Record spending reported at beach

pray for hurricanes; no one hurt but evacuations, beach erosion, and condo destruction

Don't let them fool you. They'll find an excuse for a tax increase of some sort anyway. They are already setting the stage by saying that they will increase personnel. I guess the Mayors still have some deadbeat relatives and friends who are not yet on the payroll.

And why is it against the law to reduce the sales tax when things are good? I love to shop in Gulf Shores and Orange Beach but restrict my buying there because the sales tax is more than it is in Foley. I know lots of other people (neighbors for example) who never go to Target or WalMart in Gulf Shores because of the extra 1% sales tax and we are the people who live here year around and shop on a daily basis. Does Orange Beach and Gulf Shores ever take into consideration the lost revenue from locals that they are not getting year around for the sake of socking it to the Snowbirds and the summer vacationers on a seasonal basis? If these Mayors were smart, rather than try to push a local school board down their constituencies throats at a great cost, they might do better to pay a qualified consulting firm a few thousand dollars to see if reducing the sales tax by 1% would actually bring more money into their towns. But no; any thought of reducing taxes is not in any politicians vocabulary.

They should have just raised the hotel/lodging tax instead.

I really don't know what the hotel/lodging tax is around here but I am always shocked at how much it is when I book a room at a hotel elsewhere. Although I am in favor of someone else paying (selfish), I also think that this area can kill the goose that laid the golden egg if they raise the hotel/lodging tax too much. Look at Las Vegas; you can get a hotel room really cheap--and I mean a very nice hotel room. The casinos want to make it easy for you to come and then spend your money there. We don't have casinos (yet), but we do have a beautiful coast and plenty of nice restaurants and shops for people to spend their money before going back home; so, I hope the local governments don't discourage people from enjoying our amenities (and helping to pay for them) by making it too expensive for families to come here.

Well, I certainly don't want to pay for it 12 months out of the year. They come, they visit, they go home. I stay, and try to make ends meet raising my family. If I had the choice of raising the sales tax .01 or the lodging tax .01, I will choose the later every time.

I have lived here for 15 months and will be leaving again to rejoin civilization in a few months... but here's what I think about this place: 1) Real Estate is cheaply made, I mean the worst quality I have ever seen and sickly overpriced -homes and rentals. 2) Terrible supermarkets and inferior service by uneducated workforce. 3) Over zealous police and pay-for-freedom court system rakes in millions with superficial arrests and charges 4) City enjoys 1,000's of illegal aliens $$ and protects businesses that hire them - all over. 5) Zero culture, and narrow entertainment options 6) Pathetic street lights, like the one at County Road 6 and 59

Gulf Shores Over-rated wrote:

I have lived here for 15 months and will be leaving again to rejoin civilization in a few months... but here's what I think about this place: 1) Real Estate is cheaply made, I mean the worst quality I have ever seen and sickly overpriced -homes and rentals. 2) Terrible supermarkets and inferior service by uneducated workforce. 3) Over zealous police and pay-for-freedom court system rakes in millions with superficial arrests and charges 4) City enjoys 1,000's of illegal aliens $$ and protects businesses that hire them - all over. 5) Zero culture, and narrow entertainment options 6) Pathetic street lights, like the one at County Road 6 and 59

BUT DON'T YOU KNOW THAT WE'RE "THE FORWARD CITY" - I agree, there's a lot to change and a lot of catching up to do. Somebody has to carry out the trash first though.

The quality of homes--at least the new homes is actually quite good and the prices are excellent compared to most of the Country--I think homes are cheaper in the middle of Oklahoma but then again, who wants to live there? The supermarkets are the pits--WalMart is the cheapest but it is horrible. Kanes is just thievery and Winn Dixie is close behind. Yes, we do have illegal aliens but they work hard and most don't cause problems. Where I came from we had domestic aliens who robbed, raped and killed so be careful of the demographics where ever you plan to go. Yes, there is not a lot of culture here but I consider the beach to be a good alternative and I don't have to subsidize art museums, Kennedy Centers, opera houses, etc. for the small minority that likes that kind of culture but are too small in number to support it alone. True, it appears that corrupt government is rampant here but, it is everywhere as you will find out when you are living in your next town for a few weeks. One day you just might decide that it is better to work for what you want in making the place you live better than it is to constantly move from one place to another to get away from what you don't like. Good luck anyway.