Can't beat SoWal August through the end of May with the exception of a few crazy weeks in April. And then we get the benefit of all the coffee shops, restaurants, etc. that can survive because of the busy summer and spring break seasons. And we've learned that we can avoid traffic and crowds for the most part if we do what we love best anyway - porch, pool, beach, repeat (with a few trips to Publix and a few meals out in between). We, too, plan to be in SoWal more and more in the next 3-5 years.
We live in a college town that has 30,000 students coming back to college in a week or so and they'll stay until the end of April. Then have we have a glorious 4 months of peace and quiet and little traffic and we get to peacefully enjoy all the benefits of living in a college town. We couldn't have the jobs or lives we have here without the students, so I'm used to appreciating them coming into town and then leaving town. We just get used to the cycles and rhythms. The same seems to be true, at least for many people, with the tourists and South Walton - learning to live with the cycles and rhythms of tourists in a beach community.
As for the development decisions, some of it is a bit scarey but I really can't complain much unless I get active in the community/government meetings (and I live to far away for that right now).