LOCAL GOVERNMENT
The Decade-Long Fight for Bathrooms at Veterans Memorial Park
Veterans Memorial Park of Pensacola has thirteen memorials and monuments, a thirty-foot tower, and a half-scale replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial known as Wall South. What it still doesn’t have, after roughly a decade of effort, is a permanent public restroom.
Dave Glassman, a retired Marine who served on the park’s board from 2011 to 2020, joined me on Rick’s Blog Live to explain how a fully funded restroom project has stalled.
“The Jewel on the Bay”
Glassman opened by making the case that most Pensacola residents don’t fully appreciate what the park is.
“It’s our sense collectively that there’s actually very few people that seem to know what that piece of property is that we refer to as the jewel on the bay.”
He described the park’s landmarks — the helicopter memorial visible from the gateway into Pensacola, the thirty-foot tower, and the twelve other memorials commemorating the wars in which American troops have fought and died. Wall South, the first-ever half replica of the Vietnam War Memorial in Washington, D.C., draws the most recognition, Glassman said.
Progress on the Horizon at Veterans Memorial Park
In this week’s Inweekly, which goes live online at 11 a.m., we reported that after roughly 12 years, the project may finally move forward. The Pensacola City Council is expected to consider a proposal in August to purchase and install a two-stall prefabricated permanent restroom facility. If approved, it would replace years of temporary solutions.
Although everyone involved agrees permanent restrooms are needed, there remains sharp disagreement over why the project has taken so long.
Mayor D.C. Reeves argues that nearly all meaningful progress has occurred during his administration, which began in late 2022. Leaders of the Veterans Memorial Park Foundation insist they had already completed the architectural design and approval process before Reeves took office, only to see years of work stall under the new administration. Former Mayor Grover Robinson says there was broad support for the project during his tenure but acknowledges no formal agreement existed before he left office.
It’s a great read.
