Jeff Weeks interviewed me last month about my book about the Community Maritime Park referendum battle, “Right Idea, Right Time.”
When visitors stroll through Blue Wahoos Stadium or enjoy a sunset along Pensacola’s vibrant waterfront, few realize the fierce political battle that made it all possible. In 2005, Pensacola was dying. Young professionals fled to Atlanta, Orlando and Austin. Our unemployment might have been low, but so were our wages. We led North Florida in Superfund sites. Hurricane Ivan had devastated us, and we desperately needed hope.
Then two visionaries—Quint Studer and retired Vice Admiral Jack Fetterman—proposed something audacious: transform 27 acres of industrial waterfront into a mixed-use park featuring a baseball stadium, maritime museum, conference center, and public green space.
What should have been a civic celebration became a referendum war.
Save Our City, led by CPA Charlie Fairchild and Councilman Marty Donovan, launched a scorched-earth campaign. They called it a “$100 million giveaway” and questioned the motivations of some of Pensacola’s most respected leaders. They closed their “public” meetings to opposition voices. They spread misinformation about tax increases that would never happen.
Meanwhile, a new generation refused to stay silent. Pensacola Young Professionals organized. The Independent News and Rick’s Blog challenged every false claim. Hundreds knocked on doors. The Black community, energized by a genuine commitment to inclusion, mobilized voters.
On September 5, 2006, the referendum passed 10,297 to 8,140.
The elected superintendent has nothing to do with Community Maritime Park. Everyone knows what positions I have taken where development is concerned, here is where density can be had, when in many areas of Pensacola it is not feasible, having read Studer’s book I am aware of his original proposal, everything I have said is “this is where tall can be” as so much of Pensacola cannot have it.
But I want to be clear, you make issue of “referendum” rather than “civic community” and so I want to be clear, the elected superintendent referendum has nothing to do with community maritime park, and the people deserve a vote on that, the school board has approved it.
A number of persons who favored Community Maritime Park are in favor of bringing back the elected superintendent, some of them never wanted it appointed in the first place.
So “referendum war” I don’t know about, because the proposal was put to the people, and it won, and so I see an attack on the people getting to vote on things, when there are any number of issues you really are better off letting the people vote, because at a vote of the people it has a chance to pass where it may not if it is only by, a legislative body must approve it.