Cheap? When the pier was rebuilt after Ivan destroyed it in 2004 (reopened in 2009), the price tag was almost $15 MILLION. The renovations that were just completed hit the $2.4 MILLION mark. I don't know what your idea of cheap is, but over $17 MILLION is far from cheap.

These pics were taken the afternoon of Sept 14...over 24 hrs before landfall. Waves were already reaching the bottom of the pier deck. I can only imagine how high the waves were the closer the storm got. The power of water is something else
The last pic was the morning of the 15th