Developers have big plans for waterway

The Associated Press
May 27, 2004

ORANGE BEACH – A developer wants to turn 200 acres on the Intracoastal Waterway in Orange Beach into a destination with features such as a marina, movie theater, condos and a Ferris wheel.

Birmingham-based AIG Baker plans to build The Wharf, a mixed-use development, on land that stretches for more than 4,000 feet along the south side of the waterway and includes property on the east and west sides of the Foley beach Express bridge.

The project, connected by a waterfront boardwalk, would have condominium units, a marina, retail stores, restaurants, hotels, an amphitheater for outdoor concerts and a Rave movie theater. The theater owners would like to open by July 2005.

“That means everything has got to click,” developer Alex Baker said.

He has been meeting with city officials in Orange Beach and will soon seek approvals for a Planned Unit Development. The land is zoned general business.

Baker said AIG Baker plans to buy the land by the end of the year.

He said the project would be built in phases over five to seven years, with the first phase to include condo units that would be stacked or built above the retail spaces.

About 100,000 square feet has been reserved by small retailers and the developers expect to sign national, big-box retailers after the project gets started.

He wants people to view The Wharf as a one-stop destination where they could ski, fish, eat, go to the beach, buy their groceries or shop for a swimsuit.

The Wharf “will have strong appeal to the boating community due to its deep water access,” said Herb Malone, president of the Alabama Gulf Coast Convention and Visitors Bureau.

“We have a tremendous amount of yacht traffic that passes through town, and this would be an off-ramp for that traffic to stop,” he said.

With most of the beachfront property in Orange Beach and Gulf Shores developed, interest is growing in the other side of the island, Malone said.

Malone said The Wharf would complement the Orange Beach RiverWalk, a multi-use development planned on 144 city-owned acres at the Foley beach Express toll bridge’s northern landing. The RiverWalk would include a Gulf World marine park, retail space, water park, hotel and a theater. Its site is almost directly across the Intracoastal Waterway from the Baker project. Baker said he would like to provide boat transportation between the developments when they are complete.

Source: The Birmingham News