In 2003, the Pensacola City Council created a Strategic Plan outlining goals and programs through 2009. One of the six goals was “Pensacola: A Growing City” – which made an annexation plan a high priority. As with so other council initiatives, it took four years for the council to develop its annexation strategy. From March-June 2007, the Council worked with staff, under the leadership of Community Development Director Kevin Cowper, to develop the plan to “expand and clarify the city limits.”
Cowper identified 16 areas that should be annexed by the City. Total assessed value in 2007: $579,308,470 for 2,553 acres. Annual tax revenue to the city: $2.9 million (homestead exemptions would decrease this amount)
In reviewing city records, only a few parcels have been annexed since June 2007. The most notable are the Baptist Hospital campus(Yes, Baptist Hospital wasn’t part of the city limits until then) and Escambia Treatment Site.
Even with declining property values, the tax revenue from areas the City Council approved to go after in 2007 would have made a tremendous difference in the city’s 2010-2011 budget.
Here is the article we published in July 2007: Pensacola A Growing City