The Good, the Bad, and....the Good again! New airport opening and oil spill update.

THE NORTHWEST FLORIDA BEACHES INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT


It happened! It happened! The new Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport (Anyone have a nickname yet? That's a mouthfull.) is open. Check out the article below with pictures.

Panama City News Herald Article

It's hard to believe that opening day is finally here. All those years of wishing and hoping. As the former manager of Coldwell Banker United's Panama City Beach West End office, I was right there with everything that was going on to bring this to fruition. So much work, so much effort and now the Panhandle gets to rise out of the shadows of resort areas into the main stream. Thanks to everyone invovled and thanks to Southwest for bringing us discount airfares!

Southwest Airlines News Release


OIL SPILL IN THE GULF UPDATE

The pictures from Louisiana are horrific and the level is anxiety is beginning to grow again here in Florida.  We are all working hard to spread the word about what is great about Destin and the rest of the Emerald Coast, while we prepared for the worst, but what do we do from here?

Florida Given $25 Million by BP

I think all we can do is continue to stay positive, while we prepare to volunteer to clean-up and prepare ourselves and our properties.  I heard a pretty good suggestion today.  Get your house appraised right now.  If the spill does hit and does impact property values, then we can get another appraisal and if our homes appraise lower file a claim.  I heard from another source that banks are accepting more offers on short sales and/or answering offers quicker.  Just a thought for those working with short sales.


THE TOURIST SEASON IS UPON US!

I'd be interested in seeing numbers on the tourists over the next few months.  I think we're primed for a great summer, if they level of tourist traffic this spring is any indication.  New attractions like Le Grand Cirque at Grand Boulevard in Sandestin. 

Check it out here... Le Grand Cirque

"Beauty and the Beast": Oil Spill Update and Info

Another beautiful weekend in paradise! For me, May and September are by far the best months to be on the Emerald Coast. Moderate temperatures, yet warm enough to enjoy the beach, go fishing, kite surf on Okaloosa Island, or just sit outside and enjoy an evening concert.

It's interesting that much of the conversation among us "locals" was about the current impact of the oil spill. For us in real estate, these are the rental cancellations and contract cancellations. I keep hearing about the vacation rental cancellations, but the traffic sure isn't slacking off. I spent Saturday afternoon in bumper to bumper traffic. Traffic that I'm used to seeing in the summer, but not in May. I was also quite impressed by all the people out walking along Scenic Hwy 98 the other morning when I drove into work. In fact, I saw a couple walking along stop at one of the listings in Frangista Beach and grab a flyer. People are still curious about real estate on the beach!

More and more information is coming out about the oil spill and the recovery efforts. I've tried to gather links to the best sites and I'm posting them here.

The Governor's Commission: http://www.volunteerfloridadisaster.org/

Walton County Sheriff's office for local volunteer info: http://www.waltonso.org/

Florida CFO Alex Sink has directed the Department of Financial Services to open a Consumber HelpLine at 1-877-My-FL-CFO (1-877-693-5236) to assist business owners impacted by the oil spill. Specialists are available from 8.00am to 5.30pm Monday thru Friday. More information is available at http://www.MyFloridaCFO.com.

The vultures are circling. Beware of the scammers trying to take advantage of this. If you have a legal question or think you need legal council, go to the Florida Bar for info. Make sure a lawyer is eligible to practice in this state. You can check someone out at http://www.floridabar.org and use the "Find a Lawyer" function. You can also check someone out by calling the Florida Bar directly at 1-866-854-5050.

EPA's Monitoring Efforts: http://www.epa.gov/bpspill/

Stay informed and please share any other information or links that I've not included.

Here's to another great week in paradise, oil spill or no oil spill!