A large recreational vehicle resort under development near Gulf State Park in Orange Beach is set to expand a growing segment of the region’s beach tourism industry, one aimed at both winter snowbirds and touring families visiting during the summer.
Pandion Ridge LLC is building a master-planned, high-density maritime RV resort community on Canal Road, about three-tenths of a mile west of the Foley Beach Express and next to the west entrance of The Wharf in Orange Beach. Spread across 221 acres, the Pandion Ridge development includes plans for clubhouse buildings, swimming pools, pile-supported walkways, electric and sewer infrastructure, and paved RV parking pads.
According to Gulf Shores and Orange Beach Tourism, Pandion Ridge will join a list of 14 RV resorts and campgrounds already operating around Gulf Shores and Orange Beach. Kay Maghan, a spokesperson for the tourism bureau, said there isn’t a precise way to track the direct economic impact of RV-based lodging, but noted these resorts still contribute meaningfully to the local economy through lodging-tax revenue.
Visitor surveys posted on the tourism bureau’s website show RV resorts and campsites see heavier use during the summer and winter months than in spring or fall. A survey of 646 visitors between November 2014 and February 2015 found 16 percent staying in RV resorts or campgrounds, while 15 percent of respondents used RV lodging during the summer of 2014. That figure dropped to just 6 percent in the fall of the same year.
“[RV resorts] are very popular options with our snowbirds in the winter and with families in spring and summer,” Maghan said. “As we continue our focus to grow out our spring and fall shoulder seasons, we expect to see a rise in popularity of RV parks in the fall increase.”
A separate spring 2015 survey of 559 beach visitors found that of the 417 who stayed in paid accommodations across Gulf Shores, Orange Beach and Fort Morgan, only 3 percent chose an RV resort or campground, compared with 73 percent who stayed in rented homes, condominiums or timeshares. The average travel party that spring spent $1,484 on lodging overall.
Once finished, Pandion Ridge is expected to include approximately 493 rental lots, built out in three phases. The first phase covers 39.4 acres and will include 172 lots. By comparison, the nearby Gulf State Park offers 496 RV lots along with access to a golf course, walking trails, modern bathhouses and a 1,500-foot fishing pier, all within walking distance of the Gulf.
Orange Beach Planning Director Griffin Powell said the city council has approved three RV resorts over the past several years. Heritage Motor Coach Resort & Marina, built in 2009 on Bayou St. John, is fully built out with 79 lots. The gated resort is restricted to “Class A” motorcoaches, the largest and most luxurious category of RV, and none older than 10 years; lots there are available for both rent and purchase.
The Buena Vista Coastal RV Resort, a 32-acre site on State Highway 182 just east of Gulf State Park, is being developed in smaller phases of eight to 10 lots at a time and will eventually total 111 RV spots, some paired with attached coach houses, according to Powell. Orange Beach is also home to the Beech Camper & Mobile Home Park and the Terry Cove Motor Coach Resort on Canal Road, where motorcoaches must likewise be “Class A” and no more than 15 years old.
Powell said Orange Beach saw a wave of RV resort applications after condominium development slowed following the destruction caused by Hurricane Ivan.
“I think with the condos, it might have been harder to secure financing after Ivan, so developers started to shift to other things,” Powell said. “One thing I have noticed is that these things go in phases. We have periods where everybody wants to build hotels, then they want condos and apartments, and recently they have wanted motorcoach and RV resorts.”
Powell added that demand at Gulf State Park, including wait lists for its own RV lots, has likely helped fuel growth among the area’s privately owned resorts and campgrounds.
“I do think wait lists and bookings at Gulf State Park have contributed to the growth of some of the private resorts,” he said.
Orange Beach maintains special zoning categories for RV parks (RVP) and mobile home parks (MHP), though Powell noted Pandion Ridge, Buena Vista and Terry Cove are all zoned instead as Planned Unit Developments.
According to Gulf Shores Planning Director Andy Bauer, that city has nine RV parks offering roughly 1,200 campsites combined. Economic impact figures specific to those sites weren’t available, but Bauer said RV parks remain a popular draw for tourists. Gulf Shores uses its own special zoning district, R5, which permits mobile home parks and RV resorts, and Bauer said the city’s RV resort market hasn’t changed much over the past decade.
Farther north along the Baldwin County coastal corridor, an additional 13 RV resorts and campgrounds can be found in Foley, Summerdale, Robertsdale and Elberta, according to listings on VisitFoley.com.