ORANGE BEACH — During his tenure as mayor, Tony Kennon has referred to the city as the "Redneck Riviera." However, during a town hall on Wednesday, he said that is a thing of the past.
Kennon presented the latest on the "Leave Only Footprints" campaign, which he said has helped clean up the beaches.
"This is what our beaches looked like, used to look like," Kennon said while showing a beach photo of various flags and beach chairs. "And, I think at some point, I mean, I was here when it was the 'Redneck Riviera,' and this was who we were. But that has changed, and just the pure numbers dictated that we do something different."
Kennon said protecting the beach was part of the change. He said every morning, the beaches are graded and cleaned.
In 2025, Coastal Resources beach crews picked up 51,064 pounds of recycled material, 18,107 pounds of trash and 5,923 pounds of marine debris. Further, the Waterways and Shoreline Enhancement Program removed 48 tons of marine debris last year.
The town hall included a presentation by Kennon highlighting other improvements, including infrastructure and quality of life. The city has enacted a vulgarity ordinance and limited the number of tattoo parlors, title loan and check-cashing businesses, palm readers and pawn shops.
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