Hurricane!

Click through for a good analysis of the hurricanes and beach damage.

One of the challenges is ecological. Hurricane Dennis subsumed portions of the beach and damaged the dunes separating the housing from the Gulf's waters. As the article rightly asserts, the planning framework employed by developer Robert Davis and Duany--which limited private housing on the oceanfront in favor of a communal beach--proved fortuitous. Since housing doesn't abut the water and natural dune systems were respected, housing took less of a hit than in other parts of the region.