Baytowne Wharf evolving with Tupelo Courtyard

SANDESTIN, FL - Developer Tammy Lenhardt sees more potential in the Emerald Coast than in the Rust Belt.

That, the Michigan businesswoman told The Log, is why she's developing Tupelo Courtyard down here in the Village of Baytowne Wharf rather than up north. Lenhardt said she became familiar with Baytowne Wharf while visiting Sandestin for business meetings.

"The local business economy here (in Michigan) was tied to automotive and residential building markets and was really hard hit,"

Lenhardt said. "We looked at areas we thought would recover more quickly ... Sandestin, I believe, is going to bounce back and is going to be a better long-term investment."

Tupelo Courtyard is the first project for Getting America Back To Work, an organization that aims to assist entrepreneurs create new businesses and stimulate the economy without government funding. The project is expected to create at least 20 full time jobs. Lenhardt is also the founder of Getting America Back to Work and said the Baytowne project is being recorded as a possible documentary or TV pilot.

A Sandestin news release says Tupelo Courtyard will offer more than 4,900 square feet of new venues for Baytowne Wharf visitors:

• La Douce Vie French Bakery, with meals, breads and desserts available.
• Raspberry Rhino Martini and Cigar Bar, with soft music, comfortable seating and a cigar lounge offering hand-rolled cigars.
• Top This! Tapas Grill not only offers tapas - Spanish appetizers - but a lunch and dinner menu, plus stand-up comedy and jazz performances on the weekends.
• Boondocks Family Arcade is an entertainment center that "will provide a safe and central environment for families with children and teenagers," a Sandestin news release says.

"I think it offers a comprehensive entertainment venue for the entire family," Lenhardt said. "You've got live music, live comedy, an arcade for the kids and you've got the martini bar and the bakery. There's something here for each member of the family - all generations. It's out of the main flow of the village so it's a little quieter, it has more of a European atmosphere, with laid back casual dining."

"When Tupelo Courtyard was conceptualized, back in 1999 it was meant to be a gathering place representative of the New Orleans French Quarter," said Sharon Gold, vice president of development and commercial assets for Sandestin. "It's a place where you met up with your friends or family, and are free to meander and enjoy the briskness of the day or evening."

Gold added that "our mission statement for the Village of Baytowne Wharf was in 1999 and still is today to ‘create places where amazing experiences happen.' We strive for guests to have unique, memorable, satisfying experiences. We've accomplished this with these new venues."

Want to work there? Aspiring employees should contact General Manager Robert Walker at (248) 613-3686.