Seaside Trip Report

[UofL]

Tearing down '30A' homes to build big homes with little to no parking. Now, no beach for those people. There were always challenges as to where your beach access was. Can we walk to it or do we have to drive to it (but no parking). Now, you can have beach access across the street from your rental but it might be a narrow band and you have to get there early to set up. (Besides the 'ghost' setups by chair guys, there are also the people who set their stuff up really early but don't come down to the beach til after lunch.)

We just returned from our visit. Wonderful water and weather. Nicest people everywhere, whether at a restaurant, store, residents, or visitors. Plan A is always the beach so we didn't get to eat out or tour as much as we would have liked. We still wore our masks inside. Seaside is adding some kind of towers. For wireless? Cable? At the end of almost every street on the beach side.

Stopped in Great Southern during HH. Not enough oysters available to serve during HH. Stopped in a shop behind Seaside. The owner couldn't offer me the size I wanted in a top. He said he can't get anything.

Both sides of Seaside bike parking is now for golf carts. Bikes park in the circle. No charge for parking happened while we were there but we stay there and as usual, we only left once to go to Watercolor Publix.

See you in August (no more May) unless weather between Louisville & Seaside in February allows for a drive south.

Ellen

 

[Matt J]

The towers are for 5G cell phones.

 

[Truman]

Thanks for the report! Restaurants and shops in Seaside and all over SoWal have had a busy year with a ton of visitors. Labor shortages and supply issues have made it tough on them, often having to go with restricted hours and limited options.

Seaside parking is free on the circle, probably until next spring break.

Tourist numbers will likely be lower next year from the records being set because pent up Covisd demand will lessen and people will have more travel options. Also the basic facts of limited beach access, overcrowding at restaurants, traffic, etc. has lessened the appeal?

SoWal is already overbuilt and it is going to get much much worse in a hurry with new giant rentals, hotels, and a lot of new apartments, townhouses, and homes. And that's just south of the bay ... Freeport is set to bust wide open.

Soon the only thing that will separate SoWal fron the rest of overbuilt ruined Florida will be the protected public land we have. But areas to east, west, and north are going to boom and put more pressure on SoWal.

 

[Dawn]

Love these reports!

I expect a crazy compounding of prices for Gulf front and properties with deeded access with plenty of beach.

I wouldn't be surprised to see a tenfold increase at places like The Retreat and next to State Parks like Gulf Trace and Stallworth.