As Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez prepare to repeat their “I dos” to their closest friends and family in rural Georgia today, security has tightened at the 87-acre property.
Large security gates were installed a few weeks ago at the end of the four-mile road down to Affleck’s sprawling Riceboro estate.
Today, a police car stands at the gates while the guards busily handed out bracelets to all arrivals, checked their names and checked them against the “Master Production” list.
has learned a permit banning overflights has been quietly secured with Affleck’s plantation home at its epicenter.
It effectively establishes a temporary no-fly zone over the celebrations and extends within a three-mile radius of the home.
Security is tight on the outskirts of Affleck’s sprawling Riceboro, Georgia estate ahead of Saturday’s wedding
Today, a police car stands on the gates while the guards busily handed out bracelets to all arrivals, checking their names and checking them against the “Master Production” list
Last-minute supplies were still arriving on Saturday morning, and catering trucks and music equipment disappeared down the tree-lined street
Workers manned the perimeter to ensure no one on the list slipped through the steel ring surrounding the ceremony
Lopez and Affleck were secretly married (above) at the Little White Chapel in Las Vegas, an event they even kept a secret from some close friends and family members. On Saturday they will celebrate the unification with a major ceremony in Georgia
Meanwhile, the river bordering the property is patrolled by security boats.
Last-minute supplies were still arriving on Saturday morning, and catering trucks and music equipment disappeared down the tree-lined street.
The wedding will be a massive $400,000 affair that took months of preparation, including installing dance floors and shipping glassware, linens and furniture.
Affleck and Lopez will wed Saturday at Affleck’s gorgeous Georgia mansion, which he bought in 2003 for $7.1 million.
While Affleck recently put the sprawling 87-acre property up for sale for $8.9 million, he eventually decided to keep the home and use it for a glamorous wedding ceremony with Beau Lopez.
Built in 2000, the home is a “plantation replica” in Riceboro, Georgia overlooking the North Newport River on private Hampton Island.
The main house “Big House” is the heart of the property and has 6,000 square meters of space
A white walkway was built from the back porch of the Great House down to the waterfront where a tent was installed.
The “Big House” is the jewel of the property and features 6,000 square feet of space, four bedrooms, five bathrooms and balconies overlooking the swampy river.
Surrounded by century-old oak trees, the mansion features pine floors, 15-foot ceilings, and romantic arched fireplaces dotted around the grounds.
The complex also includes two other structures known as Summer Cottage and Oyster House.
A cozy home down a path from the Big House, the screened-in Summer Cottage features exposed brick interiors, sloping ceilings, a fireplace, and a metal roof.
The final building on Affleck’s lot is the Oyster House, a massive residence that rivals the main house in terms of size and amenities.
Likely where the wedding reception will take place, the 10,000-square-foot Oyster House features three main suites plus five other bedrooms with bunk beds “salvaged from seagoing vessels.”
The couple have already had some unplanned hiccups preparing for the wedding, including when Affleck’s mother, Christopher Anne Boldt, fell off the dock and was hospitalized with an arm injury
The Oyster House is expected to host the wedding reception
Lopez is expected to wear a Ralph Lauren dress, and a white walkway has been created from the back porch of the Great House down to the waterfront where a marquee has been installed.
When Affleck first bought the property in 2003, he reportedly hoped to build a chapel on the site, but he and Lopez ended their original relationship shortly thereafter in 2004.
The couple have already had some unplanned hiccups preparing for the wedding, including when Affleck’s mother, Christopher Anne Boldt, fell off the dock and was hospitalized with an arm injury.
Development of the story, more to come.