Panel, Pensacola Beach residents discuss future developmentsJune 21, 2005
Fredie Carmichael@PensacolaNewsJournal.com
Rick Gordon sat quietly in the back of the room for the better part of two hours Monday and listened as people talked about future development on Pensacola Beach.
Gordon, a beach resident for less than a year, was attending the fourth meeting of the volunteer committee that will help redefine future land use at Pensacola Beach.
When it was time for those attending the meeting to speak, Gordon told the group he wanted them to listen to residents and try to focus on their overall task in future meetings.
"I don't think all of you even agree on what you're here for," said Gordon, one of a handful of beach residents who attended Monday's meeting at the Island Authority's office on Via de Luna.
"I personally like such developments as Portofino, but I'd hate to see the whole beach become nothing but a row of those things."
The 12-member committee -- made up of property owners, developers, restaurateurs, Realtors, residents and business owners -- was formed earlier this year by the Santa Rosa Island Authority. With a beach facing major redevelopment in the aftermath of Hurricane Ivan, the group is charged with helping the Island Authority decide how it should regulate that development.
Since the group was formed, it also has been asked to make recommendations on two land-use issues: a contentious increased density rezoning request by owners of a hurricane-damaged condo/hotel and a proposal to control the aesthetics of beach homes.
During Monday's meeting, committee member and hotel developer Julian MacQueen talked about how beach communities such as Orange Beach, Ala., have developed their land in recent years.
They also decided to focus the August meetings on the issue of beach architecture.
"I think we ought to start getting down to some specifics," said committee member and beach resident Stan Potts. "We've got a monumental task ahead of us, and we've been wandering around quite a bit."
Rick Gordon sat quietly in the back of the room for the better part of two hours Monday and listened as people talked about future development on Pensacola Beach.
Gordon, a beach resident for less than a year, was attending the fourth meeting of the volunteer committee that will help redefine future land use at Pensacola Beach.
When it was time for those attending the meeting to speak, Gordon told the group he wanted them to listen to residents and try to focus on their overall task in future meetings.
"I don't think all of you even agree on what you're here for," said Gordon, one of a handful of beach residents who attended Monday's meeting at the Island Authority's office on Via de Luna.
"I personally like such developments as Portofino, but I'd hate to see the whole beach become nothing but a row of those things."
The 12-member committee -- made up of property owners, developers, restaurateurs, Realtors, residents and business owners -- was formed earlier this year by the Santa Rosa Island Authority. With a beach facing major redevelopment in the aftermath of Hurricane Ivan, the group is charged with helping the Island Authority decide how it should regulate that development.
Since the group was formed, it also has been asked to make recommendations on two land-use issues: a contentious increased density rezoning request by owners of a hurricane-damaged condo/hotel and a proposal to control the aesthetics of beach homes.
During Monday's meeting, committee member and hotel developer Julian MacQueen talked about how beach communities such as Orange Beach, Ala., have developed their land in recent years.
They also decided to focus the August meetings on the issue of beach architecture.
"I think we ought to start getting down to some specifics," said committee member and beach resident Stan Potts. "We've got a monumental task ahead of us, and we've been wandering around quite a bit."
posted by Pensacola Beach No High Rises !! at 9:37 AM
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