Downtown Development

Flournoy Breaks Ground on Ellison at West Main

The 323-unit apartment project on the old ECUA site’s eastern parcel is a private development with no city subsidy—but City Hall is watching closely to protect neighbors and infrastructure.

The Flournoy Development Group has begun mobilization on Ellison at West Main, a 323-unit residential development on the eastern portion of the former ECUA site at the corner of Government Street and South DeVilliers Street. Mayor D.C. Reeves announced the project’s start at a Tuesday, April 28 press conference, emphasizing that the city’s role is oversight, not ownership.

• “This is a private property transaction with a private contractor,” Reeves said. “No subsidy was provided. No tax break was provided. This is just your standard commercial development happening on private property.”

What’s Being Built

The Ellison at West Main project will deliver 323 residential units with an average unit size of 909 square feet. The development occupies the eastern parcel of the old ECUA site, while work on the separate western parcel—referred to by Reeves as the “other half of the main street” project—is also underway nearby.  See design plans:  Ellison at Main

Construction fencing will surround the property and be placed at the back of the curb on both Government Street and South DeVilliers Street. No lane shifts or road closures are expected within the next two months.

Key construction protocols announced by Reeves include:

• Erosion control, dust control, and environmental protections required in compliance with FDEP and city standards
• All trucking routes must be approved by the city and communicated to stakeholders in advance
• No proposed driveway connection to Main Street
• City representatives will be on-site for required inspections

Infrastructure Concerns Addressed

At the press conference, I asked Reeves how confident he is that Pensacola’s downtown infrastructure—stormwater, traffic, utilities—can handle the influx of hundreds of new residents from both ECUA-site projects combined.

• Reeves acknowledged the concern but pushed back on the premise that the city takes a casual approach to capacity planning. “One misperception is that stormwater calculations are something that is loosely set by the city,” he said. “There are state regulations around how much stormwater capacity you have to provide.”

He cited ongoing public investment in stormwater infrastructure as evidence of the city’s seriousness, and noted that Government Street currently has significant traffic capacity relative to what these two projects will add.

• On utility placement, Reeves described a less-visible but routine negotiation with developers: “Even where the FPL power boxes go—there’s a bare minimum you can do and the cheapest way to do it. We go to developers and say, ‘Can you put them over here? Can you put them over there?’ We have those conversations on big and little things to make sure we’re honoring the taxpayers.”

The Case for Downtown Residents

Reeves closed by framing the project in a broader economic argument for downtown vitality. He pointed to the Southtown neighborhood as a model for how bringing residents downtown changes the commercial environment—supporting restaurants, small businesses, and street life that an office-hours-only downtown cannot sustain.

“Our downtown was different when you had people waking up downtown. To continue to support our small businesses, at some point you need to have people coming in and being able to support them.”
—Mayor D.C. Reeves

“I’m looking forward to having folks downtown,” Reeves said, “but we are absolutely mindful of those things and we stay on top of this best we can.”