currently proposed as a pair of hotel buildings — White Sands and Amber Isle — encompassing 383 hotel rooms and meeting space.

Amber Isle plans resurrected

The reception for Kenny Chesney’s new internet radio station was so great today that the servers crashed and made No Shoes Radio unavailable for a short time (and may still be experiencing some issues). This message was posted on Kenny’s Facebook page:

Lots of folks are wondering why NoShoesRadio.com isn’t working. We had TOO MANY listeners and you crashed the servers! Hang tight… we’re working on it. Still going LIVE from the show in Orange Beach tonight. Man, it is HOT in Alabama!

At about 12:05 eastern time today No Shoes Radio launched from Orange Beach, Alabama with general manager Jon Anthony and Chesney crew member Mark Tamburino introducing the station. The first song that was played was… you guessed it… “No Shoes, No Shirt, No Problems”. It was a live version recorded at Margaritaville in Key West. The song medlied into “Key Lime Pie”, followed by “Don’t Happen Twice” and “Somewhere in the Sun”. A short time later Kenny Chesney joined Jon and Mark on the air to talk about NSR.

Tonight’s show in Orange Beach will be broadcast live. Be sure to tune in at NoShoesRadio.com.

Tremendous Reception as No Shoes Radio Launches from Alabama

In a unanimous vote, the City Council on Tuesday approved the basic terms of a multimillion-dollar tax abatement package that developer K.C. Chiang said will enable him and his partners to build a 500-room Gulf-front hotel and convention center.

Better than a handshake, but far from a guarantee, the 12-page letter of intent spells out the tax concessions that Orange Beach is willing to offer, as well as what it expects of the developers in return. City leaders said Tuesday’s vote essentially allows Chiang to tell his lenders that Orange Beach is “serious” about doing business, and green-lights lawyers on both sides to begin drafting a voluminous development agreement between the parties.

Once complete, that document must be approved by the council and ratified by a Baldwin County circuit judge before the deal is final

Orange Beach council spells out tax break city ready to offer for resort