7/29/22
Judge Jodie Bishop in District court basically ruled that he feels he can not legislate from the bench. He did not address directly many of our points. We feel that his judgement was in error and have referred the case to the Alabama Supreme court. Briefs have been submitted. The Alabama Supreme Court will review the case and we hope to hear a judgement on our issues within a year from now. They review the case as originally submitted and no new info can be presented. The Town of Perdido Beach has in the mean time cleared and added recycled asphalt to a road in the “park”. The construction of the launch itself has been resubmitted for permits. See here to address the new permitting issues – http://noboatlaunch.com/news/info-to-file-complaints/
Link to the Boat Launch Plans they submitted for permitting in August 2022 – http://noboatlaunch.com/news/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/TOPB-Boat-Launch-Plans-2022.pdf
8/24/21
We want to provide you with an update on our case which is now at rest. Joseph Thetford, our attorney, did an extremely professional job representing us. His knowledge of the law, composure, and work ethic, all together provided us with a very compelling case. Hoss Mack – Baldwin County Sheriff and Jodie Kelly – Alabama Marine Patrol, who testified on our behalf as expert witnesses greatly improved our position.
WHATS NEXT: Our attorney has ten days to write a post trial brief, the town attorney then will be given 7 days to respond. Then, Judge Bishop will render his decision on our case (14-30 days ??) It’s at his discretion.
We are extremely grateful for everyone who has joined in the battle to save our beloved Soldiers creek and stayed the course for 4 long years. We could have not fought this battle without you. We do estimate that we will still need approximately $10,000 for legal fees when our final bill is received. Please reach out to us if you can help in any way. Any support you can provide is truly appreciated, we will make you aware of any news as soon as we receive it. We are almost to the finish line. God Bless.
8/22/21
As we prepare to go to court for the next two days ( Monday and Tuesday), we ask that you uphold us ALL in your prayers, and that true justice will be carried out. The NOBL Team
4/3/21
We have new court dates set for August 23rd and 24th, 2021. That will be a Monday and a Tuesday. We are definitely looking forward to it ! Mark your calendars please.
Thank you everyone for all your support.
2/9/21
Greetings to all,
Hope everyone is doing well and having a better start to a new year. Unfortunately, due to COVID exposure related issues, our court case scheduled for Thursday & Friday has been continued. We will update everyone with new dates, times, and pertinent information as soon as it is available.
Thanks for your continued support and be safe.
9/28/20
Hurricane Sally had an issue with our court dates … Best wishes to everyone for getting through the mess she left behind.
The trial in this matter has been reset for a special setting on February 11 and 12, 2021, beginning at 9:00 A.M. each day. Please mark your calendars accordingly and let us know if you have any questions.
8/21/20
LET’S STOP THE PUBLIC BOAT LAUNCH DISASTER IN ITS TRACKS
Vote for:
Chris Head for Mayor
Catherine Cubbage for Place 1
Sandy McAnally for Place 4
8/18/20
Court dates have been set for September 16th-17th, 2020 @ the court house in Bay Minette, AL. Room #8. Court starts at 9am. Unclear at this point if the court room will be open to the public because of COVID. We will update as we find out more info.
8/12/20
A temporary restraining order has been approved to stop construction at the Town of Perdido Beach poorly planned PUBLIC boat launch site until a judge can hear the details of our case. Court date is pending.
7/28/20
Please contribute to the legal fund if you can.
Many families have donated multiple times. If this project goes through it will change (many say ruin) Soldier Creek forever. Please tell everyone you know to get involved. The legal fund needs help.
Also vote in the Perdido Beach Election if you can… http://noboatlaunch.com/news/time-to-vote-for-a-change/
7/27/20
Judge Bishop ruled that our case needs to be heard in court. 😉 Yeah!
This is exactly what we have wanted all along. We will update everyone with court date, time, and location as soon as we have that information.
7/17/20
We hope everyone has a great weekend ! Our summary judgement was Friday morning via Zoom meeting with Judge Bishop. Both sides were allowed 15 minutes to plead their case. Our attorney Joseph Thetford, with Chason & Chason, competently and thoroughly represented our interest. Judge Bishop will review all of the information and give his ruling at a later date. We will keep you updated with any new information as soon as possible. This is the town’s second summary judgement attempt.
6/17/20
Now that the town is actually breaking ground on the “park” lot we are starting to get a lot more questions from neighbors that thought the PUBLIC Boat Launch would never happen. I will attach a couple pictures of the current land clearing activity for our out of towners and give some updated info below.
For those contacting us about the heavy equipment at State St. –
The town has now cleared out the undergrowth and staked out the boat trailer parking places and driveway for their “park” they want to be a PUBLIC Boat launch. They have started as of 6/17 to clear what will be the entrance driveway off Tuscaloosa Dr along the south side of the lot. They are cutting trees and grinding stumps and now have several loads of dirt brought in for a base.
What we are doing –
We have a summary judgement hearing set with Judge Jody Bishop on July 17th via Zoom.
Here is a copy of Town of Perdido Beach current PUBLIC boat launch site plans – http://noboatlaunch.com/news/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/PB-boat-ramp-plans-10-10-19.pdf
The Town of Perdido Beach has now gotten the majority of their permits in place. The only thing left to stop them is the legal fight. Any support anyone can give now or has given previously is very much appreciated. Everyone who uses Soldier Creek will be affected. Please tell everyone you know to please get involved.
5/26/20
The town has AGAIN requested for a summary judgement. They don’t appear to want to go to trial. We do. The previous trial dates in early June have been continued (pushed off) and a summary judgement hearing with Judge Jody Bishop has now been set for July 17th. We will continue to keep you informed.
4/5/20
Due to scheduling (and probably COVID) Judge Bishop has reset the trial of this matter for June 2nd and 3rd in Bay Minette. We are happy to have a trial date. This has been a long long time coming. Please mark your calendars, and let us know if you have any questions.
The Town now has their final blueprints ( This is a joke. They have had the launch plans since 2017 no matter what they told the court ) and have the majority of their permits in place. This legal fight is the only thing currently stopping them. Please support our efforts. Our legal fund needs more help to push across the finish line.
Contact at – admin@noboatlaunch.com
to find out how you can contribute to the legal fund.
When you look at both sides of this discussion what you have on the one hand is a group of people whose only argument seems to be they want the convenience of not having to drive 7 miles to put their large boat in the water at a 2.5M PUBLIC boat launch in Lillian, AL. People with small boats can currently use the Youpon St. ramp in Perdido Beach. There are 5-6 multi-owner waterfront lots in town, several of these shared by as many as 52 owners. These typically come deeded with and paired with their house lots. Most of these group lots also have boat launches on them. We have not confirmed but believe there are also 2 launches in town where people can pay to launch bigger boats. So the obvious question is… How many people are there exactly who currently have boats bigger than 17-18ft and bought a place in town with no water access of any sort and now want the “Town of Perdido Beach” (in other words the rest of town residents) to buy them a closer launch for convenience? Do these people even exist ?? (seems to be the Mayor and the Town Council only)
On the other side what you have are professionals in construction management, real estate valuations, legal matters, criminal justice and public safety who are all saying that a PUBLIC boat launch project in Perdido Beach will be a disaster for everyone, according to their field of expertise, and will cause a multitude of problems, that will ultimately completely destroy the peace and tranquility of this small residential neighborhood pretending to be a town.
The Mayor and town council will not listen to reason. They have ignored the letters, petitions, and people speaking at public meetings.
Their updated poorly planned PUBLIC Boat Launch design – Perdido Beach PUBLIC boat ramp plans as of 10-10-19
Note: The push slab ramp extends 75′ into Soldier Creek. Depth at 42′ from shore at that location currently measures at 23″. So with your truck fully in the water and past the waters edge you wouldn’t yet have 2′ of water to launch in. (hold on when the 2′ boat wakes hit your truck)
More than 560 signatures have been collected from your friends and neighbors stating – “This proposed PUBLIC ramp will negatively affect our property for a variety of reasons.”
More than 158 people have written letters to the Perdido Beach Town Council and Mayor opposing this project. http://noboatlaunch.com/news/letters-against-the-project/
More than 60 people have submitted tens of thousands of dollars and growing to a lawsuit working to stop this poorly planned project from ruining the quiet peaceful neighborhood of Perdido Beach and the creek itself. This project drastically affects all of us who know and love Soldier Creek and would have already been completed if it wasn’t for the lawsuit and legal fight. (please contribute if you possibly can, as this affects all of us)
“As the primary responder and enforcer of laws at the Town of Perdido Beach, I am of the opinion that the proposed boat launch would be a safety risk for people in the community as well as people traveling to and from the boat launch.” – Baldwin County Sheriff Hoss Mack 4/16/19
If you live near or use Soldier Creek in any capacity then this dramatically affects you. This project will negatively impact public safety, crime, property values, traffic patterns on land and in the water, and many other issues.
For Inspiration See Letters Against Rezoning and the PUBLIC Boat Launch
Please contribute to the legal fund if you can.
2/28/20
The town has now obtained the majority of their permits. Eeeesh. We are contesting this.
12/2/19
Happy News! Our case has been set for trial on April 13, 2020. We’ll begin each day at 9:00 A.M. at the courthouse in Bay Minette, Courtroom #8. You are welcome to join us. Thanks for all your support in getting up to this point. Unfortunately our legal fund needs more help to push across the finish line. This poorly planned PUBLIC boat launch project drastically affects all of us who know and love Soldier Creek and would have already been completed if it wasn’t for the lawsuit and legal fight. Please consider donating today!
10/23/19
Looks like the trial dates are shaping up to be possibly in February or March 2020.
The town is moving forward with their poorly planned agenda…
Town Council Meeting October 10, 2019 – council_agenda 10-10-19
RESOLUTION 2019-07 AUTHORIZING THE MAYOR TO ENTER INTO A CONTRACT WITH LUCIDO ENGINEERING AND SURVEYING, LLC TO COMPILE AN ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN PLAN TO CONSTRUCT A BOAT LAUNCH AND PIER AT STATE STREET …
The town council and mayor had previously stated adamantly that there was No Boat Launch Plan … and they questioned –> What are we all concerned about? Why all the public uproar? What is everyone so concerned about? You guys are jumping the gun. ETC.
(Kinda inconvenient this PUBLIC Boat Launch site plan supposedly authorized in the meeting above was already drawn up and is dated a month earlier 9/13/19. The previous plan from 2017 is ALSO linked below)
Current Plan – Perdido Beach PUBLIC boat ramp plans as of 10-10-19
Previous plan from 2017 – Town of Perdido Beach PUBLIC boat launch plans 2017 – amended 5-28-19
7/7/19
We are hopefully scheduled for a trial in summer 2019. The trial dates were previously on the books for June 20 and June 21 at 9:00 am in Bay Minette courthouse but will be rescheduled because of date conflicts .
The Town is recklessly moving forward with the permitting process. We need your help to file complaints to the appropriate permitting agencies. Info to File Complaints
6/19/19
Court ordered mediation was held and was unsuccessful. The legal battle will be moving forward.
4/23/19
The Town of Perdido Beach requested the court to dismiss the case and oral arguments were held at Bay Minette courthouse. The Judge decided that there are enough unresolved issues and that the case will move forward.
Side note –
There is a private piece of property directly to the north of the proposed PUBLIC boat launch called lot 13. It is owned jointly by 52 property owners.
Right before the oral arguments on 4-23-19 a last minute Court Motion was submitted by the Town of Perdido Beach to the Circuit Court of Baldwin County in which the city CLAIMED that several of the owners (9 total) of Lot 13 AGREED THAT THEY DID NOT HAVE RIPARIAN RIGHTS. This implies that they do not OWN the parkway, boat launch, and beach area which some have had in their families for over 70 years. Later that same day seven of these people were spoken to individually and stated that they had been PLACED ON THE MOTION against their knowledge … well isn’t that interesting… eeesh.
We need your help to STOP this madness. Contact us at admin@noboatlaunch.com to contribute to the legal fund.
9/17/18 Public Hearing update
Two people spoke in favor of the PUBLIC launch and rezoning. (One of them works for the town and the other one is on the planning commission. Ridiculous.)
Six people spoke against the rezoning and launch project. Also we read as many letters against the rezoning and launch as we had time for and delivered 158 pages of protest letters to the Town Council and Mayor. It was suggested that the Town Council should at the very least read the words of the people they represent before any voting. The Mayor laid the 1″ thick stack of letters face down and after some brief discussion the 4 council members that were present all voted unanimously to rezone the State St property. Servants of the people?
The trial dates are on the books for June 20 and June 21 at 9:00 am in Bay Minette.. Please contribute.
Interesting things that were stated in this meeting by Town Council members –
- It was stated that this is not a boat launch zoning… This is proven false by the text amendment changes. See http://noboatlaunch.com/news/text-amendments/
- It was stated that a council member’s boat had not been sunk at his dock for weeks spilling any oil and gas in the creek… This was proven false with pictures.
- It was stated that there will be no traffic problems with this project… The Baldwin County Sheriff has said this will be the major problem
- It was stated there will be no announcement for the boat launch so no one will come. Hello… When you purchase an AL fishing license you are sent the location of all PUBLIC boat launches in the area. That is an announcement and they will come.
- It was stated that a particular Council man gets stopped a lot by citizens who want a park… Really, that’s just weird. There is a park in town by the Fire Department. It is 4 acres. It hasn’t been maintained or used in years. A park has only been mentioned over the last several weeks by the council as strategy since they have come to realize the extreme outcry against a PUBLIC boat launch.
- It was stated that no one shows up or writes letters in support of the launch because they are scared… I don’t think so. This is a public venue with civil discourse. The real reason is because the support side’s argument is weak (and do these people even exist?) We only ever hear from the Town Council and one or two friends. They want the convenience of not having to drive 7 miles to put their large boat in the water at the PUBLIC boat launch in Lillian. On the other side what you have are professionals in construction management, real estate valuations, legal matters, criminal justice and public safety who are all saying a PUBLIC boat launch project in Perdido Beach is a disaster according to their field of expertise and will cause a multitude of problems that will ultimately destroy the peace and tranquility of this residential neighborhood pretending to be a town. We also have more than 560 petition signatures collected and more than 158 pages of protest letters.
- A town council member stated that if the creek only allowed trolling motors, canoes, and kayaks that would be fine and his preference… Oh really? Then why do we need a PUBLIC boat launch?
- It was stated that the rezoning questions are subjective… They are listed here at the bottom of the page – http://noboatlaunch.com/news/rezoning-application-process/ You decide. These are the same questions used by Baldwin County. If the law is subjective… then there really is no rule of law. It seems that the Council is just proposing that they will do whatever they want. No oversight or restrictions or rule of law needed. It’s good to be King…
9/10/18 Announcement
Please come to the PUBLIC Hearing on Monday, September 17, 2018 and let your voice be heard. This is a big one.
Fill out our comment petition listed at – http://noboatlaunch.com/news/comment/
The Town Council is trying to rezone the lot at State St so they can put in a PUBLIC boat launch and pier. (yes they tried this last year but it was done incorrectly).
The outcry has been so extreme against the PUBLIC boat launch that they now are trying to say the rezoning is for a park “for the children”.
Text amendments have already been changed to allow the addition of a boat launch with no additional approvals from the Planning Commission or input from town residents and other people affected once the property is rezoned. (that was a sneaky move)
Now is our chance to stop this disaster in the making.
PUBLIC Notice
A Public Hearing will be held by the Town of Perdido Beach TOWN COUNCIL on Monday, September 17, 2018 beginning at 6:30 p.m. at the Al Thompson Community Center- 9212 County Rd 97, Perdido Beach, Alabama. The Town Council will conduct a public hearing concerning a request submitted by Mayor Kae Hamilton on behalf of the Town of Perdido Beach
The applicant is requesting approval to rezone 2.62± acres from R-1, Single Family District to OR, Outdoor Recreation District. The Parcel Identification Number is 05-63-04-18-0-001-001.000.
You can learn a little more about the rezoning process here – http://noboatlaunch.com/news/rezoning-application-process/
August 2018 Meetings update
There were a series of meetings in August due to the fact that per Mayor Kae “Our lawyer asked us to redo the whole rezoning process on the State St lot.”
This redo process has to go to the Planning Commission 1st and have public hearings and then on to the Town Council. Thanks goes out to all that attended these meetings and hearings.
The 1st public hearing by the Planning Commission did not have a quorum (enough committee members) present to hold the meeting.
The next event was a second public hearing by the Planning Commission where 10 people spoke against and 1 council member spoke for the boat launch/rezoning. Not a lot of love for a PUBLIC boat launch to come in and destroy our town. No vote was held at this hearing. It was decided by the Planning Commission that the vote would occur at the next regularly scheduled Planning Commission meeting.
However, the 3rd event was a special meeting/vote held on 8/29 called by two members of the Planning Commission (who want the rezoning) while two others (who don’t want the rezoning) were out of town. This generated a vote in favor of the rezoning. Surprise. Surprise.
The 4th event was the regularly scheduled Planning Commission meeting of September 5th. At the regularly scheduled Planning Commission meeting the commission voted to rescind the YES vote of 8/29 and voted NOT to change the zoning of the State Street property. They also mentioned possibly finding another, more appropriate, location.
Our suggestion is…
Our next awesome event is that the Town Council will have a public hearing on the same item. Yeah they’re obsessed…
Court update
The town has requested a delay to the trial and the court date has now been pushed back to February 2019.
Court update
The original court date was July 2018. The town has requested a delay to the trial and the court date has now been pushed back to September 2018.
5/24/18 Council Meeting update
The Perdido Beach town council pushed through the “text amendments” to try and make their poorly considered purchase and actions fit their own rules. This was against the recommendation of the planning commission. A disappointing outcome but not unexpected.
Summary –
At the start of the meeting the Town Council went into executive session with the Town Attorney and another attorney representing the Town in a lawsuit. That session lasted 50 minutes. (that means no members of the public present. You know. The people they represent.)
After that there was a Public Hearing: Community members spoke against the proposed changes and read statements also opposing the changes from people who could not attend. No one spoke in favor of the changes. Public Hearing was closed. It was noted that the Perdido Beach Planning and Zoning Commission did not approve the Council’s request for “text amendment changes” to the Zoning Ordinances.
The Council voted to change the ordinances in spite of the fact that no community members present spoke in favor of the changes and the Council did not have the support of the Planning and Zoning Commission.
We do not need a PUBLIC boat launch in this town.
5/12/18 Boat Launch status update
The Town Council is up to their shenanigans, again!
The Planning Commission shot down the Town Council’s request to modify the “text” in the Land use and Zoning ordinances of the Town of Perdido Beach. The vote by the Planning Commission favored those of us against the boat launch and the Town Council is not happy.
A special thanks goes out to Chris Head, Christi Koehle, Bob Gross, and Hank Jordan for voting against the Town Council and voting for what is best for Soldier and Palmetto Creek. A PUBLIC boat launch does not belong in a residential neighborhood.
The town council is going to ignore the planning commission and vote to pass the text amendments in order to keep pushing forward with the proposed boat launch. It seems they are working off of the motto – “Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead”.
They have also moved this “special meeting” to May 24 at 6:30pm. This was moved closer to Memorial Day so they would have a smaller group of people seeing the “wrong that they are doing”? It is very important that we have a large showing of opposition to the towns agenda. Please see below for the town councils agenda for this meeting.
Agenda – Notice Town Council Public Hearing 5-24-18
Hope everyone has a great weekend and thanks for your continued support!!!
8/21/17 Status … Going to Court
Despite an overwhelming turnout opposing this decision at each meeting, all requests for a more prudent allocation of the BP funds being used for this project have fallen on deaf ears. (like paving the many gravel roads in town) The town council has chosen to ignore the petitions, the many letters, the public speeches, and the advice of experts. Most of us are NOT surprised by this decision. As we believed, the town council has left us no choice but to pursue legal recourse.
We thank you for all your support!! Please sign the petition if you have not done so yet … and we will let you know of other ways you can help.
We are going to court.
The PUBLIC Boat Launch has
8/17/17 3rd Public Hearing
At the 3rd pubic hearing on August 17th. They held the event at Town Hall instead of the Fire Department. Both previous events had approximately 100 people in attendance. There was a new sign in bright yellow hanging behind the town council (it was not there 3 days previously) stating maximum occupancy 24 people. Many people had to stand outside at this hearing. At the meeting the Mayor and Town Council were informed that there are now 546 people who have signed this petition, protesting and opposing this project. There were 17 who spoke against the project and only 1 spoke for it. There were also an additional 20 statements against the project submitted by people who could not attend the event.
The vote was held immediately after all comments. The Mayor and Town Council were unanimous in voting for the rezoning of the lots on State Street.
7/20/17 2nd Public Hearing
At the Second public hearing on July 20th the Sheriff’s office sent Baldwin County Chief Deputy Charlie Jones to speak to the town council who again confirmed all the problems that occur at other PUBLIC boat launches in Baldwin County. Both hearings had an Overwhelming amount of people in attendance speaking against the launch and rezoning. Statements were also made by other professionals detailing the issues and problems associated with this project. At this second hearing 17 spoke against the project and only 3 spoke in favor. We presented the Mayor and Town Council with a printed copy of the petition with 382 names on it who had all stated “This proposed PUBLIC ramp will negatively affect our property for a variety of reasons.”
The 7/20/17 event made the local papers…with the title – “Perdido Beach Boat Launch Draws Public Outcry“
The town council ignored the will of the people and the advice of professionals again.
6/7/17 1st Public Hearing
At the June 7th public hearing Baldwin County Sheriff Hoss Mack submitted a statement that was read to and subsequently ignored by the planning commission stating his Strong Recommendation Against this public boat launch for Multiple reasons related to crime and public safety. At the June 7th meeting 26 people spoke against the project and only 3 spoke in favor. The Planning Commission ignored all of this.
