GULF SHORES, AL — In a step toward advancing the Vision 2025 Plan the city adopted this past year, Gulf Shores is looking for a partner to develop a piece of city property near the main beach intersection in town.

City officials, including Economic Development Coordinator Blake Phelps, hope this project will be the starting point of changes to the beachfront area. The lot is directly east of Alvin’s Island and goes runs to West First Avenue, bordered on the south by West Beach Boulevard and on the north by West First Avenue.

“This two acres is a key piece, but it’s only two acres,” Phelps said. “I think there’s a lot of potential there within the district. The two acres, we hope, is just the first domino to fall, the first thing to really get that redevelopment going.”

No matter what type of venture lands on the property, parking will be a central theme with an eye on making the parking area on the beach side of the road into more of a walking area.

“We actually request that any proposed project provide at least 150 public spaces,” Phelps said. “Long term we’ve got the concept of redeveloping the Gulf Place area and the public beach area into a much more passive and pedestrian friendly environment versus the vehicles riding through there constantly. We’d like to move that parking to the north side of the road.”

Phelps said the city has no preconceived ideas or preferences as far as uses for the parcel and is ready to hear from developers.

“There’s not really a set focus of ‘this is what we are looking for,’” he said. “What we are really looking to do is really open it up for different teams and developers to bring their ideas to the table. Obviously we want something that’s going to fit well within the vision we have for that area, something that compliments the businesses that are down there is obviously a key priority and any opportunity to potentially bring in other adjacent or nearby land to be able to develop as well.”

Long-term plans and hopes for the area also include rerouting Alabama 182 from the east behind First and Second avenues east to an intersection further north on Alabama 59. Again the aim is to get the busy intersection away from the beach.

“Long term we would like to see that whole area redeveloped and have that pedestrian oriented environment with shopping and dining and entertainment,” Phelps said.

“We’re excited about the potential to create that walkable, energetic beachfront district we envision.”

This first development is right in the middle of the area targeted for this new vision.

“Gulf Place being right there across the street it’s already one of the more popular areas of the city,” Phelps said. “In working to get that whole district redeveloped and moving toward the vision that we have, we feel like reaching out there and accepting proposals to look at what some potential partners would bring to the table is an interesting concept we are excited about.”

In some ways the effort is similar to what city leaders are developing already further north in the Waterway Village District. Acme Oyster House anchors the district now, but there is also Tacky Jacks, The Diner, the Gulf Coast Arts Alliance gallery and just across the Intracoastal Waterway is LuLu’s.

That area just hosted the first Zydeco and Crawfish Festival on Saturday and is also the site of the monthly Art Market hosted by the GCAA gallery.

“With Waterway Village we’re trying to create a new destination, a new location for people to go and be able to enjoy shopping and dining and entertainment,” Phelps said. “The beachfront area is already known as that.”

Those wishing to submit proposals have to attend some key meetings starting on May 5 at 10 a.m. with a mandatory meeting in Council Chambers. The deadline for questions and comments is May 11 at 5 p.m., proposals are due on June 4 and the City’s finance committee will review those proposals on June 25.

Gulf Shores also owns plenty of beachfront property south of Alabama 182 in the area beginning east of the Phoenix All-Suites Hotel and flowing westward to the Island Winds East condo complex.

Others who own parcels in the area besides the Phoenix include Bhupat Patel who is listed as owner of the Pink Pony Pub property, Beach Place Development which is the Hangout, Alabama Surf Inc. or Surf Style and there’s one parcel in parking lot west of the bathhouses on the southwest corner tax records say belong to a Mary Wallace of Daphne.

There is a lot due west of the lot the city is seeking proposals for and the owner is listed in tax records as Perwinkle LLC with an address listed as 1960 Stonegate Drive, Birmingham. It owns four fifths of the entire block framed by West Beach Boulevard on the south, West First Avenue on the north, West First Street on the east and West Second Street on the west.

At the west end of the parcel on one fifth of the block is a row of townhouses.