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Abby Prentiss

Beach Fanatic
May 17, 2007
577
123
I have been amused over the years about rumors of Johnny Depp, Michael Jackson, Michael Jordan. And real stories - Sheryl Crow, Michael McDonald, etc.

Saw this on Tally . com - Nice quote from Dave at the end.


Once a part of the “Redneck Riviera,” the south Walton County strip along state road 30A has traded its jean shorts for designer labels, though pickup trucks remain in style.

Welcome to “Nashville South,” a once quiet, isolated 26-mile stretch of the Panhandle between Destin and Panama City that has transformed into a vacation capital for the South’s rich and famous.

Among those who frequent the area: country music stars Faith Hill, Kenney Chesney and Luke Bryan; actors Sandra Bullock, Reese Witherspoon and Vince Vaughn; NFL stars Tony Romo and Eli Manning; and even presidential candidate Mike Huckabee and Republican political consultant Karl Rove. Some — like Bryan, Huckabee and Rove — have vacation homes here.

Just don’t expect them to make a big deal about it: They’re not here to be seen.

“The celebrities who come here are very off the radar when they are here. They come with their kids, they wear flip-flops, and they relax at the beach,” said Jessica Standley, president of Rosemary Beach Cottage Rental Co. Cottages — if you can call a 4,400 square foot home with six bathrooms that — in the resort community rent for up to $28,000 a week.

Standley recalled seeing Hill wearing a baseball cap and riding a bicycle through the area.

It wasn’t always like this. When Dave Rauschkolb opened Bud & Alleys bar and restaurant in 1986, the area was largely undeveloped. Other Floridians in more upscale areas like Miami and Palm Beach derisively called the Panhandle the Redneck Riviera, a banner many in the area wore with pride.

“We had the advantage of being among the last stretches of Florida beach to be developed, and we learned lessons from Destin, Panama City and other places,” he said.

The area enacted stringent building codes that restricted building heights and kept condominiums out.

The high-end residential development began in the mid-1980s with construction of the quaint beachside village of Seaside, home to Raushkolb’s bar. The designed community features multistory pastel beach cottages, bike paths, parks and open-air boutiques. Its serene setting made it the perfect locale for the 1998 Jim Carrey movie “The Truman Show.”

Other planned resort communities followed, each featuring a unique design style with multimillion-dollar homes and breathtaking ocean views catering to wealthy Southerners.

Development really took off about a decade ago, and property values in south Walton have jumped more than 50 percent since then. Beachfront homes for sale on 30A routinely go for more than $1 million, according to real estate website Zillow.

Most celebrities don’t want to talk about their love of the area. Representatives for singer Dierks Bentley, chef Emeril Lagasse, Bryan and others all declined to make their clients available when contacted by The Associated Press.

One celebrity who would talk is musician John Oates, half of the duo Hall and Oates. He frequents the annual 30A Songwriters Festival, where acts such as Graham Nash, Indigo Girls and Leon Russell performed in January. In years past, Sheryl Crow was known to stop into the Red Bar in Grayton Beach and preform a song or two.

“It is a great place to hangout. It has a very chill atmosphere,” said Oates, who is working on a television project exploring American roots music scenes across the country.

Rauschkolb, the bar owner, said many visitors try to compare the area to more famous celebrity gathering spots in California or New York. “I don’t know if ‘Southern Hollywood’ is the right description or ‘Southern Hamptons’ or what. I just call it Paradise,” he said.
 

Conn006

Beach Lover
Feb 5, 2016
86
29
54
We heard 2 stories back in the winter months that the huge oceanfront home being built just off the Ed Walline access, is either Snoop Doggs or a McDonalds owner. I giggle every time I walk by it! I just can't imagine 30A being Snoop Doggs kind of area to relax in, but I've been wrong before!
 

justhavinfun

Beach Fanatic
Nov 13, 2008
373
140
Eastern Lake
I will gladly mail you a copy of the signed property release if you send me your address and an acceptable answer as to why it is your business.

As a local resident , I try to make it a practice to try and give people, especially celebrities their own space/place to call home and have some resemblance of privacy. I make it point to not tell people, tourists etc etc when asked - I hope you find that a sufficient reason for asking the question.
 
Last edited by a moderator:

Jerry Lewis

Beach Fanatic
Mar 19, 2010
369
110
As a local resident , I try to make it a practice to try and give people, especially celebrities their own space/place to call home and have some resemblance of privacy. I make it point to not tell people, tourists etc etc when asked - I hope you find that a sufficient reason for asking the question.
I am simpatico and think celebrity worship is boring and I don't really understand it. Especially related to country music. :rofl:

Next time just say what you mean.
 

Poppaj

SoWal Insider
Oct 9, 2015
8,149
19,906
This is not Southern Nashville, Little Memphis, or Little Atlanta. Stop trying to claim ownership, it's Sowal!
 
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