On Sept. 12, Urban Design Associates will present draft principles created for the Hollice T. Williams Equitable Development Framework Plan.
Why this matters: Mayor D.C. Reeves has repeatedly said that he wants the long-awaited Hollice T. Williams Stormwater Park project to be more than drainage improvements, and the Pensacola City Council has supported his efforts.
- In April 2023, Mayor Reeves participated in the Just City Design Mayoral Fellowship at Harvard University. He presented the Hollice T. Williams Stormwater Park project and how he wanted to reconnect the “lost neighborhood.” He received advice on how to improve public input.
- “It was really great to connect with national experts who have done projects exactly like this before and have seen them through, ensured that the community had feedback,” said the mayor.
In July 2023, the City of Pensacola over $39.7 million in state grant funding for several significant infrastructure projects, which included the Hollice T. Williams Stormwater Park project. The other projects involved the Port of Pensacola and the Fricker Community Center.
Dig Deeper: In February, the Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) awarded a contract to Urban Design Associates (UDA) to update the Urban Core, Eastside, and Westside community redevelopment plans and to produce a preliminary Equitable Development Framework Plan (EDFP) for the Hollice T. Williams Stormwater Park project.
- The purpose of the EDFP is to counter negative developmental impacts catalyzed by the construction of the Hollice T. WIlliams Stormwater Park. The equity principles developed after public input will included in the EDFP. They will guide park design and effect development projects with public funding within a 1/2-mile radius of the park.
Public Input
Several community events were held to gather public input, including multiple pop-up events with the Eastside community, as well as the two-day Party in the Park event. All community engagement ended the first week of August, and the public survey closed on Aug. 2.
UDA and City Staff gathered 335 survey results:
- 95 Slow Ride & Game of Skate
- 94 online responses
- 47 Bash Under the Freeway
- 40 St. John Divine Back-to-School Event
- 33 Senior Bingo
- 22 Democratic Party BBQ
- 4 Eastside Neighborhood Association Meeting
What is an Equitable Development Plan?
Development that minimizes negative impacts (like increasing rents and home prices).
Development that is inclusive to everyone, especially long-time residents and businesses.
CRA Urban Design Planner Rachel Bennett discussed the presentation with me yesterday afternoon:
“These principles that you see in this presentation are completely from the community members that live in and around the park area, or specifically the half-mile radius that you see in the presentation.
The point of these principles is to mitigate those harmful developmental effects that can happen after a major infrastructure project is placed in an area adjacent to a disadvantaged community.
These principles are going to be applied to the design of the park, and they’re also going to come up with applications in terms of how they can be presented in the design as well.
This is going to be a document that developers are going to reference if they are seeking any kind of local or federal money, especially incentive programs through us. This is the document that they’re going to have to reference to make sure that their developmental projects meet these principles.”
Building Trust
Bennett said that Eastside residents were initially skeptical of the process and plan.
“Traditionally, there have been some projects or plans that they have committed to that didn’t necessarily pan out. So, there’s been some distrust in terms of local government and our processes, but I think throughout our community engagement and being active in the community, we’re slowly starting to gain some of that trust back.”
Draft Values & Principles
Inclusive, Accessible & Responsive
1. Ensure the park and new development are welcoming and accessible to everyone.
2. Meet the needs of all ages & abilities.
3. Create comfortable gathering spaces.
4. Make it simple and affordable for community organizations and residents to host events in the park.
5. Provide programming and recreational amenities that reflect the desires and needs of the surrounding community.
History & Culture
6 Honor & celebrate the history of the Lost Neighborhood & important places & people through signage, historical markers, public art, etc.
7 Preserve existing community buildings and invest proactively to prevent deterioration.
Economic Opportunity
8. Create jobs and provide opportunities for wealth building for local residents.
9. Require positive impact(s) from development projects in the adjacent community or communities.
Environmental Justice
10. Address and monitor environmental impacts of the highway to minimize negative effects.
11. Ensure stormwater projects don’t have negative effects on the immediately adjacent community.
12. Develop and fund a long-term maintenance plan for the park that is sustainable.
Housing Affordability
13 Create new affordable housing.
14 Provide support to existing long-term homeowners so they can remain in their homes.
15 Support and stabilize existing rental housing to prevent displacement.
Local Decision-making
16. Include community members in the decision-making process.
17. Demonstrate familiarity and responsiveness to existing community plans.
See presentation.
