Architect of "Doodle Deals" in Destin dies

Longtime Destin developer George “Doodle” Harris died Wednesday at the age of 64 after a battle with lung disease.

      Harris, who was born at home in Crestview in 1943, was known for his “Doodle Deals” — purchasing and developing several tracts in Okaloosa and Walton counties.

      He also spent two stints in prison on federal income tax charges.

      Harris was president of Saudi Corp., a developer of Holiday Isle in Destin. Among his projects were Lake Lorraine Golf and Country Club in Shalimar, Dana Point in Niceville and Seacrest Beach on Walton County Road 30A.

      He also proposed a fishing pier in Destin that would have reached 1,200 feet over the Gulf of Mexico, but scrapped the idea after an outcry from residents and officials.

      He planned to repair the Navarre Beach Pier after a series of hurricanes in 1985 damaged it.

      Friends knew him as a local philanthropist; he donated bronze sculptures to several local elementary and high schools. But he also was under the Internal Revenue Service’s watch.

      In 1983, Harris was indicted for failing to pay income taxes in the 1970s. He pleaded guilty and was required to pay $1.1 million in back taxes.

      He served minimum-security time at Eglin Air Force Base before he was transferred to a tighter Tallahassee facility when a plane he owned was seized in a cocaine-smuggling case at Destin Airport. Harris was not charged in that case.    A man who also served time in the Eglin prison wrote a book that mentioned Harris by name. He claimed that Harris’ wife and business partners visited the facility every week to go over development plans.

      Harris was released in 1986.

      In 1989, the IRS filed $12 million in tax liens and seized most of Harris’ property. Agents “took everything out of his house, including his kid’s Nintendo game,” his lawyer said at the time.

      His wife and another lawyer bought most of the property back at public auction later that year. The auction list was 174 items long.

      Niceville real estate agent Judy Byrne Riley, a longtime friend, remembered him as “extremely creative” and a skilled negotiator.

      In 1999, Harris again pleaded guilty to income tax evasion and was sentenced to a year in federal prison. The IRS said he owed $800,000 from 1990 to 1993.

      Harris made many donations along the Emerald Coast. In 2005, he paid part of the cost to engrave seven names on the Okaloosa County Veterans Memorial in Crestview. He also donated two lots in his Seacrest Beach community to The Lighthouse Family Retreat, an organization that helps children with cancer.

      He and liquor store owner Cash Moore helped refurnish a Crestview Little League concession stand after it was burglarized in 2004.

      Funeral services are scheduled for 1 p.m. Tuesday at Faith Assembly Christian Church in Miramar Beach.