Pensacola Mayor D.C. Reeves expressed frustration with the ongoing uncertainty surrounding Escambia County’s potential contribution to the Baptist Hospital demolition project during a September 16th press conference. After 19 months of discussions, the mayor admitted he has no clear answers about county support.
“I have no idea what’s going to come out of this county commission meeting and what the vote’s going to be and what it’s going to be for,” Reeves told reporters. He acknowledged discussions with Commissioner May about potential county contributions, particularly around $510,000 in abatement money, but added that any proposal would need careful analysis to “make sure that it makes sense for us.”
Will Not Accept ‘Poison Pill’
Despite the funding uncertainty, Reeves made it clear the city won’t let the project stall indefinitely. Drawing on his experience with similar situations, the mayor took a firm stance against endless delays.
“We’re not going to take the poison pill approach,” Reeves stated emphatically. “We’re not going to all stare at empty buildings for a decade and a half and say, well, I can’t believe so-and-so didn’t put in a hundred thousand or this. I am not going to treat our citizens that way.”
To address the funding gap, the City has asked Baptist to change the donation agreement to include six additional parcels around the old Baptist campus, with an assessed value of approximately $1.5 million. The sale or development of these properties could help close an expected $2 million fund gap caused by the county not contributing to the project.
When I pressed about the demolition timeline, Reeves confirmed an aggressive schedule. Assuming the donation agreement closes at the end of September as planned, demolition could begin soon after.
“The wrecking balls start before the end of the year,” the mayor confirmed. “That’s the plan.”
He noted the urgency stems partly from the limited validity period of demolition bids.
Community Engagement Before Development
Before any development plans are finalized, Reeves committed to extensive community outreach. The city plans listening sessions with surrounding neighborhoods and military leadership from nearby bases.
“Make sure we understand exactly what you believe the needs are and what the concerns are heading into this,” Reeves explained. These sessions will occur “before we draw anything, before there’s a poster board, before anything else, before demolition happens.”
The mayor was candid about the long-term nature of the redevelopment effort, setting realistic expectations for completion.
“This project will not be complete while I’m the mayor,” Reeves admitted. “This is going to be a multi-administration, multi-generational project. The best examples of redevelopment, these are 10 to 15 years long.”
He added that while demolition feels challenging now, it will likely prove to be “the easy part” compared to the years of community meetings, planning, and development work ahead. The Oct. 6 city council meeting will provide a comprehensive project update for both elected officials and the public.
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Rick Outzen is the publisher/owner of Pensacola Inweekly. He has been profiled in The New York Times and featured in several True Crime documentaries. Rick also is the author of the award-winning Walker Holmes thrillers. His latest nonfiction book is “Right Idea, Right Time: The Fight for Pensacola’s Maritime Park.”
1 thought on “Mayor Reeves Moves Forward on Baptist Hospital Demolition Despite County Funding Uncertainty”
I am very grateful for the dedication and commitment to this project by the City Council and especially Mayor D.C. Reeves. We can go back and forth for years wishing that Baptist Hospital had done the right thing and CLEANED UP THEIR MESS, but they have turned their backs on the neighborhood that supported them for decades. The Mayor is absolutely correct in that the buildings would sit empty and be a blight on the community and property values for years if we do not act now. Just look at the former Medical Center on Palafox Street. It has been an eyesore and drain on the community now for over 21 years. Baptist Hospital will soon look just like that with busted out windows, graffiti, drug activity, and vagrants living inside the vast property. It would devalue and devastate property values and cost the taxpayers a fortune in extra police calls and code enforcement. What the Escambia County Commissioners forget is that every city property owner pays county taxes. We pay for police and fire services that never cross into the City limits. Very little of our county tax dollars ever come back into the City limits for infrastructure projects. The County is also short sighted because once that property is no longer under the not-for-profit tax exempt status of Baptist Hospital and redeveloped into new homes and businesses, that property will ALL BE BACK ON THE TAX ROLLS, BRINGING BACK tax dollars to the County. The advance money that the Mayor is seeking benefits the County and benefits the taxpayers of District 3. The County should be working with the City on this vital redevelopment project. Thank you Mayor Reeves for your continued efforts!
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I am very grateful for the dedication and commitment to this project by the City Council and especially Mayor D.C. Reeves. We can go back and forth for years wishing that Baptist Hospital had done the right thing and CLEANED UP THEIR MESS, but they have turned their backs on the neighborhood that supported them for decades. The Mayor is absolutely correct in that the buildings would sit empty and be a blight on the community and property values for years if we do not act now. Just look at the former Medical Center on Palafox Street. It has been an eyesore and drain on the community now for over 21 years. Baptist Hospital will soon look just like that with busted out windows, graffiti, drug activity, and vagrants living inside the vast property. It would devalue and devastate property values and cost the taxpayers a fortune in extra police calls and code enforcement. What the Escambia County Commissioners forget is that every city property owner pays county taxes. We pay for police and fire services that never cross into the City limits. Very little of our county tax dollars ever come back into the City limits for infrastructure projects. The County is also short sighted because once that property is no longer under the not-for-profit tax exempt status of Baptist Hospital and redeveloped into new homes and businesses, that property will ALL BE BACK ON THE TAX ROLLS, BRINGING BACK tax dollars to the County. The advance money that the Mayor is seeking benefits the County and benefits the taxpayers of District 3. The County should be working with the City on this vital redevelopment project. Thank you Mayor Reeves for your continued efforts!