(OBA®) – Orange Beach, AL – Orange Beach is making strides toward developing more medical services in the city by partnering with South Baldwin Regional Medical Hospital for a new 11,000 square foot building with the cornerstone being an imaging center and doctor’s offices.



“It’s going to be CT, dexa scan, mammography, all that kind of thing,” Mayor Tony Kennon said. “It will be very convenient for all of us. Dr. Forbus will be over in that building (across the street) with Southern Rapid Care. It will be easy access for transport. They have the clinic for all of our employees. It’s going to be really nice and convenient for everybody.”

During the Oct. 9 meeting, the council also gave the OK for Flora-Bama owners to begin work on their beachfront restaurant, bar and parking lot. After the meeting, Kennon gave a brief update on bridges.

The Orange Beach Medical Plaza will hopefully be up and running in about a year, Kennon said.

“They’ve went through the planning commission and going now to come to the council and working out parking,” he said.

The building will go on an empty lot at the corner of State Route 161 and Bonita Lane and across the street from the Medical Arts building. During the Oct. 5 meeting, it was announced the city is selling that building to Southern Rapid Care which is currently under contract to serve city employees.

“We’re putting together a contract and we’re going to sell it,” Kennon said. According to city documents, the price of purchase would be $1.5 million.

With the construction of the new building Bonita will then be cut off from State Route 161.

“We’re going to probably block it off there and it would be entrance to that medical complex,” Kennon said. “It’ll affect three or four houses maybe on Bonita that will just have to go down Snapper to go out.”

BEACHFRONT DEVELOPMENT

Cold drinks could be flowing by early spring at the newest beachfront bar in Orange Beach on a parcel near the intersection of State Route 182 and State Route 161.

“They’re actually going try to start breaking ground next week or the week after and by next spring hopefully have the parking lot and all the improvements done with an open bar and then by the following fall have the restaurant built,” Kennon said. “By early next year they should have an open bar and live music there.”

BRIDGES

Kennon said he can’t talk about details in the ongoing talks between the city and owners of the toll bridge but hoped progress was being made.

“I think we’re getting close to a decision,” Kennon said. “It’s moving forward so we’ll see.”

Odds of ever seeing a Wolf Bay bridge grow longer every day, Kennon reported.

“That’s dead,” he said. “The construction costs have driven it so far out of our ability to do anything with it. It’s just a dead issue now.”