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Covering the Alabama/Florida Gulf Coast (AFGC)tm since 2006!

By John Mullen
April 19, 2018 – Orange Beach, AL (OBA®)- Finally, all seemed to be in order for the transfer of land. And then it wasn’t.
 
Since a meeting in December, an action to transfer land from Orange Beach to the Baldwin County Board of Education has been ever present on every city council agenda. And every time it was postponed.
 
Also, during the April 17 regular meeting City Administrator Ken Grimes announced an upgrade in the city’s bond rating to AA1 by Moody’s Investor Service, one step below the top rating available.
 
When land transfer came up, Councilman Jeff Silvers began a motion the council has approved every meeting since Dec. 12.
 
“Move to postpone consideration …” Silvers began but was interrupted by City Clerk Renee Eberly and City Attorney Wanda Cochran. 
 
“We’re ready,” Cochran said. 
 
Cochran said the deed was prepared and the conditions of use agreement was ready to go as well. But the councilmembers hadn’t received those documents.

Franco's Italian Restaurant in Orange Beach, AL.
Clorinda Bassolino Meadlock and family.
By John Mullen
April 18, 2018 – Orange Beach, AL (OBA®) - Clorinda Bassolino Meadlock wants you to feel like you’ve stepped into a cozy family place when you visit Franco’s Italian Restaurant. All over the walls are pictures of her family – parents, grandparents uncles and cousins from the 1930s to the present.
 
It’s her family’s tradition that continues today. On a recent afternoon, she following her toddler daughter around the restaurant and chatting up a tableful of diners who were exchanging smiles with the youngster. 
 
At Franco’s you could easily think you’ve stepped into a ristorante tucked away in a borough of New York City. Precisely the feeling Clorinda wants you to have visiting Franco’s.
 

Joe Gilchrist of the iconic Flora-Bama beach bar.
 
By John Mullen
Fish will be flying, Joe will be smiling and a good time will be had by all. Just like Joe has wanted and expected since he took over a shack on the beach and turned it into one of the world’s most famous beach bars.
 
Happy 76th birthday to Joe Gilchrist, the lifeblood, heart and soul of the iconic Flora-Bama Lounge, Package Store and Oyster Bar. After Joe took over in 1978 the Bama has started and grown several must-see events, parties and holiday celebrations.
 
One of the most famous, the Interstate Mullet Toss, is just a week away. It’ll be a 4 day celebration of the mullet – the fish and the hairdo – also known as the Gulf Coast’s Greatest Beach Party. It’s also been likened to an adult spring break.
 

Gladys B sunk in gulf

by Alabama Marine Resources

April 13, 2018 - Fort Morgan, AL (OBA®)- The 102’ tugboat Gladys B was built in 1937 and donated to the Alabama Marine Resources Artificial Reef Program by Steiner’s Shipyard from Bayou la Batre, AL. The Gladys B was scuttled in the Tatum-Winn North reef zone approximately 20 nautical miles south of Fort Morgan, AL in 100’ of water with the superstructure of the vessel at approximately 62’ below the surface.

CoastAL is a new Gulf Shores restaurant brought to you by the Flora-Bama owners and Cactus Cantina.
John McInnis of CoastAL.
 
By John Mullen
April 10, 2018 – Gulf Shores, AL (OBA®) – CoastAL, a new sprawling, family-friendly space with live music, exciting events and great eats is now open in Gulf Shores.
 
John McInnis of Flora-Bama fame and an investment group recently bought the Sawgrass Center and Alabama Gulf Coast Zoo property on the east side of Alabama 59 at 12th Avenue with plans for a diverse format. The center was the former home to both Nolan’s and Doc’s Seafood Shack.
 
CoastAL will have three components including a restaurant featuring a popular local chef, an ice cream shop with a variety of cold treats and a retail store in the space closest to Alabama 59.
 

 
 
April 9, 2018 - Gulf Shores, AL (OBA®) - Picnic Beach is bringing something fresh, healthy and new to Gulf Shores, Alabama! Picnic Beach restaurant focuses on fresh, clean ingredients, from premium smoked meats and BBQ - smoked onsite in the smokehouse - to healthy green drinks, organic cocktails and smoothies.
 
Picnic Beach will offer something delicious for the whole family in a relaxed, beachy environment. Gather family and friends around a picnic table at the casual indoor/outdoor picnic-themed restaurant with gulf views in the heart of Gulf Shores, Alabama.

Orange Beach Red Snapper

 

From the Governor's Desk...

April 6, 2018 — (OBA®) — Montgomery, AL - Governor Kay Ivey on Friday announced that the National Marine Fisheries Service has granted Alabama’s request for an Exempted Fishing Permit, thereby allowing the state of Alabama to manage the recreational red snapper fishing dates for 2018 and 2019.

Pleasure Island Tiki Bar in Orange Beach
 
By John Mullen
 
April 5, 2018 – Orange Beach, AL (OBA®) - If you travel the Western Caribbean and the Mexican Caribbean you’re likely to encounter an endless number of palapa tiki huts on the landscape. But on the Alabama Gulf Coast, you’ll find just one.
 
Tiki Bar Hostess“There’s nothing like that in Orange Beach, nothing that’s actually an authentic tiki bar,” Sportsman Marina General Manager Brian Wells said.
 
Pleasure Island Tiki Bar at Sportsman was Wells’ brainchild and is getting ready to celebrate its fifth anniversary. The square structures are centered on a huge center king pole and the roof is layered with almost two feet of thatched, dried palm leaves. 
 
“The way the leaves are weaved, at a certain wind velocity the wind just goes through them,” Wells said. “The Caribbean is where they developed this type of structure so that when the wind comes, they lose a few leaves. All the stuff that’s in it may be in the backyard, but they still have the structure.”
 
Local and visitors alike have gravitated to the sultry breezes off Terry Cove and the breath-taking views of the islands of Perdido Pass and beyond to the Gulf. There they enjoy cold drinks, good times and music with friends and a menu that has evolved into one of the tastiest on the coast.
 

By John Mullen
April 4, 2018 – Orange Beach, AL (OBA®) - A determined mayor and Orange Beach City Council began the effort to limit expansion of vacation rentals in residential areas in December. And, that determination did not wane through meeting after meeting and opposition from national and state Realtor organizations.
 
On April 3, two new ordinances breezed through with hardly a whimper with no speakers in opposition but two surprise votes against from Councilman Jeff Silvers. The measures, one to establish a short-term rental category of 14 days or less and another to establish a $500-per-year business license to operate one, each passed 5-1.
 
Also, during the following work session, the city revealed final plans for landscaping in the medians along Alabama 182, or beach road.
 
“You’re opposed to it?” Mayor Tony Kennon asked Silvers. “The vacation rentals we’ve been talking about for two months?”
 
“I’m opposed to it,” Silvers answered.
 

 Sea Turtle volunteers on the Alabama Gulf Coast have distinctive green T-Shirts.
 
By Mike Reynolds
Share the Beach
 
April 2, 2018 - Orange Beach/Gulf Shores/Ft Morgan/Dauphin Island, Al - (OBA®) – The Alabama Gulf Coast is expecting some special visitors in a couple of months. Every year as the days get longer and the soft sand heats up along the Gulf Coast, female loggerhead sea turtles, some weighing as much as 400 pounds, pull themselves from their watery habitat onto our sandy beaches to lay their nests. When complete she will use her large front flippers to scatter sand around to hide her work then make her way back to the Gulf. The 2018 nesting season starts on May 1st and volunteers are needed to patrol the beaches at sunup to locate the nests laid the night before.
 
Share the Beach, Alabama’s Sea Turtle Conservation Program has been working for more than 16 years to protect the nests and nesting habitat. The Program has a new home this year with the Alabama Coastal Foundation (www.joinACF.org) serving as the host organization. The volunteers help mitigate the effects of human development such as lights on Alabama’s beaches. Sea Turtle nesting season starts on May 1. Most sea turtle nests are laid by the end of August, but the hatching will continue until through the end of October. Last year, Share the Beach documented over 170 nests in Alabama, our second-best nest count since the start of the program.
 

Easter Brunch at Fin&Fork on beach road in Orange Beach.
By John Mullen
 
March 30, 2018 – Orange Beach, AL (OBA) - The latest restaurant concept from Gulf Coast culinary veteran husband-wife team Matt and Regina Shipp, Fin&Fork, opened March 30 in Orange Beach.
 
There are new items and some items similar to ones from their former restaurant at Sportsman Marina.
But there was no doubt about the return of a popular house-made dressing.
 
“We’re going to have some tomato-feta dressing,” Regina said. “That’s one thing Matt said we’re not changing because that’s everybody’s favorite. That’s good stuff.”
 
After a fire at the Terry Cove restaurant and the sell of that business, the pair recently renovated the old Wintzell’s Restaurant on beach road enclosing the outside bar to create a fun space for a bar and live music. There’s also a large sand play area to entertain the kids.
 

By David Rainer, Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources

March 30, 2018 - (OBA®) - Those who wonder why anglers off Alabama catch more than 30 percent of the red snapper in the Gulf of Mexico despite having only 53 miles of coastline should have attended the Red Snapper Conference in Mobile last week.

The key to Alabama’s phenomenal red snapper fishing is the more than 1,000 square miles just off the coast that are designated artificial reef zones.

Easter in Orange Beach

By City of Orange Beach

March 30, 2018 - Orange Beach, AL (OBA®) - For those spending Easter weekend in Orange Beach, there is no shortage of family activities.

For children, Easter egg hunts are planned in and around the city. Here are some of the options:

U.S. Navy Blue Angels

Below is the 2018 Blue Angels Air Show Schedule current as of March 29, 2018. Note that schedule is subject to change and weather events may cause shows to be postponed or cancelled. 

Orange Beach Toy ShareMarch 26, 2018 - Orange Beach, AL - (OBA®) - Anyone who has visited the Alabama Gulf State Park’s public beach accesses in Orange Beach the past two summers has probably seen the colorful turtle signs with handmade wooden boxes at their bases. The words on the boxes say it all: “Need a toy - Take a toy. Have a toy - Leave a toy.”
 
The turtle boxes have been a success since being introduced at the end of the summer of 2015. City Administrator Ken Grimes said the idea all started with early morning walks he would take on the beach in 2012, before the “Leave Only Footprints” clean beach initiative was introduced in Orange Beach and Gulf Shores. Grimes would collect plastic toys he found on the beach, soon having bags full.

By David Rainer, Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources

March 23, 2018 - (OBA) - A little rust was evident after a long hunting season. The first tap at the end of the line meant a fish was interested in the bait, but the reflexes hadn’t been tested for a while. By the time I set the hook, I had felt the second tap. I knew that, in all likelihood, the hookset was a futile attempt to overcome my dormant fishing senses.

As suspected, no resistance was felt on the hookset and I reeled up a clean, bronze Kahle hook. I’d been robbed by one of the best bait thieves in Alabama’s coastal waters – the toothy, tasty species known as sheepshead.

After putting a chunk of fresh-dead shrimp on the hook, I tossed it near the structure. As soon as I felt the first tap, I set the hook and the fight was on. With its vertical body and large fins, sheepshead can stress your tackle. With the drag set correctly, a few runs later, the fish finally tired enough for me to bring it alongside the boat and into the landing net.

OBPDMarch 22, 2018 - Orange Beach, AL (OBA) - On March 22, 2018, at approximately 11:00 am Orange Beach Police and Fire responded in reference to an unresponsive person on the ground at the North end of Cypress Street on Wolf Bay. The person, is identified as a white male in his 50’s who was the victim of an apparent gunshot wound. This matter is being investigated by the Orange Beach Police Department as a homicide. This will be the information released at this time pending notification of
the next of kin and further investigation of the case.

Anyone with information regarding this incident should contact the Orange Beach Police Department at (251)981-9777 or email Lieutenant Carl Bradley at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. 

WKRG Debbie Williams reporting from the scene...

Congratulations to Jeanne Fitzgibbons for earning the city’s “Above & Beyond Award” for her tireless work each year in helping organize the Orange Beach Seafood Festival and Car Show.

By John Mullen

March 21, 2018 – Orange Beach, AL (OBA®) – The chances of bringing fiber technology to Orange Beach households may seem dire, but Councilman Jerry Johnson still has hope.

“We’re going to have the numbers and I’m confident we’re going to have the numbers by the end of this year putting in fiber,” Johnson said.
 
In August, the city announced a plan to partner with Centurylink to bring fiber internet to the city if a threshold of signups were met. The number was 1,000 but as of March 20, less than 300 residents had put up a $25 deposit to signup for fiber if it comes to town.

From left are Jana Lilayuva, Emeril Lagasse and Leck Lilayuva.
By John Mullen
March 20, 2018 - Orange Beach, AL (OBA) - When Leck Lilayuva, who owns iconic Big Fish Restaurant & Bar with his wife, Jana, was a kid his dad would wake him up at the crack of dawn to help handle the truckloads of fish that arrived daily at his fish distributing business.
 
“As a young boy he would wake me at 4 in the morning banging on my window because the house was right behind the restaurant,” Lilayuva said. “It wasn’t a restaurant at first, just a shop. He’d wake me up to come shovel ice, pack fish.”
 
His dad was also later the owner of a Niki’s and there Leck would put on an apron and work wherever needed in the restaurant.

If these walls could talk book cover

March 19, 2018 - (OBA) - Chris Warner, a resident of Perdido Key, Florida, and author of five books about the noted haunt on the Alabama-Florida Line has lifted from the scribbled walls of the iconic pump house a collection of over 500 brief, brilliant bursts of life…“If the Walls Could Talk.”

“The Flora-Bama has been aptly called, ‘A museum of bad decisions.’ Patriarch Joe Gilchrist always referred to it as ‘My little insane asylum by the sea.’ Whatever the descriptor or moniker, the Flora-Bama remains the quintessential bucket list destination for revelers far and wide.”

Warner has also authored “Bushwhacked at the Flora-Bama,” (History of Flora-Bama with Joe Gilchrist), “Saved at the Alabama-Florida Line” (Nominated: Best Piece of Fiction by an Alabama Author, Alabama Library Association, 2017), “They Met at the Alabama-Florida Line” (Novel number two) and “Food N’ Fun at the Flora-Bama” (cookbook).

Alabama Recovery Council

By City of Orange Beach

March 14, 2018 - Orange Beach, AL (OBA®) - On March 7, 2018, the Alabama Gulf Coast Recovery Council held a public meeting to vote on projects for inclusion in Alabama’s Draft Multiyear Implementation Plan (MIP) and Draft State Expenditure Plan (SEP).  The council selected 48 projects to receive more than $315 million for infrastructure, economic development and ecosystem restoration in Mobile and Baldwin Counties. Eight projects are in Orange Beach.

Once fully developed, the draft plans will be released for a 45-day public comment period.

Click on the following link to view the meeting presentation and to learn more about the selected projects:  Draft MIP and SEP Projects.

IS YOUR PROPERTY AVAILABLE FOR "FIGHTER WING" WEEK? - CLICK HERE TO DONATE
Operation Reconnect is a 501c3 Organization, contributions are tax deductible. 

By John Mullen

March 21, 2018 Update:

 

March 8, 2018 – Orange Beach, AL (OBA) – Orange Beach’s homegrown Operation Reconnect is hoping to make its biggest splash ever by hosting up to 300 military families in vacation accommodations May 9-16.

In a Skype connection from Afghanistan during a March 6 city council meeting founder Ryan Charrier announced Fighter Wing Week will welcome the 442nd Fighter Wing home from Kandahar, Afghanistan.

Sgt. David McLain receives and service weapon and badge from Mayor Tony Kennon.
By John Mullen
March 8, 2018 – Orange Beach, AL (OBA) – Orange Beach’s Expect Excellence program is off to a rousing start with more than 150 kids signed up for the variety of educational and athletic activities at the city’s recreation center.
 
“We had the 150 signups in five business days and that has grown in the last hour as well,” Director Jonathan Langston said. “It is an inundating task and we have a great staff together and we are putting on something really special.”
 
At the March 6 meeting, the city council voted to spend $60,000 to continue the program through the end of May. Mayor Tony Kennon presented a video showing children engaged in all aspects of the program. Also, at the meeting, Sgt. David McLain was awarded his service weapon and badge as part of his retirement from the Orange Beach Police Department.

City of Orange Beach
March 1, 2018 - Orange Beach, AL - (OBA®) - Attention 2018 Spring Break guests: The Orange Beach Police Department welcomes all guests to the City of Orange Beach for Spring Break. Our city is a beautiful, family-oriented beach resort community. Over the past two years, we have experienced increases in underage drinking, disorderly conduct and illegal drug use during Spring Break.
 
The Orange Beach Police Department will utilize all available resources at our disposal to maintain order and continue to provide a safe, enjoyable experience for all visitors.
 
If you are looking for a party town, the City of Orange Beach is not it.

City of Gulf Shores
March 1, 2018 - Gulf Shores, AL - (GSA) - In anticipation of the college students and families planning to visit our beautiful beach the Gulf Shores Police Department is preparing for a safe and enjoyable Spring Break.
 
Spring Break will officially begin in March. The Gulf Shores Police Department encourages all visitors and local residents to educate themselves and become familiar with some of the municipal ordinances that help keep the City of Gulf Shores safe and enjoyable.

Red Snapper Conference March 22ndFebruary 28, 2018 - (OBA®) - The Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, Marine Resources Division is hosting an Alabama Red Snapper Conference Thursday, March 22, 2018. It will take place from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Mobile-Downtown/Historic District Holiday Inn at 301 Government St., Mobile, AL 36602.

The purpose of the conference is to highlight recent management and research of red snapper ecology offshore of Alabama. This conference will be of interest to federal and state marine fisheries managers, local resource managers, and the Alabama recreational/commercial fishing community.
 
The topics to be covered include the following:

 
February 28, 2018 – Mobile, AL – The Alabama Department of Transportation (ALDOT) presented bicycle and pedestrian requirements of the proposed Mobile River Bridge and Bayway project to members of local Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committees (BPAC) on Feb. 27.

In 2016 and 2017, ALDOT held meetings to gauge the public’s opinions regarding bicycle and pedestrian facilities on the project. These meetings included a public workshop and focus groups comprised of the Mobile and Eastern Shore Bike and Pedestrian Advisory Committees.

Orange Beach Seafood Festival By John Mullen
 
February 27, 2018 – Orange Beach, AL (OBA®) – The Orange Beach Seafood Festival and Car Show has come a long way since it's modest start in 1992.
 
“This is the 26th year so we’ve gone from having it under the Perdido Pass bridge where we caught our own fish to sell to what it is today,” Robert Stuart said. Stuart is the vice president of the Orange Beach Sports Association, has been a long-time member of the group including serving several years as president.
 
The annual festival raises money for sports leagues in Orange Beach buying equipment and helping kids who can’t quite afford to pay the fees still get a chance to compete.

Ziplines opening at the WharfBy EW Bullock Associates
 
Feb. 26, 2018 - Orange Beach, AL (OBA®) - One of the Gulf Coast’s most unique and adventurous attractions has re-opened in Orange Beach. Hummingbird Ziplines Course, formerly Gulf Adventure Center located at Gulf State Park, is hosting its grand opening celebration with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at its new location at The Wharf on Thursday, March 8, at 1:30 p.m.
 
The public is invited to attend with city and county officials and other local dignitaries in attendance. In addition, a drawing will be held for two lucky winners to zip the course for free. Anyone can enter, but the winners must be in attendance at the event.

Orange Beach Fire Chief Justin PearceFeb. 26, 2018 - Orange Beach, AL (OBA®) - From a Mardi Gras ride on a fire truck sparking an interest in firefighting to being named fire chief in Orange Beach, it’s been a homegrown journey for Justin Pearce.
 
After a year of serving as interim Orange Beach fire chief, Pearce was officially appointed to the post by the City Council on Tuesday, Feb. 20.
 
A career firefighter in Orange Beach, Chief Pearce started as a cadet for the department in 1995 after a chance ride in the city’s Mardi Gras parade.
 
“There was a volunteer, Donnie Morgan, and he invited my dad and I to ride on the old ladder truck in the Mardi Gras parade,” Chief Pearce recalled. “That’s kind of what started it all. I said, ‘There’s something special about this. I want to do this.’”
 
So at age 15, he got onboard as a cadet in the department and then became full time in 1997. From there he went into fire prevention then was promoted to lieutenant, followed by captain and battalion chief. After the resignation of Chief Shane Phillips in January 2017, Pearce agreed to serve as interim chief.

Alabama's Artificial Reef Program is the product of a cooperative agreement between the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Marine Resources Division of the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. The Program is the culmination of many meetings, letters, reports and workshops between various user groups within the coastal area, it is intended to be dynamic with changes occurring as technology and information develops on artificial reef construction and deployment.