Pensacola Mayor D.C. Reeves released the lease agreement for American Magic that will be presented to the Pensacola City Council for its approval this week. If the vote passes, he will host a signing ceremony on Monday, Feb. 26, with Skipper Terry Hutchinson.
“We’re very, very excited, and I really truly believe that this project can be transformational for the city,” Mayor Reeves said at his weekly presser. “I think these opportunities don’t come along often that you can now call yourselves at the forefront of the United States in something.”
He continued, “We are going to be able to say we’re the leading sailing community of the United States when they arrive here.”
The contract is for 10 years, with a 10-year option, for an annual lease of $291,200.
If American Magic wins an America’s Cup, it will host one preliminary regatta within three years of the win “so long as the City of Pensacola is prepared to host a preliminary regatta and commits to covering costs normally provided by host cities, including, for example, providing space at the Port required by competitors, security (both on land and in the water), required on-water infrastructure, and required people management.”
Each year of the lease, American Magic will hold a “Pensacola/American Magic Open House” that will be free to the public.
American Magic will “use its best efforts to host at least two (2) international sailing events or regattas each Lease Year in Pensacola Bay and/or the Gulf of Mexico near Pensacola.”
American Magic will create 120 New Jobs on or before the earlier of three years after the Date of Beneficial Occupancy or December 31, 2029, and thereafter maintain for four consecutive years the 120 New Jobs.
Read American Magic Lease