Hampton Inn Seagrove Beach on Chateau Hotel Property

I frankly don't care if you're both an astronaut and a beauty queen, and I'm sure most here find your little list as impressive as you find it.....the question is why don't you and "hubby" do something other than show up and try to slam the door behind you? Someone as proud of your credentials must be capable of doing more than simply asking true local governance to protect your shallow interests.



How much property have you and "hubby" locked into conservation down here near your private "non-rental' vacation home?

So now you're going to do your typical cross-examination because you don't want to believe you just had your ass handed to you.

Me, I'm of the opinion that the megadevelopments like Water Color and Watersound were what changed the area permanently and not for the good. If they can come up with a stormwater plan, a modest chain hotel has far less negative impact, IMO.

I frankly don't care if you're both an astronaut and a beauty queen, and I'm sure most here find your little list as impressive as you find it.....the question is why don't you and "hubby" do something other than show up and try to slam the door behind you? Someone as proud of your credentials must be capable of doing more than simply asking true local governance to protect your shallow interests. How much property have you and "hubby" locked into conservation down here near your private "non-rental' vacation home?

So now you're going to do your typical cross-examination because you don't want to believe you just had your ass handed to you.

Please stick to the topic of the thread and attack the issue, not the person. Personal attacks are not allowed on SoWal.com.

Me, I'm of the opinion that the megadevelopments like Water Color and Watersound were what changed the area permanently and not for the good. If they can come up with a stormwater plan, a modest chain hotel has far less negative impact, IMO.

They certainly have added a lot of beds and traffic. But at least the developments were done responsibly with proper drainage, retention ponds, buffers, density, and pleasing design with trails, boardwalks, parks and amenities.

You could argue that a chain hotel has less impact but stopping 14 of them surely will have more. Sadly though I'm sure they'll just move on to 98 and taraffic and crowded beaches will be the same result.

I don't believe hotels have anything to do with the traffic and crowded beaches.

I don't believe hotels have anything to do with the traffic and crowded beaches.da ss3s

Agreed. As long as they keep the entrances on the side road and address the drainage issue what are you going to do? Progress I guess. Hampton today, Mickey D's tomorrow. Welcome to Ft. Waltondale.

Part of the problem is they approve almost anything because there is no zoning requirements, only land use codes which, in themselves, are vague and useless for useful, controlled development. Walton County badly needs to come into the 21st centuray and instill some valid, well defined zoning codes. They refuse to do it for some unknown reason.

I can't say I understand the difference between land use codes and zoning requirements. Has the topic of adopting stricter controls ever been debated? I'm sure there are large property owners and development proponents that would oppose putting more limits on what they can do with their own property, but if what you say is true, what is there to balance development pressure against the needs and interests of the existing community?

As for Ch. 7 "needing to speak to people" that's a lame excuse. Do the research, create a story, don't rely on people who are hesitant to speak to do you jobs for you. Go report.

TV is about people and what they care about. If people won't speak to an issue there is not much we can do. Unlike print... we need video and people from both sides to speak about it. We can't just read a bunch of stuff that people post on message board.

So now you're going to do your typical cross-examination because you don't want to believe you just had your ass handed to you.

cross exam? I asked one question of her after her list of pointless alphabet soup bragging

she is more than welcome to run up against MC Davis and recite her bonafide educational laurels
they certainly outnumber his, if this gets shot down it won't be because she went to college



I'm not even pro-hotel, I think there's a better use for the property, meaning more profitable,
but I am simply pro property rights and anti-"we just got here now close the door!" attitude
of a certain type of person....if she finds that insulting I'm perfectly fine with it


Davis and Rigdon are business men, meaning at this point they would much rather sell this property at true market value than deal with little busy-body nobodies trying to tell them what they may or may not do with it.


....so the question is why would somebody who wants to control the property and has a whole can of alphabet soup she is willing to recite not try to buy it? surely she and "hubby" aren't simply hypocrites?

It seems pretty depressing to think that the ever increasing pursuit of ever increasing profit for the ever increasing rich is going to define the character of the hometown I have loved for over thirty years.

Has meeting been postponed until January??

It seems pretty depressing to think that the ever increasing pursuit of ever increasing profit for the ever increasing rich is going to define the character of the hometown I have loved for over thirty years.

Sort of defines the state of our country also.

I don't believe hotels have anything to do with the traffic and crowded beaches.

Re-read my post. Adding hotels adds people. Every single bed added to our area does.

My point is Fairhope vs 30A is an apples and oranges comparison. Fairhope is an actual city with mayor, city council, police dept. etc.

Oh if only. I've lived in shock over the lack of real city services for over 18 years. We live in a beautiful, wonderful piece of earth.. And it deserves a real city charter with excellent services.

Re-read my post. Adding hotels adds people. Every single bed added to our area does.

Ok, I just did. You said traffic and crowded beaches will be the result. We have that now and chain hotels are not the cause of it.

One nit to pick with that, at least as Watercolor is concerned. They have the beach frontage. My issue with the hotel is purely with crowding in the area at limited beach accesses.

I guess the point I was trying to make earlier is that we don't always get to choose what we are surrounded by. I commend everyone for standing up and trying to make 30A a better place especially when it comes to conservation. Ultimately I believe money will decide the future of 30A. My point about Ponte Vedra was simply to state what I saw when I lived there...When the "money" started moving to the area, they slowly eliminated the parking to all of the public beach accesses near their homes. Over time each of these beach accesses were no longer used due to lack of parking. The county could ultimately justify closing all of them, because there was no need to pay to maintain boardwalks that were not in use anymore. I hope I am wrong, but I think the people and corporations like the pigs at the St. Joe Company will do whatever they please because they have the money to pay off whomever gets in their way.

Oh if only. I've lived in shock over the lack of real city services for over 18 years. We live in a beautiful, wonderful piece of earth.. And it deserves a real city charter with excellent services.

It might be a little late since 30A isn't a city with a designated planning commission able to regulate growth in a controlled manner. Fairhope's main feature being the water front is easily accessible to the public while along 30A the beach is mostly blocked or gated due to private ownership with the occasional public access. I hate to admit this, but seaducer does have a point about the drawbridge mentality of some property owners. They have their piece of paradise and are now trying to play Whac-A-Mole with other property owners because in their mind everything should remain as it was the day they arrived. Somewhere there is a compromise, I wish I had the answer.

I really don't have a problem being a member of the "Drawbridge Republic", if the concept is to stop developers who have profit and greed paramount in their proposals. The whole thing should be judged by whether the projects are sized to emphasize quality rather than quantity. We have developments all around us that have done it right. Seaside, Alys, Rosemary, as well as Watercolor and Watersound are all done with taste and consideration for the environment. A 90 unit structure with Hampton Inn plastered over it hardly fits the criteria of quality over quantity.

You're comparing entire mixed use developments to a single use building so it's not a fair comparison, but I understand your overall argument. I just don't see how a permit can be denied just because locals don't approve of national chains. There is such a mixed variety of architecture presently in place along 30A it would seem to be a tough sell to have it blocked. My drawbridge mentality comment wasn't intended to be an insult, it was just an observation.

What's wrong with having a Hampton Inn or other hotel in Seagrove Beach?

If M.C. Davis has a stake in the project, I can't see it stopped. He doesn't invest money to stop development that generates profits for himself. That ought to be a no brainer even for socialist geniuses. And he does give lots of money to Walton County's elected officials.

What's wrong with having a Hampton Inn or other hotel in Seagrove Beach?

For one, the density. There is already insufficient parking with the current condos and houses in the area. At what I'm guessing will be 4 person occcupancy for 90 rooms, and between 90 to 180 more cars on 30A, where will 360 more people park, access the beach, go to the bathroom, etc? Development may be inevitable, but if you look at the Summer's Edge neighborhood it is already too dense as it is with standalone houses. A 90 room hotel will really exacerbate the problem.

People have been complaining about the crowds for quite a while. Why not build out the infrastructure first and solve problems like access roads, parking, public accesses, etc -- rather than simply making the exisitng situation worse and worse.

Wasn't 30A supposed to be a scenic highway? What's scenic about a chain motel? The TDC is supposed to be concerned with building a 30A brand that distinguishes us from other beach areas. If you start building chain motels and chain fast food and chain everything else, you might as well just change the slogan to "South Walton: We're just like PCB, only with worse traffic."

Two words : Panama City Beach.



That's my flippant answer...