Developers of the CoastAL, a beachfront development by Island Entertainment LLC, requested approval of a major modification to the master plan. The public hearing was on the Orange Beach City Council …
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Developers of the CoastAL, a beachfront development by Island Entertainment LLC, requested approval of a major modification to the master plan. The public hearing was on the Orange Beach City Council agenda Oct. 5.
The prime beachfront property, located across from Publix at The Shoppes at Palm Pointe, was once slated for two condo towers that were set to heights of 37 and 36 stories with a combined 276 units. Now, this property is the first city-owned beach and the 400 feet of shoreline at the base of Orange Beach Boulevard/Highway 161 will be preserved for Orange Beach residents to enjoy for generations to come. The development will also feature a restaurant, bar, green space and parking.
In June 2021, the city of Orange Beach finalized the purchase of over four acres of beachfront property for city residents. This move is part of a public-private collaboration between the city and Orange Beach Land Company (OBLC) and Island Entertainment LLC., which is owned by Flora-Bama co-owners John McInnis and Cameron Price. As part of the agreement, OBLC purchased an adjacent 400 feet of beachfront property for its CoastAL restaurant development. The entire site is 8.7-acre and has 800 feet of beachfront. The purchase price for the city’s parcel plus improvements to be made by OBLC was $13 million in total, with the city paying just under $10 million up front and the additional $3 million to be paid later when the improvements are complete.
The requested modifications to the planned urban development (PUD) include increasing the footprint of the outdoor bar, increasing the floor area of the restaurant, reducing the restaurant building setback on the east side and modifying the front façade of the restaurant building. The changes also include moving the public restroom to a more central location, adding a dumpster location near the west side lot line and installing a generator in the east side buffer area.
The Planning Commission held a public hearing and considered the application Sept. 13 and gave the request a favorable recommendation subject to staff conditions.
“As you can see, no major changes, they are all tweaks that came operationally as we start thinking about how we operate and making sure we have enough cold storage,” said co-owner John McInnis. “We are breaking ground next week. We will put a construction entrance in, level out the site and start hauling fill in immediately. Hopefully around Nov. 1 we will have the building pad built. At that point we hope to work with you guys on official groundbreaking when you can stand up there and see what it’s going to look like.”
McInnis said they hope to have all the resident parking area, green space and outdoor bar open no later than May 2022. The building will continue to be under construction through the fall of 2022.
The council voted unanimously to suspend the rules to immediately consider the ordinance and voted unanimously in favor to adopt the ordinance.
During the regular session, the council: